SOZO SPEAKS: Sean Brown, On Repeat
‘CD RUG” Curves by Sean Brown
Images by : Curves by Sean Brown
Designing with Play & Cultural Resonance
Sean Brown isn't just a designer; he's a cultural archivist and a visionary who reimagines everyday objects with a blend of nostalgia and innovation. As the creative mind behind Curves by Sean Brown, he transforms mundane items into art pieces that evoke emotion and conversation. His work isn’t about trends, it’s about building a world where memory, music, and design collide.
From Archival Ephemera to Iconic Homeware
While Curves might feel like the starting point for many, Brown’s journey reaches back further. From The Art of Reuse, a roaming vintage concept store, to his elevated sportswear line NEEDS&WANTS, to creative directing for Daniel Caesar, everything before Curves feels like part of an evolving mixtape. No track skipped, no past project deleted. In 2018, Brown hosted a solo exhibition in Toronto that showcased his process work and ephemera, offering a glimpse into the way he sees and archives the world around him.
That perspective carried forward into Curves by Sean Brown, a homeware brand rooted in the idea of democratising design and making culturally rich objects accessible. At the heart of it are the now-iconic CD rugs, hand-tufted wool tributes to albums that shaped a generation, a perfect example of how he turns cultural memory into tangible design.
Brown’s projects often take a more conceptual turn, like the Rimowa Trunk Lamp, a travel case reimagined as a light sculpture, and his playfully imposing Ego inflatable, which explores scale and presence. His work blurs the lines between design, art and cultural commentary, always reframing what home can hold.
@byseanbrown
@byseanbrown
A bold counterpoint to convention
For me, the Lil' Kim CD rug is more than decor. In a world where women are often told to be quiet, to diminish themselves, this rug is a bold counterpoint.
Every time I glance at it, I hear the opening beats of "Queen Bitch" from Hard Core, an anthem of defiance and confidence. That spirit lives in this rug.
It’s been with me as my body has grown into its natural, curvier state, something I’m still learning to embrace. Selling vintage can feel tricky when so much of what you see in this world is made for smaller bodies, and even pieces from my own collection don’t always fit the way they used to. But I’ve started to see that as an opportunity, to rework, to reinvent, to find new ways to wear what I love.
The rug reminds me to lean into that. To let myself be seen, even when it feels uncomfortable.
The response? It’s been unexpectedly soft, generous. The community around me lifts me up, makes me feel more at home in my own skin like the space I was afraid to take up was always mine to claim.
At home, the Lil’ Kim CD rug lives with my Sozo pieces
Inflatable Furniture: A Playful Reimagining
Brown’s creativity doesn’t sit still. His Ego Collection, a line of inflatable furniture, challenges the traditional idea of what homeware should be. It’s functional, yes, but it’s also playful, ironic, and a little provocative.
In Sumiko Wilson’s SSENSE piece, Brown talks about how Austrian artist Erwin Wurm, known for his whimsical, oversized sculptures, gave him permission to be a little stupid, a little playful. That influence shows up in these inflatables, design that doesn’t take itself too seriously, but still commands attention.
This playful approach is something I carry into my own space. The rug, the fits, the little ways I experiment, it all feels like part of that same ethos: design as play, as permission.
Hypebeast Visits: Sean Brown’s Curves Showroom
Artwork by: By Elliot Santiago
The Philosophy of Not Deleting
One of the things I admire most about Brown is his commitment to evolution over reinvention. There’s this moment in the SSENSE interview where he talks about how people, especially artists, love to wipe their Instagram feeds clean, start fresh. But Brown resists that. “I don't always want to feel like I'm someone new so I don't like who I was. I think instead of trying to hide the past or delete it, it’s better to just let things rock. Evolution is so much iller than a full-out rebrand.”
That philosophy has stuck with me. I’m learning to move away from perfectionism, to let things be messy, real, and to let my whole journey stay visible.
Austin reading, lounging beside my Lil' Kim CD rug
Balance: Issey Miyake Pouch, Lil’ Kim CD rug
My Sean Brown Wish List
Brown’s work is part of my daily rhythm now, woven into my space and grounding me. But I can already see it going further. As I grow Sozo into a space that blends archive with contemporary designers, collaborating with him feels inevitable. I imagine his pieces blended in with the vintage and contemporary names that inspire me. Until then, I’ll keep treasuring my Lil’ Kim rug, keep showing up in front of the camera, leaning into the process. Evolution doesn’t need a rebrand.
