Reimagining the Last Supper: DZHUS SS25 “ANTICON” Metamodern Performance

Unveiled during Fashion Weeks in Berlin, Prague, and Chisinau, the DZHUS “ANTICON” showcase offers an introspective, metamodern reimagining of the Last Supper theme. This semi-interactive presentation imparts a sense of spiritual initiation, as designer Irina Dzhus debuts her innovative, multifunctional Spring/Summer 2025 pieces. By tapping into abstract symbolism, DZHUS subtly invites viewers to form associations that border the limits of acceptable norms.

Ukrainian at heart, DZHUS remains steadfast in supporting its compatriots during these turbulent times. Despite relocating to the EU after the war began, the brand’s SS25 range was fully crafted by Ukrainian artisans, complemented by a soundtrack composed by Kharkiv-based artist, Hennadii Biliaiev.

Staged at The Kabbalah Centre Berlin, the performance also introduced Irina Dzhus’ international audience to her poetic talent—a private aspect of her life, despite years of writing. Throughout the performance, her intricate, multilingual verses echo the show’s mystic ethos while offering a glimpse of her emotional reality.

ABOUT DZHUS

DZHUS is a Ukrainian conceptual brand renowned worldwide for designing transformative, cruelty-free clothing. Brainchild of designer Irina Dzhus, the label’s pattern innovations aim to reduce overconsumption by encouraging versatile wardrobes built from a few multifunctional garments. Following the outbreak of war, DZHUS resettled in the EU, donating 30% of its earnings to Ukrainian animal welfare organizations.

Since its inception in 2010, DZHUS has upheld strictly vegetarian principles, working exclusively with ethical materials. In 2019, the brand garnered the Cruelty-free Fashion award at the Best Fashion Awards Ukraine. A 2015 International Woolmark Prize finalist, DZHUS now appears in concept stores across Japan, China, Belgium, Portugal, the USA, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Australia, Poland, and is sold online internationally. Though initially presented as womenswear, many DZHUS pieces are unisex in both style and cut, reflecting an ongoing inquiry into identity and championing the body’s inherent adaptability.

DZHUS has dressed avant-garde icons such as Zola Jesus and EYIBRA, as well as Eurovision 2016 victor, Jamala. The label has collaborated with high-profile film productions like The Hunger Games and Star Trek Discovery, in addition to major beauty brands Saco and Davines. Featured by global media outlets (Vogue, Dazed & Confused, Harper’s Bazaar, Marie Claire, Elle, L’Officiel, Kaltblut, ASVOF, Dezeen, and many more), DZHUS has been showcased at Paris Fashion Week, Berlin Fashion Week, Ukrainian Fashion Week, Milan Design Week, International Fashion Showcase London, Brussels Fashion Week, Helsinki Fashion Week, Vegan Fashion Week (Los Angeles), Dutch Design Week, Prague Fashion Week, Designblok Prague, and Feeric Fashion Week in Romania.

Rooted in personal experience, Irina Dzhus’ aesthetic transforms internal dialogues into imaginative, avant-garde silhouettes—“patterns into patterns” that reflect self-discovery and creative reinvention. Over its 14-year history, DZHUS has worked to reinvigorate the fashion landscape, challenging misconceptions around cruelty-free and eco-conscious design. By weaving conceptual allegories, the label sparks conversation while promoting ethical choices.

ABOUT DZHUS SS25 “ANTICON” COLLECTION

The SS25 “ANTICON” collection explores humanity’s evolving “utopia codes”—the ideas we construct in our quest for collective and individual happiness. While Irina Dzhus continues to decode her personal trauma, she infuses each design with commentary on sociocultural conformity. Questioning how frustration can arise from unrealized expectations, she reimagines universal symbols through an ironic lens.

Connecting the desire for self-knowledge with the instinct to seek belonging, Dzhus poses an open-ended query: “Can finding one’s life purpose ever replace a genuine sense of home?” Grappling with her own emotional struggle, she labels her escape “inter-refuge,” suggesting that any sign or concept can become a metaphysical roadmap to individual harmony—a strategy for navigating existential trials.

Paying homage to spiritual and consumerist coding systems alike, Dzhus strips color from the collection, replacing hues with abbreviations. She underlines the ritualized connection between food and faith across major religions, introducing a series of looks inspired by ceremonial table arrangements. Pattern repeats evoke the notion of “autophagia,” where shape and counter-shape perpetually merge, sustaining each other.

Referencing Gnosticism, Kabbalah, Judaism, and various forms of Christianity, Irina Dzhus also emphasizes personal values and moral duty. A bold ‘object=subject’ premise underlies her modular garment designs, symbolizing stoic independence and self-reliance. From DZHUS’ viewpoint, any cultural or spiritual framework can serve as a compass out of despair; in fact, the convergence of multiple references may be even more effective.

The rainbow’s essence emerges as blank, quilted surfaces—an homage to seeking hidden depth. On the exterior, white reigns supreme, but lining and pockets sparkle with rhinestones and jewelry, reflecting the designer’s own flight from war-torn Ukraine and echoing survivors’ stories of pain and perseverance. Throughout, labyrinth motifs honor the wandering Sinai tribes guided by a powerful yearning for home.

At unexpected moments, a burst of vibrant color reveals itself on the reverse of the garments, showcasing a rainbow gradient that contrasts sharply with the all-white palette. This concealed flourish offers a life-affirming vision, encouraging a contemplative turn inward as the path to home, happiness, and fulfillment.

Irina’s empathy, particularly toward animals, underpins the collection. She critiques society’s contradictory attitudes—consuming animals yet idealizing them in spiritual narratives—by weaving in zoomorphic accents from Byzantine iconography and tiny paw motifs along DZHUS’ rainbow tapestry. In celebrating self-reconciliation, the brand subverts traditional gender identities, experimenting with lingerie-inspired details and deconstructed business attire to highlight their fluidity. White pants morph into a prism-like corset, and DZHUS stretches functionality beyond clothing: a flat-cut cape deftly transforms into a tablecloth ensemble, merging homeware and fashion into one cohesive statement.