Backstage Dino Alves SS26 at ModaLisboa

 

 

Dino Alves presented his SS26 collection, Mais Além, at the latest edition of ModaLisboa. Inspired by the artist’s ability to see the invisible, the collection transforms the ordinary into something unexpected. Known for pushing beyond the obvious, Dino shows that going further can mean removing what’s unnecessary — finding simplicity, refinement, and quiet confidence in every piece.

Photography Isabella Glock and Barbara Martons
Backstage at ModaLisboa Base

Beauty Antonia Rosa and team with Kiko

Hair Helena Vaz Pereira and team at Griffe Hair Style

 

Words & interview Daniela Abranches

 

A key name in Portuguese fashion since the 1990s, Dino Alves works across multiple creative worlds. His latest collection, Mais Além, began as a creative challenge: to push beyond the obvious, transforming the banal into the extraordinary.

After following his usual process, Dino let the collection mature before asking himself where it could go further. The extraordinary factor wasn’t the extravaganza, but the simplicity of forms, the refinement of pieces and a quieter confidence that proves going further can mean removing what’s unnecessary.

ZOOT spoke to Dino about his inspiration, his perspective on art and where our world is heading.

ZOOT: For readers meeting you now for the first time: how would you describe Dino Alves, yourself, your brand?

Dino Alves: I am an independent fashion designer who uses artistic reasoning in everything I do and therefore I create fashion as a form of artistic expression. I am a free mind because being creative means using that freedom to always go further.

ZOOT: You’ve worked across fashion, costume, television and performance. How do these worlds divide for you as a designer — or do they no longer divide at all?

Dino Alves: As an artist, my opinion is that you either are an artist or you aren’t, and the only thing that separates the various areas – theatre, cinema,  performance, fashion is the medium used. The reasoning and artistic expression will always be the same. In most cases here I ‘m working on several projects in these different areas, they influence each other, and I think that’s a good thing.

ZOOT: Your collection “Mais Além” suggests pushing past the obvious. What were you trying to go beyond this season — your own habits, the market, or the moment we’re living in?

Dino Alves: I simply wanted to push my thinking further in terms of artistic expression so that the result of my ideas would be something new and unexpected. Go further in my case  doesn’t necessarily mean being more extravagant or more elaborate but rather achieving simplicity and refinement in the pieces.

ZOOT: Your concept says going “further” can mean simplifying. Did you remove or purify something in the design process to get closer to the point?

Dino Alves: For me, going further meant simplifying and removing some excesses. In this process, I approached the pieces as I would in other collections, and then, after a pause, I looked at them again to understand how I could go further. In most cases, it involved removing elements and simplifying the forms.

ZOOT: You also mention the artist’s ability to see the invisible. What do you feel you see that others might overlook?

Dino Alves : For me to see the invisible is, above all, to be able to convey, through art — and in this case fashion — a romantic story, a philosophical thought, to make a political statement, or to take a social stance. Ultimately, it is about telling a story through clothing.

ZOOT: In a time when fashion images circulate faster than collections are understood, how important is context to you — and how do you control it?

Dino: I worry and always try to keep up with the social and behavioral trend, but at the same time I try to slow down a bit creating timeless pieces  that last over time and don’t become outdated in a single season.

ZOOT: Which are your “go-to” materials and why?

Dino Alves: I dont have any reference or preferred materials. Any material can be perfect for certain effects i want to convey and above all for what i want to say at the moment of creation.

ZOOT: ⁠Looking back, what would you tell a younger artist starting now?

Dino Alves: Be curious, be free, let your head wander to the moon, but keep your body on the ground. Go back to your roots to more easily reach the future.

ZOOT: After all these years of work, what do you still feel you need to say to the fashion industry?

Dino Alves: Interestingly, and even though it may seem contradictory, I always maintain that fashion is not about dresses, skirts, pants, or coats, but much more than that. Fashion is what’s inside us, and being a modern person is, above all, about being a well-mannered person.

ZOOT: Considering the world we live in, marked by conflict, displacement and instability, do you think fashion has a responsibility to address certain themes?

Dino Alves: I believe that artists should only create works of art — or in this case, fashion — if they have something to say and are not merely decorative. That’s why it is important to raise topics for discussion and reflection.

⁠ZOOT: Is sustainability something you actively consider in your practice — and how does it translate into concrete decisions in your work and your every day life?

Dino: Yes,  it’s a concern I have in my daily life and therefore also in my work. I’m concerned with using organic and recycled fabrics, stagnant stock,  local prodution and upcyling. These are just some of the practices I adopted

ZOOT: Your work often moves between intimacy and spectacle. How do you decide when a collection should whisper, and when it should confront?

Dino Alves: This duality generally remains, but depending on the theme and concept chosen for each collection, sometimes I like to be more radical, other times more subtle. Often, silence speaks loudest.

ZOOT: Portugal has a strong cultural and artistic identity. How does place — Lisbon, specifically — continue to shape your work today?

Dino Alves: I think fashion is in the streets and in people’s behavior, so it’s inevitable that it influences my work — especially because what I enjoy most is walking the streets.

ZOOT: What part of the creative process do you protect the most — and what are you willing to let go of?

Dino Alves: The part I protect most, and am most ambitious about, is the creation of the concept: what I want to say, the message I want to convey, and then the visual embodiment of the fashion show as a spectacle. The part that matters least to me is defining the colors, textures, or even the design of the pieces, because these emerge naturally if the concept is well constructed. Clothing is merely a means to express what we want to say at the moment.

ZOOT: For SS26, which piece best represents the “Mais Além” idea and why?

Dino Alves: A collection tells a story,  it has a narrative that culminates and is usually the end of that story.  So,  I think the last look is probably the one thats best represents the concept,  because it has a refined design a simple and elegante silhouette with the bold and irreverent detail of the bust cups.

Thank you Dino!

To boot…

DINO ALVES
@dino_alves_eu

View more of Dino Alves here on ZOOT

Full DINO ALVES SS26 coverage at ModaLisboa .