The EGO Chair by Curves by Sean Brown
Curves By Sean Brown at ComplexCon
WORDS:
SOZO SPEAKS: Prada's Waist Down
PRADA ‘flowers’ created from flattened skirts
Artwork by : 2x4
The Skirt as a Statement
Fashion is a language, and the skirt is its punctuation: fluid, dynamic, and endlessly expressive. Waist Down: Skirts by Miuccia Prada wasn’t just an exhibition; it was a movement. A radical reappraisal of the skirt’s place in fashion, dissecting its form, function, and cultural significance. From the streets to the runway, skirts have always carried an unspoken power, a silent rebellion wrapped in fabric. Prada understood this, translating motion into meaning, using 100 archival skirts to tell a story of reinvention. First staged in Tokyo in 2004, the exhibition travelled to Shanghai, New York, Los Angeles, and Seoul. Each stop recontextualising the conversation, proving that style is never static.
The Art of Motion
At Sozo Amour, we believe fashion is about energy, an interplay of movement, transformation, and emotion. It’s about the way a piece moves with you, how it shapes and shifts with the body, creating a connection that goes beyond appearance. Waist Down was a living testament to this philosophy. Skirts floated mid-air, spun in motion, stretched across walls like pressed flowers. Prada’s world was tactile yet conceptual, where tulle, pleats, and deconstructed silhouettes weren’t just fabrics but gestures: statements of selfhood, confidence, and fluid identity. It wasn’t about nostalgia; it was about evolution.
Prada Store Tokyo by OMA
Deconstructing Beauty
The skirts in Waist Down weren’t passive, they were confrontational, seductive, and unapologetic. Layers of fabric became architectural. Pleats held tension. Prints disrupted expectations. Each piece embodied the Prada ethos: rejecting the obvious, embracing contradiction, and subverting beauty in the most intelligent way possible.
This same ethos is reflected in the Prada pieces we curate at Sozo Amour, where past collections continue to resonate with today’s aesthetic landscape. The 2004 printed silk faille dress captures the spirit of Waist Down perfectly, its bold, graphic patterns echo the dynamic energy of the exhibition, bridging structure and movement. Miuccia Prada described this collection as “a dream of extreme romanticism, the idea of eighteenth-century painting, with video games.” A romanticism between past and future, this ethos is deeply embedded in both Prada’s aesthetic and Sozo Amour’s curation.
Similarly, the 2007 beige pleated skirt mirrors the sculptural pleating seen in the exhibition, structured folds that soften with movement, blooming like a flower as the body shifts. This interplay between rigidity and softness echoes Waist Down, where skirts were flattened and reimagined as floral-like compositions, transforming their original structure into something entirely new.
Waist Down: Skirts by Miuccia Prada
Artwork by : 2x4
A Journey Beyond Borders
Just like Sozo Amour is rooted in storytelling, Waist Down was about the journey. Each city shaped the exhibition, bending and shifting to its cultural environment. Tokyo gave it structure, Shanghai lent it sensuality, New York infused it with grit, Los Angeles wrapped it in cinematic grandeur, and Seoul sharpened its futurism. This wasn’t just about skirts; it was about how clothing interacts with space, time, and body. It was a global dialogue, a reminder that fashion doesn’t exist in a vacuum but thrives in motion, in adaptation, in evolution.
Prada Epicenter Los Angeles by OMA
A Legacy in Motion
Though Waist Down was ephemeral, its impact remains. It was proof that a simple garment, one we often take for granted, holds the power to redefine silhouettes, narratives, and identities. At Sozo Amour, we live for this kind of fashion: the kind that pushes boundaries, that rethinks tradition, that turns movement into meaning. Skirts may have been the subject, but the real story was transformation. Because the best fashion doesn’t just sit still… it moves.
Streets of Tokyo
Artwork by : 2x4
Waist Down: Skirts by Miuccia Prada
Scans by: @prada.amore
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SOZO SPEAKS: Nadia Mueller
Supporting and showcasing emerging artists and designers.
Nadia is a compelling emerging Sydney-based designer, her bloodlines run deep with Swiss determination and Aussie charm.
She avidly explores polarizing concepts in her artistry. She has completed her Bachelor in Fashion and Textiles at UTS and is about to commence her Honours.
Recently we spoke with Nadia about her journey-to-date in this exciting yet challenging industry.
