When most fashion labels merely sew material and sell clothes, Toni Maticevski somehow sculpts fabric into works of art.

The celebrated designer has made a welcome return to the runway with his first show since 2019, on the first day of Australian Fashion Week in Sydney.

His to-die-for gowns were on display in monochrome shades and pastels - because, when you have made shapes like these, who needs colour?

Several garments relied not on the wearer's body for structure, but on external layers created at head and hip height.

Others were composed of what must have been thousands of leaves of diaphanous material, and still more featured outrageous fringing.

It's hard to believe one of Australia's most successful fashion labels has been absent from the international runway circuit for so long - but after Paris Fashion Week 2019, the designer said he was no longer feeling the thrill of a triumphant runway show.

"I had a bad run of doing beautiful shows, but just not getting the enjoyment out of it," Maticevski told AAP.

"It had become a process of doing things because it was expected, or it was part of the cycle in the system of fashion."

Following a break in 2025, Maticevski's first in almost two decades of running his eponymous label, the designer decided the time was right to return to the runway - and he wanted to do it in Australia.

Unlike the majority of Australian fashion brands, the Maticevski label does 95 per cent of its production in its home base of Melbourne, everything except fine embroidery and beading.

"The whole thing about coming back is really doing things to be part of the industry, the local talent that is delivering some amazing work," he said.

"It's all about us really backing and supporting each other."

Also showing on day one of fashion week are Carla Zampatti, First Nations label Buluuy Mirrii, Beare Park and swimwear label Van Ermel Scherer.

Maticevski first showed at what was then known as Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in 2002, and in 2016 he won the prestigious Australian Fashion Laureate Award.