The emerging fashion designer opens up on how she pays homage to her mixed heritage in her genderless creations
"My mother is the lens through which I learned about Malaysian culture,” shares Azura Lovisa. Since 2018, the London-based fashion designer has been putting out collections inspired by her Southeast Asian heritage. Crafted from heritage handwoven raw silk textiles, Azura draws inspiration from her own family archive of photographs dating back to the 1930s, and incorporates traditional aesthetics from the region.
Her designs are often paired with gold-plated earrings, brooches and charms, which she creates in collaboration with jewellery designers Tanaporn Wongsa and Birgit Frietman. Taking the shape of spices like chilli, peppercorns, garlic cloves, and star anise, the jewellery references ancient Malay customs, including the folk magic practice of susuk—the ancient art of embedding charmed gold needles and diamond shards under the skin.
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There has been a growing fascination with Azura’s unique approach to fashion, especially after her London Fashion Week debut in 2021. An embodiment of the fashion industry’s ideal of a better future, her slow fashion label aims to “decentre Eurocentric aesthetics” by amplifying different cultural narratives, “move away from seasonal language”, and take the environment into consideration—all while honouring her own journey of discovering her Malaysian roots after growing up in Umeå, Sweden and Miami, Florida until the age of 18.
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