SOZO
Tell us a little bit about yourself, how did you get started on the fashion design path?
NADIA
I’ve always wanted to go into design, I’m still not sure if I want to go into costume design or I want to go down the fashion path. Both are challenging in different ways. I know that’s a terrible answer but the design world has always looked just so fun.
SOZO
Did you choose to study something else before you got into design?
NADIA
Yeah! I was actually studying ancient history before this, because I was like if I want to go into costume design, I want to have an understanding of the characters historical context when I'm designing, however …. I found that the history community was just not my people *laugh*. I guess what's quite central to me as a designer is being an identical twin, my sister isn't at all creative so she doesnt help me in that way but a lot of my style and designs come from trying to form my own identity. Trying to differentiate myself from someone who is so similar to me. I think a lot of what we do as designers is reinterpret, everyone is influenced by someone else and so close to copying one another.
SOZO
What is your design process?
NADIA
Honestly, my process is so chaotic, for me it is about bringing all weird wacky references together that [often] don’t really make sense.
SOZO
Tell us about one of your current projects, what elements are informing this work?
NADIA
This collection that I am working on at the moment is inspired by 1980s domestic life and the process of making jelly. I’m pouring latex into tin floor moulds that resemble kitchen tiles from the 1970s, the final textile being a sheet of latex with this pattern moulded throughout. It’s a very timely process, it comes in a liquid and then you have to paint layer by layer. I really like experimenting….. 90 percent of the time it doesn’t work but you’ve got to try anyway. This latex fabric is placed with vintage floral stretch fabric, tea-dyed trims, and vintage aqua blue moree fabric. There is definitely something there when you are bringing things together that don’t necessarily work like latex and archival fabrics.
SOZO
How would you define your style in a sentence?
NADIA
Chaotic and confused… still curated though *laughs*
SOZO
What are some favourite pieces you’ve designed?
NADIA
To be honest I've only done 3 collections, they're cool but they're not who I am as a designer, it's so hard when you are so young because you don’t want to pigeon hole yourself. You have caught me in the very early stages of my designing process *laughs* I don’t even know what I’m doing 90 percent of the time, it's okay to fail. I really value the people that I surround myself with, I think they are incredible creatives and I definitely value their friendship and their opinions. So that adds to my process as well, the people I surround myself with.
SOZO
In regards to Set Design, do you have a particular process?
NADIA
The set design is where I'm loosely trying to be historically accurate trying to capture a certain mood that I would associate with a historical context. I just want to have fun, for this shoot I wanted to do a birthday party for grandma that no one turned up to… Another project I worked with Ari KC and we built a chaotic 70s satin bedroom with crazy scribbled flowers all over the wall with the same latex jacket. So there always has to be a narrative even if it kind of doesn't fully check out.
SOZO
Something off the beaten track……
NADIA
My sister and I just adopted an old cat that no one wanted and he is named Stinky and yes he is Stinky. But he is literally the most loving cat I have ever met.
SOZO
Who is your dream collaboration with and why?
NADIA
My best friend Maddison Robinson. I'd love to create something with her, she is also a fashion designer. She is an incredible designer who has a completely different style than myself which could produce something unexpected.
SOZO
What would you like to see the fashion industry do differently?
NADIA
I think as designers we are under valued for the amount of skills we have and I don’t think our pay represents what we do. It's such a labour of love but we earn nothing. There are definitely jobs but in a nutshell we are underpaid for what we do.
SOZO
Sozo Amour means “Create Love”, what does create love mean to you?
NADIA
I think for me it's about creating what my passions, loves and obsessions are. I think if you pour all of your love into what you do, it's going to work out. For me love goes into the process.
SOZO
What are you fascinated by at the moment and how does it fit into your work?
NADIA
I’m OBSESSED with jelly, getting the moulds and making jelly. For a side project I am going to make these jelly flower vases, I’m not sure if it will work but! The idea is, that they will have water in the middle in another jelly ball. I’m obsessed with jelly!
SOZO
What's next for Nadia?
NADIA
Oh my god *laugh* I don’t even know what I’m doing tomorrow. I'm so open to do literally anything, anything creative. If I meet someone and they say hey! Do you want to do this paper mache thing, I'll do it. You just have to say to yourself I am super excited to create anything, whether that be in fashion, costume, or production. So what's next is just meeting more people, collaborating..
NADIA AT HOME
Photographer: @pukbril.s
NADIA AT HOME
Photographer: @pukbril.s