Rebel With A Cause

Stylistic dichotomies lie at the heart of Chinese designer Di Du's work. She shares how this love for the subversive has been the key to her namesake label's success.

- VALECIA LEE

Established in 2019, a label like DIDU could have played it safe, cementing its design codes while churning out commercially successful collections in its early years. Yet, the eponymous brand of the 2022 Yu Prize finalist has proven that a refusal to conform has only propelled it to greater heights.

"I realised I wanted to be a fashion designer in high school," shares Di Du. "That eureka moment happened after watching a documentary on Fashion TV about a designer who travelled to Venice and translated her experiences into textile and garment designs." Now, after a decade of pursuing this dream to be a fashion designer, the Antwerp Royal Academy of Fine Arts alum has since shown numerous times on the Paris Fashion Week roster and has amassed a number of celebrity fans, which includes the likes of Doja Cat, Rosalia and Damiano David of Måneskin.

Credited with redefining modern-day sex appeal, it comes as no surprise that some of DIDU's most raved pieces are its dresses with revealing cut-outs and barely-there bralettes. Yet, this provocativeness should not be mistaken for merely pandering to the "Sex Sells" ideology. One just has to look beneath the surface to discover that the contemporary label's garments are thoughtfully conceptualised and exceptionally constructed.