“Our debut collection titled “The Other” embodies our journey of embracing the beauty of being othered.
Since moving to Paris, it’s been a challenge to find our sense of belonging within the bourgeois society
that inhabits the city of lights. It never felt like home until one evening on one of our routine night walks
through Place Vendôme. Suddenly, seeing all the most luxurious and sophisticated entities surrounding
the Vendôme Column we felt an indescribable urgency to be part of it. We don’t fit in at all, but somehow
we feel at home there. That feeling led us to shoot the Fall/Winter 2025 collection there, just us two.
Hannah in front of the camera and I, behind it.”
FW25 collection available at Dover Street Market and select retailers worldwide
Shoes by Christian Louboutin for Matières Fécales FW25
Model Hannah Rose
Photography by Steven Raj
Below is my article in the current issue of The Edge
Dear Shaded Viewers,
For over a decade, Hannah Rose Dalton and Steven Raj Bhaskaran, the creative duo behind Matières Fécales (aka Fecal Matter), have been challenging societal norms through their radical aesthetics and avant-garde designs. Known for their shaved heads, dramatic makeup, and boundary-pushing art-meets-fashion ethos, the Canadian pair first gained notoriety on social media. With over 700,000 followers on Instagram, they became a symbol of rebellion against conventional beauty standards. However, their debut at Paris Fashion Week marked a pivotal moment in their journey—a transition from provocateurs to bona fide fashion designers. Their inaugural collection, aptly titled The Other, showcased not only their signature subversive style but also an unexpected mastery of technical craftsmanship.
“This collection was ten years in the making,” Dalton and Bhaskaran explain. “It’s the first time people got to see the technical side of us. We’re very proud to show this side of ourselves.”
The Fall/Winter 2025 collection is a study in contrasts—where gritty deconstruction meets meticulous tailoring, and couture-level craftsmanship coexists with wearable, commercial pieces. At its core, The Other is an ode to individuality and resilience. The designers drew inspiration from their own experiences of navigating societal rejection and religious constraints, weaving these themes into every seam and silhouette.
Key Pieces Innovation Meets Emotion
Deborah’s Winged Jacket: A couture masterpiece tailored to perfection, this jacket features hand-crafted feathers and intricate boning that evoke angelic imagery. It’s a tribute to those who supported the designers during their struggles.
Tulle Gown: Crafted from inexpensive tulle fabric, this piece demonstrates how resourcefulness can yield elegance. The gown began as a simple draped textile before evolving into a sculptural creation through organic shaping techniques.
Horn Bag: A standout accessory that blends classical French silhouettes with post-human distortion. Featuring embossed logos and fetish-inspired elements, it encapsulates the brand’s ethos of subtle rebellion.
Skin Heels Revival: Originally introduced in 2020, these iconic silicone boots return with their surrealist curved heels, now reimagined in collaboration with Christian Louboutin.
Curved Fur Coat: Designed with help from Michèle Lamy’s Parisian ateliers, this coat features innovative darting techniques to create a curvaceous silhouette—a rarity in traditional fur design.
While the collection includes bold couture pieces, it also offers accessible staples like trench coats, hoodies, and tailored pants. These items are elevated by unique details such as cross seams—a symbolic nod to the designers’ journey from restrictive religious upbringings to creative liberation.
“We wanted something that felt minimal but still had our touch,” Dalton and Bhaskaran share. “It’s about creating garments that are easy to wear but carry deeper meaning.”
At its heart, The Other is deeply personal. The cross seam motif appears throughout the collection as a marker of independence from the designers’ pasts. Raised in conservative religious environments— Bhaskaran is half-Chinese and grew up Mormon—the duo faced significant resistance to their creative pursuits. Yet these challenges became a source of strength and inspiration.
“Every day we look at the clouds and are reminded of our journey out of that dark side,” Bhaskaran reflects.
Angel wing motifs further emphasize themes of protection and transcendence, while deconstructed elements symbolize breaking free from societal expectations.
Matières Fécales has always been known for its conceptual approach, but this collection highlights their technical prowess. From seamless pants without waistband seams to hand-stitched featherwork requiring hundreds of hours, the attention to detail is unparalleled.
“Whether it’s a tank top or a couture finale piece, we put our stamp on everything we do,” says Bhaskaran.
Their commitment to innovation extends beyond design to production processes. Factories in Italy were pushed to execute laser-cut denim designs and unconventional patterns that initially seemed impossible.
Dalton and Bhaskaran emphasize that their work is not just about self-expression but also about fostering community. Their collaboration with trans activist Luis Tibberton on an exclusive hoodie underscores this ethos, it was an image taken for a magazine shoot that was censored. Additionally, they aim to challenge luxury fashion’s reliance on overt branding by focusing on emotional resonance rather than logos.
“We want people to identify with our textiles through the emotions they evoke,” Bhaskaran explains.
As they continue to evolve, Matières Fécales hopes to strike a balance between avant-garde artistry and commercial viability. Future collections will explore more accessible designs while maintaining their distinct voice.
“It’s important for us to look good every day but also express ourselves,” Dalton notes. “We’re always searching for that balance between commercial reality and artistic expression.”
With their Paris Fashion Week debut, Matières Fécales has cemented its place as more than just an Instagram phenomenon. The duo’s ability to merge radical aesthetics with technical mastery signals a new chapter—not just for them but for fashion as a whole.
“This collection is about walking into a room with your head held high—even if no one wants you there,” they assert.
In doing so, Dalton and Bhaskaran invite us all to embrace our individuality unapologetically—a message as timeless as it is timely.
Finally, I cannot conclude without highlighting the striking debut of Matieres Fecales Paris at Coachella Music Festival this April. The brand, in its first collection, made an unforgettable impression by dressing Lady Gaga in a breathtaking couture ensemble that captured global attention. The look was a bold visual transformation, featuring a satin-stitched bodysuit adorned with their signature red anatomical cross motif—a haunting design symbolizing surgical stitches, resurrection, and rebirth, themes central to the brand’s identity.
Layered over the bodysuit was a translucent organza coat and an exaggerated feathered bustle skirt crafted from delicate white plumes that swayed with every beat of her performance. Completing the look was a sculptural feather collar and a dramatic headpiece of long, ethereal white feathers shooting upward like wings, perfectly framing Gaga’s head. This masterpiece not only embodied the phoenix rising—a metaphor for rebirth and transformation—but also solidified Matieres Fecales Paris as a daring new force in fashion, commanding attention on one of the world’s most iconic stages.
Diane Pernet
