At Australian Fashion Week 2024, INJURY presented ‘55555’, a visceral collection that embodied the digital realm. Departing from their previous trilogy of dreamscapes, the collection gestured towards the ‘phygital’: the liminal space where our physical world intercepts with the digital; a reality we commonly oscillate within. After two decades in the fashion game, INJURY's designers Eugene Leung and Dan Tse perpetuated a message of hope. 

"55555" harbored an unearthly energy, with the army of models donning utilitarian and riotous uniforms and carrying an unnerving gaze. Set in a cyber-utopia and studded with references of The Matrix, The Fifth Element and Mad Max, the 37-piece collection was riddled with riotous silhouettes, each completed with hues of ash, crimson and chrome, and laden with belts, buckles and figure-hugging bodices.

For INJURY, utilising technology is intrinsically linked to their ideation process and metaphysical universes. ‘55555’ pushed the boundaries of technological integration into wearable fabrics as they addressed the idea of ‘synthetic consciousness’. The collection incorporated heat-conductive smart knitwear called KnitWarm and Axoflux, a fabric made from 100% recycled plastic bottles. Further collaborations included Sydney-based label Étienne and Calli Comical, who upcycle denim jeans from previous collections into structurally subversive corsets, skirts and pants.    

As a frontrunner and self-taught fashion macrocosm, INJURY can direct its future in whichever universe they fashion. Leung and Tse's practice is a testament to their exploratory approach to fashion; the way they interweave music, CGI films and textile to create hybrid narratives that form "one big holistic universe". Recognising that the computer is just an extension of the mind, Leung and Tse's world building capabilities allow them to realise a limitless design potential.

Joella Marcus and Izzy Feek sat down with Leung and Tse to discuss nostalgic inspirations, their ever-evolving universe and the antiheroes that fuel it. Over the course of the conversation we quickly learn that ‘55555’ is a mark of sincere growth. As the designers explain, "It's really about being courageous, fearless and having the courage to transform and get out of the comfort zone; to be in the daring crowd and transform yourself into a new version, for better or worse."

Joella Marcus  I am so excited to sit down and chat with you two. Izzy and I are both such fans of your work and the way you blend the digital with the tangible. 

Izzy Feek To start, we were wondering if you could share how INJURY first began? How did you develop this brand, which has come to be so experimental and free?

Eugene Leung I started INJURY as a hobby. I remember I wanted to create something of my own, something anonymous and mysterious. I had this mentality, kind of like a six-year-old kid, doing all these drawings, doing all these logos and pretending to be a superhero, and drawing a few logos for my friends so that we’d become like the Avengers. I was inspired by the 1980s film The Lost Boys; it is about vampires that are like a motorcycle gang and live in a  cave. It’s the concept of a group, a collective. I kept drawing graphics and logos; imagining I would put it on a flag and on a motorcycle and call ourselves the INJURY.

We didn't set out to start a fashion brand. The first project we did was stickers and paper toys. Eventually, we became really bored and started making t-shirts, as if we were doing merch for a band. And then we made a bigger collection and now it has just evolved and become what it is today.

JM Your points of inspiration were originally sci-fi and fantasy. You’ve maintained that futuristic aesthetic and way of thinking in your ethos and process. How has that developed in your design practice more recently? For example, blending the digital and the physical.

EL Whatever we have been doing over the past 10 years, or since day one, has been experimental, simply because everything is self taught. I didn't really study fashion and so we had to figure out how to get everything done. I think that's part of the brand mentality in the way we do things. With digital, it all relates back to 2017. We were working on this project with an organisation in Hong Kong and we had this idea of showcasing fashion in a very unconventional way. I thought maybe I would propose this idea of scrapping the whole physical runway show and just doing everything digitally. I wanted to do everything in the virtual world, like a game. We ended up developing an arcade machine where people can scan their face and put on an avatar and try on digital fashion. It's sort of like a mobile arcade that can transport you to different spaces. It’s super fun but it's also very, very expensive and very, very difficult to make.There were a lot of issues communicating with multiple different technicians. So I did some research, and I realised I can basically just do it with a computer at home. With some friends, I started this collective called The Real Parent. We looked into 3D modelling and we started off doing digital CGI music videos for the music I produce. It wasn’t really until 2020, when COVID happened and factories closed down and Fashion Week could not run, that we decided to make a CGI film to present our collection. It was a way for us to continue to create.

IF You were the first 100% CGI fashion show in Australia, presenting ‘A Butterfly's Dream’ at Fashion Week 2021. What do you think about the current surge of AI and technological integration in our everyday lives? Especially with social media changing so much and the way people exist and incorporate more automated technologies. How do you feel about that as designers?

