Vietnamese Codes, Reimagined on the London Runway
(by Tran Bao Tram)
At Áo Dài Fashion Week London on 20 September, Lụa Kim’s Việt Vân and Lê Thanh Danh’s Tre & Cộng sinh offered two distinct interpretations of Vietnamese identity — moving between femininity and craftsmanship, bamboo and rural memory, tradition and contemporary dress.
On the London runway, familiar Vietnamese references were not treated as decorative motifs alone. In the hands of Lụa Kim and Lê Thanh Danh, they became part of the construction, texture and visual language of the Áo Dài itself.
Lụa Kim: Softness with Strength
For Việt Vân, Lụa Kim begins with the Vietnamese woman — feminine and graceful, yet defined by an underlying sense of individuality and strength.
The duality is echoed in the designer’s own name: lụa, meaning silk, suggests fluidity and softness, while Lua Kim evokes something sharper, stronger and more enduring.
On the London runway, familiar Vietnamese references were not treated as decorative motifs alone. In the hands of Lụa Kim and Lê Thanh Danh, they became part of the construction, texture and visual language of the Áo Dài itself.
Lụa Kim: Softness with Strength
For Việt Vân, Lụa Kim begins with the Vietnamese woman — feminine and graceful, yet defined by an underlying sense of individuality and strength.
The duality is echoed in the designer’s own name: lụa, meaning silk, suggests fluidity and softness, while Lua Kim evokes something sharper, stronger and more enduring.
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Việt Vân explores Lụa Kim’s vision of Vietnamese femininity — soft in expression, yet confident in character.
That contrast runs through the collection. Silk, traditional the velvet and brocade are layered with lotus imagery and subtle references to Đông Hồ folk painting. Hand embroidery, appliqué and embellishment bring dimension to the surface, while the fluidity of the Áo Dài is preserved through the body.
Rather than radically reconstructing the silhouette, Lụa Kim introduces contemporary variation through the collar, sleeves and decorative panels. Brocade appears as an accent rather than dominating the garment, creating moments of texture against softer fabrics.
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Brocade brings texture and contrast to Lụa Kim’s contemporary interpretation of the Áo Dài.
Việt Vân on the runway at Áo Dài Fashion Week London 2026.
The result is an approach to heritage that feels less about reproducing the past than allowing its materials and visual codes to move naturally into the present.
Lê Thanh Danh: Rural Memory in Motion
For Lê Thanh Danh, the starting point is different. His fashion vocabulary repeatedly returns to the Vietnamese countryside.
Following Lúa, previously presented in Japan, the United States and France, the designer continued this exploration in London with Tre & Cộng sinh (Bamboo & Symbiosis).
Bamboo is central to the collection, but Danh moves beyond its familiar symbolic associations. His references come from everyday rural life: bamboo hedges shading village roads, bridges crossing waterways, working objects, vegetation, birds and the relationship between people and their natural surroundings.
From these interconnected images emerges the collection’s idea of symbiosis.
Following Lúa, previously presented in Japan, the United States and France, the designer continued this exploration in London with Tre & Cộng sinh (Bamboo & Symbiosis).
Bamboo is central to the collection, but Danh moves beyond its familiar symbolic associations. His references come from everyday rural life: bamboo hedges shading village roads, bridges crossing waterways, working objects, vegetation, birds and the relationship between people and their natural surroundings.
From these interconnected images emerges the collection’s idea of symbiosis.
Tre & Cộng sinh draws on the visual memory of rural Vietnam, from bamboo-lined paths and bridges to the natural life surrounding them.
The material language remains deliberately accessible. Voile, lace, mesh and poly-blended fabrics replace more luxurious textiles, while relaxed silhouettes give the garments movement. Bamboo leaves, foliage and birds emerge through embellishment and fabric-manipulation techniques, translating the landscape into tactile surfaces.
International models present Tre & Cộng sinh at Áo Dài Fashion Week London 2026.
Detail from Lê Thanh Danh’s Tre & Cộng sinh collection.
The choice of
materials also reflects Danh’s philosophy. Fashion can be beautiful and inventive, but for a collection rooted in village life, he believes it should not become disconnected from the people and environments that inspired it.Tradition Without a Formula
materials also reflects Danh’s philosophy. Fashion can be beautiful and inventive, but for a collection rooted in village life, he believes it should not become disconnected from the people and environments that inspired it.Tradition Without a Formula
Placed together, the two collections reveal contrasting ways of working with Vietnamese identity.
Lụa Kim looks towards femininity through silk, brocade, lotus imagery and handcraft. Lê Thanh Danh turns towards bamboo, landscape and the visual memory of rural life.
Neither requires Vietnamese heritage to remain fixed in its familiar form.
On the London runway, culture becomes material rather than costume — something to cut, layer, embroider, reinterpret and wear. And in doing so, Việt Vân and Tre & Cộng sinh suggest that there is no single formula for bringing Vietnamese identity into contemporary fashion.
Lụa Kim looks towards femininity through silk, brocade, lotus imagery and handcraft. Lê Thanh Danh turns towards bamboo, landscape and the visual memory of rural life.
Neither requires Vietnamese heritage to remain fixed in its familiar form.
On the London runway, culture becomes material rather than costume — something to cut, layer, embroider, reinterpret and wear. And in doing so, Việt Vân and Tre & Cộng sinh suggest that there is no single formula for bringing Vietnamese identity into contemporary fashion.
Photos 1 and 1.1: Tre & Cộng sinh brings familiar imagery of rural Vietnam to the London audience, from bamboo groves and village bridges to the surrounding natural landscape.
Photo 2: International models present Tre & Cộng sinh on the runway at Áo Dài Fashion Week London 2026.
Photo 7: A closer look at the details of Lê Thanh Danh’s design.
Photos 4 & 9: With Việt Vân, Lụa Kim brings her vision of the Vietnamese woman to the London runway — graceful and feminine, yet confident and distinctive.
Photos 5 & 8: Lụa Kim uses brocade as a textural accent, giving the traditional Áo Dài a contemporary edge.
Photo 6: Việt Vân made a striking impression on the international audience at Áo Dài Fashion Week London 2026.
Photo 2: International models present Tre & Cộng sinh on the runway at Áo Dài Fashion Week London 2026.
Photo 7: A closer look at the details of Lê Thanh Danh’s design.
Photos 4 & 9: With Việt Vân, Lụa Kim brings her vision of the Vietnamese woman to the London runway — graceful and feminine, yet confident and distinctive.
Photos 5 & 8: Lụa Kim uses brocade as a textural accent, giving the traditional Áo Dài a contemporary edge.
Photo 6: Việt Vân made a striking impression on the international audience at Áo Dài Fashion Week London 2026.