Domenic Roylance: countering the doom and gloom of 2020

Through a bricolage of photographs from a trip to Cyprus – his partner’s home country – and his sketches, Domenic created a colourful collection that celebrates Cypriot grandmas and the country’s cultural history. “I was really inspired by how powerful yiayia’s are within the household,” he explains. For the patterns, he deconstructed thrift store pieces he bought on his way to see the yiayia’s, which gave way to oversized and voluminous designs, decorated with twists that resemble flowers and traditional prints.

“Sydney was the place where I felt alive, especially compared to the rural Australia where I grew up.”

In a true pre-coronavirus style, the graduate collection was presented at a runway show in November 2019. “A show is such a monumental time in your life,” he says. “But I don’t think they are doing it anymore, because of COVID-19 and also for sustainable reasons.” For Domenic, there was no better way to end his experience as a student, which involved much more than just fashion and the school. Living in Sydney helped him connect with who he is. “Sydney was the place where I felt alive, especially compared to the rural Australia where I grew up,” he says.

“Not everyone needs a show. If your clothes are not meant for a show, and it’s not going to accentuate your clothing or add an extra layer of experience, you don’t need one.”

Domenic Roylance feels sad for those who can’t finish their studies the same way he did, but remains positive about the new possibilities the digital format has to offer, even if coming up with something new and original is harder there. “There’s definitely a lot of room for innovation, but I wouldn’t know what to do,” says Domenic. “Also, not everyone needs a show. If your clothes are not meant for a show, and it’s not going to accentuate your clothing or add an extra layer of experience, you don’t need one.”

Roylance is amazed by how fast the fashion industry adapted to this life-changing situation. However, he also feels such speed is unnecessary sometimes, especially during 2020. “Not everyone needs to go at that speed and create at that pace, slowing down would allow some people to research in-depth and come up with more solid ideas,” says Domenic. In fact, he is a bit disappointed with some brands, because the pandemic could’ve been a really good opportunity for them to slow down, but they didn’t.

With the remnants of his graduate collection and foam from a couch he found on a footpath, Roylance created ‘What’s left of this’ during lockdown – a loud and playful capsule collection of garments that aims to counter the gloom and doom of the pandemic. “People needed to see the clothes, they needed to be uplifted,” he says. Although he started it with a commercial purpose, in the end, he didn’t put any of the pieces on sale. “I don’t think it was the right time for that,” he adds.

“It’s important to be a reflection of the times as well as to create an escape for people through clothing.”

Despite the struggles the fashion industry is facing at the moment, Domenic believes that fashion designers are still necessary. “We can lean on the time that we are in,” he says. For him, it would be a shame not to let the situation inspire and motivate you to acknowledge the times we live in. “It’s important to be a reflection of the times as well as to create an escape for people through clothing,” he adds. “It’s all about the balance.”

His perspective of the future has, however, changed. He has always wanted to start his own label but thinks it might be more sensible to work for someone else first. After his graduation, he was due to intern for Oscar de la Renta in New York but inevitably those plans have been put on hold. For now, sporting his freshly-dyed red hair, Roylance is ready – and nervous – for his next step: taking over the coveted fashion school Central Saint Martins, where he’ll be studying the MA Fashion. “Everyone in the course seems very talented and the expectations are very high, although you want to be pushed up high during your time there,” says Domenic, who wants to focus on learning and questioning what he’s about. Maybe, after all, he is more confident than what he thought.