THE DESIGNER
Dóra Surányi is a Budapest-based fashion designer. She graduated from Mod’Art International Hungary in 2022. Fashion is an artistic communication tool that she can use to share messages that are important to her, give strength to others, or make them think about social issues in ways that encourage positive thinking. In this way, she can connect with people on an emotional level. This was an important driver into the fashion industry, whose cycles of renewal and retrospection gives her inspiration and helps to develop both as a person and as an artist. During her BA studies, she interned for prominent womenswear brands ABODI and Anna Daubner, and in the past two years took part of a national mentoring programme at the Hungarian Fashion and Design Agency.
THE BRAND
DORUSH was founded by Dóra Surányi during her university years. The brand debuted at the 2022 Fashion Diffusion Hungary show with her graduate collection, Nystagmus. It also won the 2023 BIG SEE Fashion Design Award during last October’s Ljubljana Design Week. DORUSH turns the spotlight on contemporary social issues with bold, artistic designs. The sold garments are derived from conceptual collections based on these topics that feature timeless outfits and rich details. They are custom-made locally in Budapest, making use of the artisan talent of the city. Currently, the brand’s main customers are local artists, musicians, stylists, and actors.
THE COLLECTION
Inspiration
The human psyche is capable of many things in every sense, it can even affect the way our body works. The designer also has such experiences from which she was able to draw in design: this is the theme of the collection, Nystagmus, which is a horizontal and vertical vibrating visual disturbance. The photogram compositions of upcycled plastic parts that she used create a mysterious feel to show the disturbed vision of nystagmus. The abstract shapes and patterns of the images give the collection its color scheme, material patterns, and shapes, as well as the freedom to view it from multiple perspectives.
The first half of the collection was created to draw attention to the anxieties that emerge from repressions in our society, which often go untreated and ruin long years of people’s lives. This message does not only concern anxious people, but anyone that might lose themselves in the spinning wheel of modern life. As such, the garments are calling for action to look after ourselves and take care of our well-being.
The second part of the Nystagmus collection deals with the process of turning towards the outside world. As we focus more consciously on our mental health, everyday life becomes increasingly comfortable despite its occasional difficulties. This is also reflected in the material and formal world of the collection, as it goes through a form of development towards comfort. Gradually, we see more and more garments within the outfits that are traditionally wearable, so together with the previous part of the collection, they complete each other with a focus on looking forwards.
Materials and techniques
The collection consists of 10 complete outfits with accessories that she modeled and sewed. It heavily features upcycled plastic waste produced in 3D printers. Due to the misuse and malfunctioning of these machines, many inspiring shapes are created in the form of melted plastic filaments and plates that the designer gathered from friends and hobby groups for the collection. Beyond accessories and garment decoration, she used this batch of plastic refuse to develop photogram compositions in the pattern design of all pieces to capture the abstract psycho-visual sensation of Nystagmus. The patterns were printed on high-quality satin, cotton, and other water repellent materials through the use of screen printing and sublimation printing techniques. The second part of the collection was made from leftover textiles of the Nystagmus collection and waste materials from fabric dealers in Budapest and Vienna.