"Most of us live our lives in our clothes without realizing their power. But in the hands of artists, garments reveal themselves." – Charlie Porter, What Artists Wear.

The 2023 Sydney Contemporary art fair kicked off today with a swathe of fashionable artists and art aficionados descending the concrete steps at Carriageworks, all hungry to immerse themselves in the visual works and creative worlds of some of the most distinct and invigorating emerging visual artists from Australia and abroad. While there's a copious amount of artists we're excited to see at this year's Sydney Contemporary, we here at RUSSH are equally as interested in what the attendees and arts professionals are wearing.

From as far back as 1937, when Spanish surrealist, Salvador Dalí, painted an oversized lobster on a silk summer gown by the legendary Italian fashion designer, Elsa Schiaparelli, to as recently as Louis Vuitton's capsule collections with artists like Takashi Murakami (2002), Yayoi Kusama (2012) and Jeff Koons (2017), art and fashion have been intrinsically linked. The lines between both mediums blurring over the last few decades to become so subtle as to be imperceptible.

And so, it only makes sense that the crowd at this year’s Sydney Contemporary would be on their fashion A-game. One would assume taste is translatable across art forms – an appreciation for a beautiful brushstroke or colour palette equally as applicable to admiration for an embroidered detail or structured shirt collar.

We sent photographer Olivia Repaci to Carriageworks to report back on the sartorial offerings of the day. While there was still plenty of the art world's quintessential all-black fits, there was no shying away from colour – and a designer handbag or two.

Below, we bring you the best street style from the opening day of SC23