Bryan Yeo’s designs are absorbed by circles

His graduate collection, under the iris of the eternal sunset, is a physical manifestation of what it means to be human through circles. “I wanted to put things that aren’t tangible into a physical form, like emotions,” he says. The collection is coloured in earthy tones from khaki green to dark purple and brown. Circles pop up everywhere – at the bottom of the leg, around the shoulders, or the waistline. Besides being a demonstration of his knitwear skills, the collection is a manifesto of Bryan’s inner world.

“I always naturally gravitated towards round objects, like snowball cubes. I even used to collect teapots as a child. Back then, I didn’t even know that I was obsessed with the shape.” – Bryan Yeo

“It was mainly inspired by my personal feelings – particularly about what I went through during Covid. There were things going on with my family, health-wise and in my relationships. On top of that, living in London, a foreign city in a new country, felt very isolating,” he says. Even though Singapore has a similar education system to the UK, Bryan found himself having a culture shock. Putting these emotions into his final collection, he felt comfort in circles. “I always naturally gravitated towards round objects, like snowball cubes. I even used to collect teapots as a child. Back then, I didn’t even know that I was obsessed with the shape.” He took the opportunity of his final collection to look into the why behind his obsession.

To Bryan, a circle can be represented by a line or a three-dimensional sphere – and that’s what makes it interesting. The correlation between 2D and 3D, the imagination and the physical. “It creates volume, but then again, it can be seen as no volume, because it’s just the line and hollow. This is like what it is to be a human with emotion. In fact, sometimes, we view people as emotionless at some point in their lives. Maybe not with us, but with someone else. Yet still, they are very emotional, and we can’t judge them based on how they are in that period of time,” he adds.

When it comes to the process, Bryan works in a very instinctual manner. It all starts with observation. He collages images together, through different stages. “Firstly, I tend to look at traditional photography, then I move onto more abstract photography, and by putting it all together, I can see where I can go from there.” He works in the three-dimensional field. Draping feels like the most organic way to start a garment. Unlike the cliché image of a designer, Bryan prefers to visualise his idea, rather than theoretically sketching it. He drapes and tries to find out what he wants to make.

“The course is very helpful, but it should teach you how to do knitwear in a more commercial way. Look at our graduate collections. They are not very easy to manufacture. It’s more about creating the drama, about standing out.” – Bryan Yeo

Even though Bryan’s degree gave him many useful skills, he feels that the lack of commerciality in the curriculum makes it hard to find a job afterwards. Prior to this degree, he took fashion classes in Singapore. Studying this degree pushed him towards a completely new way of working. “I learnt a lot of new skills in pattern cutting for knitwear or pattern cutting for stretchy fabrics,” he says. A name like CSM can open doors, but graduating with a highly creative collection might not make entry into an extremely commercial industry easier. “The course is very helpful, but it should teach you how to do knitwear in a more commercial way. I mean – look at our graduate collections. They are not very easy to manufacture. It’s more about creating the drama, about standing out,” he says. The differences between commercial and handmade knitwear are almost two different worlds – uniting them, rather than separating them might make things easier.

“There must be some level of commerciality implemented in the curriculum. You can experiment as much as you want, but experimentation won’t get you the job at the end of the day.” – Bryan Yeo

“CSM has taught me about knitwear, but not the industry standard.” After all, commerciality shouldn’t be such a dirty word, especially in the world of fashion education. “There must be some level of commerciality implemented in the curriculum. You can experiment as much as you want, but experimentation won’t get you the job at the end of the day.”

For now, Bryan is staying in London, assisting Sarabande designers for their London Fashion Week debuts that took place this month. He is looking for a full-time job at a fashion house preferably. “Creating my own brand would require a lot of money; I don’t have that, and I don’t come from a super wealthy family either. I can’t immediately start a brand,” he says. He is finding his way in London through the midst of a cost-of-living crisis. His dream would be to work in the couture team of Schiaparelli – then it would all come full circle.