Majestic dresses inspired by the Middle Ages and the Tudor’s have been on the catwalks of the fashion weeks since 2018 under Jordan Dalah’s name. And as any designer who has walked out Central Saint Martins, but firstly leaving his mark, Jordan Dalah continues to amaze with its search for intricately extravagant yet so memorable shapes, alternating with simpler garments such as tailored wool trousers and layered merino wool jersey top.
In an extremely minimalist office in Sydeny, as if he were a conductor, Jordan composes his works of art, taking inspiration from the past and making them extremely modern. Sydney is for him a very important city,
Jordan supports the local activities and knowing that there are still craft experts out there, despite the strong industrialization that we are experiencing, makes him very happy. All of his pieces are made from dead stock fabrics, otherwise destined to be forgotten.
“Because I only take solid coloured fabrics, you would never know that I am using old fabrics. The quality is not compromised because I only source my fabrics from good designers. I am doing my best as a young designer to minimize the waste associated with the fashion industry”, says the designer.
“As a designer, it’s easy to make radical gestures,” Jordan Dalah said over Zoom from his Sydney studio, “it’s harder to make those gestures reach more people.” After a show-stopping runway collection presented at Australian Fashion Week for spring 2022, Dalah has reconsidered how to make his inflated silhouettes reach more people. His solution for fall 2022 is to “deflate” his shapes to find a common ground between the theatrical and the everyday.
Among the loveliest designs are his draped dresses and tops in a semi-sheer silk with dotted and striped linings peeking out from underneath. The silhouette is still anchored on tiny shoulder pads, but lacks any poufs or frills in the mid section. Similarly, jersey dresses with a keyhole neckline are easily his most body-con ideas, each finished off with a dupioni ruffle. The effect is more classic cocktail attire than what Dalah has previously offered, though it’s not without its strange charms. Ditto for new leggings with padded halos at the ankle that are a way of translating his “doorstopper” silhouette into something that can be worn more easily than a six-meter wide skirt.
The showpieces are still in the mix, but pared down in number and color. Here there are just two cropped jackets with shrugged-forward shoulders in black and black-and-white habotai silk, and a single bell-shaped skirt in the same black-and-white fabric. The power to bring Dalah’s drama to life is now in the hands of the wearer: A new campaign for Glenfiddich he directed takes these more understated pieces to high camp levels. Will customers do the same?
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