Shiva Yousefpour grew up surrounded by fabric and sketches, and the rhythm of making. “Fashion felt like a second language,” she says. Yousefpour’s father was a designer himself, and his influence continues to shape her relationship with the craft. “Watching him create taught me discipline, attention to detail and respect for craftsmanship,” she shares. “He approached garments with a sense of patience and poetry. Even today, when I drape or sketch, I often feel that influence—the idea that garments should carry meaning, not just decoration.” This lies at the heart of Shiyo—a label shaped by Yousefpour’s desire to “merge beauty with purpose”.

Cultural duality sits at the heart of the brand’s design language. “I look up to designers like Iris van Herpen for her sculptural innovation, Yohji Yamamoto for his philosophy of form and Zaha Hadid and Isamu Noguchi for their ability to blend culture, identity, and abstraction,” she explains. “My Persian background gives my work its emotional core—the storytelling, the symbolism, the love of intricate handwork,” Yousefpour shares, “while Japanese craftsmanship shapes the structure and discipline in my process: zero-waste patternmaking, origami forms, and the purity of minimal cutting.” Together, they create what she describes as “a balance between poetry and precision”.

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That balance is fully realised in Shiyo’s most recent collection. “The collection is a dialogue between tradition and the future, between handcraft and experimental structure, grounded in both cultural techniques and contemporary architectural shapes. It explores the relationship between time, movement, and material transformation. I wanted to show how a garment can evolve—how pleating, smocking, sculpting, and textile manipulation can create pieces that feel alive,” she elaborates. “I was deeply inspired by modern architecture— the clean lines, fluid structures and the way light interacts with form.”

She explains that her designs often develop along the way. “I rarely begin with a fixed vision. The final designs may appear deliberate and polished, but they’re born from hours of playful experimentation and trusting my hands more than my initial ideas. I drape, fold, sculpt, and improvise until the form starts to speak—it’s a very intuitive, almost meditative part of my practice.”

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One piece, in particular, encapsulates this vision: A sculptural corset crafted from fine flyscreen metal mesh. “It takes something industrial and reimagines it into a form that feels poetic, delicate, and almost architectural.” The piece was showcased at the Powerhouse Museum, the largest museum group in New South Wales, Australia. The way it sculpts the body while remaining soft and fluid embodies the collection’s themes of structure, movement, and materiality.

Sustainability, of course, remains a non-negotiable for Yousefpour. “I use zero-waste patternmaking as well as recycled, upcycled, and deadstock fabrics to minimise waste from the beginning. Whenever possible, I work with locally sourced natural fibres and natural dyes to reduce environmental impact,” she explains. At the same time, many of her designs are also modular and multi-purpose, encouraging longevity over excess. “It’s all about slow, intentional making—creating pieces that are meant to be treasured.”

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“I’m working towards expanding into more runway presentations and museum-level showcases, collaborating with artists, engineers, and performers to blur the lines between fashion, installation, and movement. I would also love to develop more sculptural couture pieces that explore unconventional materials in new ways,” she shares. Ultimately, her goal for Shiyo is clear: “to build a space where creativity feels fearless.”

Check out these other labels

16Arlington

Founded in London by Marco Capaldo in 2018, 16Arlington fuses craft with innovation, incorporating materials such as feathers and sequins into tailored garments.

Maticevski

Australian label Maticevski—founded by Toni Maticevski—frequently experiments with sculptural silhouettes by approaching design from a highly architectural perspective.

Kim Shui

Born in Beijing, raised in Rome, and now based in New York, Kim Shui blends her Chinese heritage with her Italian upbringing to create garments that bridge cultures.