Morrow Capsule: One Collection Annually

Ryan Morrow launched his eponymous label last year with a single capsule collection. The Sydney-based designer, formerly head of design at P. Johnson, creates clothes intended to serve both urban and natural environments seamlessly.

Morrow's design philosophy stems from his own weekend routines, leaving the city for Australia's eastern coast or the bush. He builds his collections around the idea of a packed weekend bag. Each piece is conceived as a solution. The Dry Jacket handles rain. The Fly Anorak offers a light, breathable layer. The Screen Shirt answers the need for a nice dinner option after a day by the sea.

"Considering each piece I'd pack in my bag for a weekend away, I like that idea of making them the best they can be," Morrow told Highsnobiety. This modular approach has begun to establish the brand's archetypal shapes.

Evolving Outerwear

Outerwear is a category Morrow explicitly wants the brand to excel in. The Dry Jacket, initially made from a treated polyester, was updated in the brand's second collection released this past Australian winter. It evolved into a cotton-nylon blend, maintaining its drape but gaining a sturdier handfeel.

A beefier sibling emerged in the Loft Jacket. It is made from Italian cotton canvas and filled with Australian and New Zealand wadding. The designer traces his attitude toward clothing back to the surf culture of the late 1990s and early 2000s. He aims for a design ethos of nonchalance and ease, underpinned by authentic, performance-oriented coolness.

A Natural Palette and Unexpected Clients

Morrow works within a natural color palette, with shades named Bark, Mud, and Fern. This shorthand for the intended environment has resonated within overlapping circles of fashion, design, and architecture. The clothes have also found an unexpected audience. Builders and carpenters have direct-messaged Morrow to report receiving compliments while wearing Dry Jackets on shift.

This aligns with his original idea of treating clothes like tools and equipment. The label, only a year old, is growing slowly. Morrow packs his single yearly collections with updates to fabrics and forms. "It's almost like I don't love clothes enough just to make heaps of it," he said.

Tools for a Niche

Looking ahead, Morrow is considering collaborations to introduce actual tools into the brand's world. He is looking at makers of his camp equipment. A folding pocketknife is first on the list. "I'm looking at the objects in my life that articulate this niche and what I'm trying to do with the brand," he explained. The focus remains on the considered object, for someone who thinks carefully about what they put into their life.