Just behind the doors of the old Bakehouse mansion in Richmond lies a bizzare and bold new world. A cacophony of sound and colour greets you like an old friend as it sweeps you off your feet. This is Dress Loud.

Bringing together fashion and music, the event was a beautiful display of what the art world both can be and should be: Unapologetically brilliant. Each performance was of an immensely different genre, and different designers dressed each performer and designed each room in line with their own visions. The result is a delight for the eyes and ears alike.

Featuring the likes of Preston Zly, Cass Partington, Will and Garrett Huxley, Julia Deville, Brustman + Boyd, and many more, Dress Loud brings together designers from all over and gives them free reign to design a room each. The result is magical. There is a strong sense of intimacy present in each room, thanks to the performers’ presence in the room – almost an extension of the works of art that are the rooms themselves. In some rooms, the audience’s initial awe was so palpable that no one moved or clapped at first, lest they break the atmosphere.

The sprawling mansion proved itself the perfect venue to display these amazing works. While some rooms proved a little too small for the crowds that tried to squeeze themselves in, the event was one that was immersive and open. Overall, it was a fun, lively afternoon showcasing impressive work by designers and performers in an old sprawling mansion heaving with new life.

Dress Loud was presented as part of the Virgin Australia Melbourne Fashion Festival Cultural Program’s Project Series 2015. More information about the designers and performers can be found here.

Photo credit: VAMFF