If you think you know what Australian fashion looks like in 2023, think again

New designers presenting this year at Australian fashion week promise a different kind of national style, one that deviates from past associations with resortwear. 

Doja Cat wears a custom look by Australian designer Caroline Reznik at Coachella in 2022. Image credit: Getty Images

The designers presenting this year at Afterpay Australian Fashion Week promise a new kind of national style, one that deviates from past associations with resortwear.

Before he became one of Australia’s most promising new designers, Alix Higgins always felt a little misunderstood.

“When I was living in Paris, I was always criticised because my collections didn’t include any outerwear or heavyweight ‘winter’ pieces,” the 29-year-old says, ahead of his second runway show at Australian fashion week. “I tried to say, in Australia’s climate we just don’t really have to deal with that, especially in Sydney. You can have one wool knit piece and a light coat and it’s enough.”

Higgins has been based in Australia since 2020, and only recently quit his job as a UTS fashion tutor to design full-time. The decision coincides with his club-friendly lycra pieces becoming cult items and garnering traction around the world; Hunter Schafer and Troye Sivan are fans. The hues he uses are informed by the arid landscapes of desert Australia, but he’s a very different kind of Australian designer.

Christine Centenera and Troye Sivan, who wears a top from Alix Higgins Resort 2023. Image credit: Sonny Vandevelde

For years, our local fashion industry has been linked to resortwear, which many see as a by-product of Australia’s year-round arid climate. Perhaps the romantic ease associated with Zimmermann, one of our best-known international success stories, or the understated effortlessness of Bassike and Sir the Label have played a role in this public perception. But while wearable elegance is always valued and commercially viable, Australia’s newest designers are ready to push outside the box. 

Fellow emerging name Caroline Reznik is on the same page as Higgins. A former dancer, Reznik’s designs are inspired by performance garb and have struck a chord with confident, influential women on the world stage—Doja Cat, Rosalía and Beyoncé among them. While some designers aim to conquer Australia before taking over the world, the UTS graduate’s international outlook saw her reverse the process, attracting international attention ahead of her debut AAFW show.

“I wanted to create something that wasn’t already within the sea of fashion in Australia—I didn’t want to make just another blazer or a classic white shirt,” she says. Once based in New York, Reznik was aware of the international connotations surrounding Australian fashion’s resort influence and took it upon herself to push past them. “Australia has been known for its coastal essence through apparel and tapping into the identity of a wearer who escapes to the shoreline… I think today international retailers are looking for something different,” she explains.

Doja Cat wears custom Caroline Reznik at Coachella 2022. Image credit: Getty Images

Her end game is to shake up the status quo in her debut collection, through angular silhouettes that radiate sensuality and power; an example is her bejewelled bra sets, which would be at home among the haute couture on Beyoncé’s Renaissance Tour, or the sharp leather jacket that slices down into a bodysuit from Resort 2024. “When I look back at resort collections from previous years, the work has been much more commercial [and] safe… What I’ll be bringing to the resort season will look different to what’s been displayed before.”

Pushing the envelope is one thing, but like Higgins, Reznik is aware her pieces must be fundamentally wearable to turn a profit. In the case of her upcoming range, that means winding back the conceptual bespoke nature of her past work, and making risk-taking clothes that are still fit for the everyday. Of Resort 2024, she says, “The plan is to dilute some of my explosive ideas, while keeping the identity [of the brand] consistent across the ready-to-wear category.”

Melbourne designer Erik Yvon has similar intentions. The clothes made by the emerging TAFE Graduate are crafted to spotlight uniqueness; think the mesh chain-link tank tops or body-clinging patterned dresses from his Resort 2024 range, designed to promote the wearer’s individuality. If the looks are unlike anything else available in Australia, it’s because that’s his intent.

“[My work] came from a desire to create something that was missing in the local market—clothes that were more than just a fantasy or trend, but instead were an authentic expression of self,” he shares. Having moved from Mauritius to Australia at 19, Yvon initially struggled to see his self-expressive fashion reflected in mainstream Australian style but found a community in Australia’s diverse queer scene. Yvon aims to bring the community’s bold and uninhibited glamour to the fore through his designs, and so far, it’s working; his bustling second AAFW solo show on Tuesday was a masterclass on the kind of inclusiveness that wouldn’t have been seen at Australian fashion week a decade ago.

“I wouldn’t describe Erik Yvon as rebellious, but rather a brand that is taking a different approach to fashion that reflects our values and the desires of our community,” the designer explains. “Our focus on inclusivity and community may be somewhat radical in the Australian fashion industry, but I see it as an important step towards making fashion more accessible, positive and authentic for everyone.”

Erik Yvon Resort 2023. Image credit: Getty Images

Of course, the inclusivity push in Australian fashion can’t be discussed without the influence of First Nations designers. Since the pandemic, labels like Ngali, and designers Grace Lillian Lee and Paul McCann have reframed ideas of what fashion is considered intrinsically ‘Australian’ through work incorporating cultures that span thousands of years before the invasion. Often using the natural world as a reference point, certain First Nations creatives make pieces that carry moving messages; take McCann and J’Aton Couture’s tiered red gown from last year’s First Nations Fashion + Design show, which represented the destruction of traditional Country by climate change-induced bushfires and floods. Australian fashion at large may have a reputation for being influenced by nature, but for many First Nations designers, it goes deeper. 

“Although I grew up in the outback, our family holidays were always trips to the beach,” recalls Julie Shaw, founder of David Jones-backed label Maara Collective. The designer’s brand makes resortwear, but not the conventional kind; her pieces are delicate and intricate, resulting from collaborations with First Nations artists and artisans. It’s clothing that’s wearable but bears incredible detail; take the Maara gown worn by Charlee Fraser at last year’s NGV Gala, which featured weaving by Yolngu artisans at Bula’Bula Arts from the Northern Territory. 

Charlee Fraser wears custom Maara Collective at the NGV Gala in 2022. Image credit: Getty Images

With Maara’s designs extending from lithe party dresses adorned with woven sleeves, to maxi dresses bearing Indigenous art, Shaw’s collections prove relaxed resortwear and immaculate craftsmanship can fit in the same basket. Given the appetite for Australian resortwear extends from here to overseas, she hopes a respect for traditional First Nations artisanship extends to all corners of local fashion.

“I hope the industry can discover that the time, patience and extreme care required for culturally respectful collaborations will ultimately result in so much more than just an aesthetically beautiful collection, but one of enriched the experiences for all involved,” she notes.

A Maara Collective dress on the runway at Melbourne Fashion Festival in March. Image credit: Getty Images

So, what of the future? Linking Australian fashion with resortwear might be accurate, but if these new names prove anything, it’s that it doesn’t need to be our only calling card. Besides, Australian style will always stand out; just ask Alix Higgins, who says Australians’ style is insouciant in a way that’s different to anywhere else. “I think growing up so far away from a fashion city like Paris [or] Milan made a generation of fashion-obsessed people in Australia, who work harder to achieve that… energy. Also, the mix of second-hand clothes with independent designers, as universal as this is, feels different here.”

Originally published as If you think you know what Australian fashion looks like in 2023, think again