"Love is sweet, love is bitter, love is empty, love enters our hearts silently and quietly".
What is the essence of love to you? In this SS25 Taipei Fashion Week, Taiwanese designer Damur Huang refocuses his attention on "love", and collaborates with JSJ Entertainment to invite 13 artists and singers, including Code Wu, Lin Xiaopei, etc., to interpret their love stories and understanding of the matter of love through music and singing, under the framework of dierent genders, sexual orientations, and life experiences. #DAMUR's show "13 Artists, 13 Love Stories" was held on Sunday, October 20 at SCCP Warehouse No.5., leading the audience to explore the realities of love.
#DAMUR's brand name is derived from the French word d'amour, which means love, which has been one of the brand's inspirations since it was founded in Berlin in 2015. Brand director Damur's understanding of love is not just romance between a man and a woman in the traditional sense, love is diverse and dierent from person to person. It can mean being passionate about fashion or being friendly to the environment; it can be caring for a close friend, or be an intimate moment between someone of the same sex. For Damur, the most important kind of love is to listen to all and tolerate dierent voices. This lays the foundation for the concept of this show, "Thirteen Artists, Thirteen Love Stories".
#DAMUR has teamed up with JSJ Entertainment for SS25 Taipei Fashion Week, inviting international DJ Code Wu、Trevor 郭 家瑋、April Red紅、Eva 林怡廷、范范 Fan、Fi-Né 粉內、Ash13C、Tiany 劉恬君、龔言脩、PG 陳姵尹、田亞 霍、Shane兆群及Shino to tell their stories of love. The performers are of dierent genders, ages and life experiences, allowing the audience to experience love, whether it is youthful, spontaneous, or classic.
#DAMUR's SS25 collection focuses on deconstructing gender stereotypes and embracing self-identified values. Continuing #DAMUR's avant-garde and fearless Berlin attitude, the collection is dedicated to subverting traditional societal frameworks and redefining traditional images of masculinity and femininity. The collection is inspired by designer Damur's childhood memories of ballet: due to his sexuality, Damur was unable to wear the elegant tutus that his female classmates wore on stage. Although his understanding of gender stereotypes was limited back then, the experience of being asked to wear shorts instead of a skirt made him feel deeply rejected.
Today, Damur, who recalls this experience, wants to use his designs to convey the idea that one should not be bound by gender. He deconstructs the tie, which represents male authority, and reweaves it into a flowing knee-length skirt (left); he dresses a male model in a pure white tutu, which solves the regret of not being able to wear it as a child (center); and he accessorizes a solemn black jacket with neon rues, which creates a real balance of strength and softness (right). The collection utilizes high-waist crop tops, waves, unisex long and short skirts, asymmetry and layering to create a versatile silhouette for each piece while showing the possibilities of genderless fashion.
In addition, the SS25 #DAMUR collection perfectly embodies the brand's philosophy of Upcycle and Sustainable Fashion: the neon gauze that accents the collection is sourced from the brand's inventory, whereas one of the season's highlights, the short tank tops and knee-length skirts, are knitted from vintage neckties that were inherited from Damur's father. When it comes to brand ethos, attention to detail is often evident in the choice of fabrics. That's why #DAMUR collaborated for the first time with TAIWAN TAFFETA FABRIC CO., LTD, to develop an original, high-quality, sustainable plain-weave fabric that is not only environmentally friendly but also ensures that each garment is highly breathable, stretchable and comfortable to wear.
For this show, #DAMUR used the concept of Phygital (Physical + Digital) communication to visually and audibly guide all guests in their journey of love. The opening screening of #DAMUR's first fashion film Skirt, directed by Taiwan's Psychobaby Gill and Damur, tells the love story of seven young Berlin students. Each character wears a skirt from the #DAMUR SS25 collection: they get lost in the park, pursue their desire for intimacy in their dreams, dance fearlessly on the dance floor, and ultimately find their safe home in the skirts they wear. At this moment in time, gender, sexuality, race and body shape no longer matter, because they have found themselves. "Skirt" aims to challenge gender-specific stereotypes and transform the inequality of power relations between genders into a universal message of tolerance and self-expression.
As "Skirt" comes to an end, the 13 performers will perform their love stories live, unveiling an emotional scenery, featuring DJ Code Wu、Trevor 郭家瑋、April Red紅、Eva 林怡廷、范范 Fan、Fi-Né 粉內、Ash13C、Tiany 劉恬君、龔言脩、 PG 陳姵尹、田亞霍、Shane兆群及Shino. One artist after another creates a love-mix of adoration. Each note is a dierent facet of love, telling the romantic, throbbing, and endless flow of emotions. The glittering lineup of the show was made possible by the careful planning of the brand's partner, JSJ Entertainment. The exquisite makeup and styling of the artists and EeLin models on stage were created by Hynix Fashion & Beauty Academy and MAKE UP FOR EVER TAIWAN.
Under the colourful lights and heart-warming music, #DAMUR's fashions create the story of love. Love is everywhere, and in this moment, it is transformed into a melody that dives into everyone's heart and leaves a standing mark, just as brand director Damur said, "Love is sweet, love is bitter, love is empty, and love enters our hearts silently."