Rita Kaourma_ Portfolio

Second Skin

CREATIVE BIO

Rita Kaourma is a fashion designer based in Melbourne, Australia. She draws inspiration from the narratives found in nature, weaving storytelling into every garment through considered design and thoughtful detail. Her work explores the textures, colours, and forms found in the natural world, transforming them into contemporary silhouettes that carry both visual poetry and structural integrity.

Rita practice spans womenswear as her primary focus, while also extending into menswear, bringing a sense of fluidity and adaptability across both. Her approach centres on

creating garments that feel alive — pieces that hold a story, invite curiosity, and connect deeply with the wearer. She works to merge artisanal techniques with modern construction, balancing craftsmanship with innovation.

Through her collections, R seeks to push the boundaries of design by embedding meaning into each stitch and cut, ensuring the final garment speaks as much to the senses as it does to the eye. Her work celebrates both her commitment to storytelling and her respect for the natural world.

Tech Sketches

DESIGN STATEMENT

Second Skin is a womenswear collection exploring emotional and structural dimensions of clothing through seashell symbolism. Inspired by layered geometry and coastal fragility, garments use pleating, asymmetry, and textile layering to express duality—shielding and revealing. This tension mirrors Melbourne’s blend of Victorian elegance and modern minimalism.

Shells evoke cultural memory, especially in Indigenous Australian contexts, where they signify identity and kinship. Soft metallics, fluid textures, and meditative colors reflect continuity and transformation. Drawing from Barthes and Evans, the collection speaks through silhouette and texture—garments as emotional armor, cultural narrative, and expressive tools of belonging.