Dan Tse In 2017, we started working with 3D models and digital fashion. We then realised that building 3D models is actually a very sustainable way to present our story, as opposed to when we do an actual runway show; we need a lot of sets and a lot of installations for a 20-minute show. And then we had to think about ways to get them recycled. Putting this idea into digital fashion is also a very sustainable way for us to create because we managed to do all the sampling, pattern making, everything in a software. We make only one final sample for the runway show and for sales. So with all the assets that we have built, they're always there and we can always go back to the file, change the design for our next collection, or our next episode.

For every collection, we will just look at the samples again, and then modify them as part of the creative process. Naturally, we find that if we have all the digital clothing, we should put them on our own characters and create our own universe? We then went on to create the environment, all the crazy digital accessories and everything. This is a very good step for us to talk more about the brand universe in a kind of a cost effective way.

JM Storytelling is in the fabric of INJURY’s brand, both in your CGI films and avatars. There is an emphasis on the interconnection between virtual and physical realms. Creating everything from 3D animation, music, fashion and wearables, how do you find these methodologies overlap? And what are the benefits of having them work together?

EL I think we don't really have one methodology for a particular medium. Every time we have to create something, we think of the whole world, we think of the universe. Every time we have to create something, it doesn't matter whether we're creating a fashion collection or we're doing the CGI film, or we are making product design, or packaging, or graphics, or music, we try to build a universe. With the universe and the world we built, we have all these characters inside, we have the music, we have the soundtrack for the environment. Once we have all this, it acts like a handbook, and everything just stems from that universe. When we create everything for INJURY, it always relates back to one big holistic universe. The good thing with this is we don't really have to separate things into different mediums. Then we would have to come up with a theme, or narrative for everything. We always just go back to the same roots and the same world.

IF So I guess the main practice is building that universe and then figuring out how you can construct it, which is such an interesting way to develop an artistic practice and a fashion brand. We were also wondering about your music, because you create a lot of custom music for your shows and it is a huge part of your practice. You have performed at festivals like Pitch and dressed musicians such as Vera Blue and Genesis Owusu. How do you find working with music as a creative outlet? What does it offer you and your practice?

EL Music to me is one of the most important elements. Most of my inspiration comes from characters, music, and musicians. Music is the soundtrack of life. So I can't really go one day without music. Whatever collection we do, we think about the music and the soundtrack. We can't live without music; we can’t create without music. Every time we make something, we create a soundtrack and that eventually becomes the music for the CGI film and fashion shows.

JM You spoke earlier about the benefits of working with CGI and what it allows you to explore. Mentioning how that led to climate considerations and being an eco-conscious brand, especially with the show ‘A Butterfly's Dream’, which reduced your carbon emissions. How do you find designing within a climate crisis? And is that something that you keep in mind, or is it more of a benefactor to what you're doing anyway? 

DT As we've been doing this for a while, we always think of ways to minimise wastage. Digital fashion is a really great way to do that. Another way is that when we approach a new collection, we try to look for something old and try to upcycle as many items as possible. For the upcoming collection we worked with Sydney-based brands Étienne and Calli-Comical to upcycle some of our denim jeans and turn them into something really experimental and avant-garde. We also work with a lot of deadstock fabrics. There are multiple ways to tackle this in a fashion environment. I think the point is that we have a sustainable conscious mind when we design and try to buy less new materials to create something.

IF You're constantly referencing yourself and referencing nature and looking back on your old work, which is such a nice way to keep progressing. With nods to nature and organic beauty in titles like ‘A Butterfly's Dream’, ‘Be Like Water’, where did the inspiration for your latest collection stem from?

EL The past three collections we call the trilogy of dreamscape and reality. We developed these three films based on the idea of the visual world in the real world. For the upcoming collection, we considered the roots of the brand. We thought a lot about what we did in the early days and tried to rethink the purpose of doing this brand. In this new collection, we were inspired a lot by characters, and the characters we had in the early days. It's really about being courageous, fearless and having the courage to transform and get out of the comfort zone; to be in the daring crowd and transform yourself into a new version, for better or worse. I think that's the central message and the central spirit. From the music to the CGI film, to clothing, to the characters that we're going to create. We keep this courage in our mind, this fearlessness.

JM Well, it sounds like after 20 years in the game, this sense of transformation and having the courage to take on something new is a running theme. Also, congratulations, 20 years! It's a hard landscape to survive that long in. Off the back of that, what would you have told yourself 20 years ago, back in 2004?

EL If I could go back and talk to myself 20 years ago, I would probably tell him about all the runway shows I've seen between now and then. I would, probably again, be a spoiler and tell him about all the Star Wars movie. I would imagine him saying, ‘What have you guys done to Han Solo!?’. Actually, I think INJURY will come to me because they probably have the technology to go back in time. I will ask whoever runs INJURY or whoever INJURY is, what's going on with the future world and what it's like. It's pretty conditional; if they said it was really cool, I would probably just get them to come and rescue me!

DT If I could talk to myself 20 years ago, I will tell her nothing. Keep going, you'll be fine. Just take it easy!