Viktoria Zuziak

Dare you was born out of a collaborative art project by queer women and non-binary lesbians. My collection explores how clothing can help explore gender identity and how fit is connected to accessibility and validation.
The aim of this collection is to create a sense of freedom and accessibility to clothing that corresponds to people’s gender identity. As someone who shops across gendered departments, fit is a big obstacle for me when buying clothing. Dare you resolves fit and preserves a masc aesthetic. However, the collection also embraces a sense of sensitivity - the sensitivity so vital for our emotional lives.
The collection’s design development focused on my late grandfather’s old suits and shirts. This wardrobe had come in handy a few years earlier during a large-scale wardrobe change of mine. Access to a full set of men’s clothing at no cost, and a socially valid reason for wearing them was an incredibly liberating experience for me. A specific 3-piece suit became the cornerstone of the new collection. The oversized fit of the jacket inspired the key suited silhouette. Another remarkable contribution was the repurposing of my grandfather’s ties into an upcycled waistcoat design.
Reimagined and turned into playful, modern and subversive pieces, the designs resolve and make a point of fit issues faced by people with a smaller frame who enjoy wearing men’s tailoring. The collection’s cropped jacket sleeves and trouser legs, short sleeved shirts and styling finesses refuse the shortcomings of most standardised gendered sizing. There is something powerful and validating about the clothing we want feeling designed for us. The inclusive approach to fit is crucially important to me, with made-to-measure orders of the designs offered, in addition to standard unisex sizing.
You can see more of the clothes in the dance film dare you: Question The Love Between Girls - the collaborative starting point of the collection. The work was produced by What’s That Dance, a dance theatre company based in Newcastle, and seeks to challenge the painful and uncomfortable parts that come with being a queer woman. It lives in the depths of discomfort, relentlessness and defiance. The short film will premiere in early 2022.