Dion Lee: Australian Master of Design

“As you live your life, the pieces that you buy, I think that says a lot about who you are.” –Dion Lee

At the young age of 24, Australian Fashion Designer Dion Lee is not only taking the Australian fashion industry by storm, but the international fashion industry as well.

After graduating in 2007 from The Sydney Institute of Technology with a degree in Fashion Design, Lee began experimenting with different shapes, cuts and design styles.

Since then, Lee has had three successful showcases at the Australian Fashion Week and has become known for the detailed tailoring in all of his pieces. By pairing other design techniques with tailoring, Lee’s work had been able to stand apart from other designers around the world.  

His latest Spring/Summer 2010-11 collection titled “Façade,” was inspired by mixing fabrics and designing methods, it has been his most successful show to date due.

“Natural fibers are something that I’ve always been attracted to,” Lee explained to Woolmark. “I think the way I approach fabrication within a collection is mixing really classy fabrics with more industrial highlights or more technology-based fabrics in a way that attempts to be quite seamless still not compromising how polished the execution of the garment is.”  

Marie Claire raved that his “Façade” collection is “effortless brilliance. Working with shades of pale lilac, crisp powder-blue, black and white, the 24-year-old designer built on his reputation as a master of precise tailoring, while at the same time pushing in a new, softer direction.”

Aside from his gift for tailoring, Lee’s use of Rorschach ink blots in the designs of his collection added to the excited buzz about his line.  

“The prints were inspired by Rorschach inkblots,” Lee explained in an interview with Net-A-Porter. “So the idea that uninhibited reaction to something where you see something that is quite subjective, but other people might not particularly see.”

“Lee took that curiosity to a logical conclusion by using Rorschach blots as a print,” Australian Vogue wrote in the review of his line. “They were almost like florals: a blot printed in an intense violet shade could have been an orchid. The construction of Lee’s garments was equally artful, with seams slashed to create articulated effects that highlighted the movement of the body beneath.”

“The idea was to mix the soft elements in with the tailoring,” Lee explained backstage. “It was kind of this attraction to something softer and more unexpected.”

From the success of his clothing lines, Lee’s designs have been worn by celebrities like actress Emma Watson. In 2010, Lee won the L’Oreal “Fashion Festival Design Award,” and he also became an Audi A1Ambassador.

In an interview with Australian Vogue, Lee explained “A big part of the A1 is the customization of the interior and exterior of the car. That was the element that the concept was built around. I designed some limited edition T-shirts with my graphic designer that incorporated that element. I think the construction and design is something that parallels my brand.”

Lee is now working to expand his label form the success of his latest line and in an interview with Net-A-Porter.com, he explained: “I did want to move into new territories with this collection, especially in Australia, where the collections are known for a real emphasis on tailoring. I like the idea of pushing the label into territories that it hadn’t particularly been known for before and things that felt unexpected and uninhibited.

“Having graduated recently, it’s so exciting to get a response from people so quickly and, in my own country, to really feel that from the media and fashion industry,” said Lee.

For a look at Lee’s designs, visit: http://www.dionlee.com/

-Alexandria Richard