A conceptual art, multimedia & avant-garde fashion project.
Founded and designed by David De Hannay, known as Dante Samurai.
SAMURAIDREAM is a multidisciplinary conceptual art project that explores Japanese culture, Samurai traditions, avant-garde fashion, and spirituality through a new artistic language.
Inspired by Japanese culture and the discipline of the Samurai, David De Hannay brings his artistic vision to life through conceptual art, fashion, photography, film, and multimedia. His personal connection to the Samurai spirit is also reflected in his practice of Kendo and Iaido under the guidance of his Sensei.
Our mission is to present the fashion world in a different way.
Rather than following conventional fashion presentations, we approach clothing and jewelry as part of a larger artistic vision, combining fashion with conceptual art, visual storytelling, performance, and cinema.
Our vision includes several interconnected outcomes: conceptual art exhibitions, avant-garde clothing and jewelry available for purchase, an art book, and a film. Together, these elements will create a multimedia experience that introduces the extraordinary depth of Japanese culture through contemporary art and new forms of expression.
View the photographsAt its heart, SAMURAIDREAM is also a spiritual journey.
Inspired by the discipline, honor, focus, and self-mastery associated with Samurai traditions, alongside the contemplative philosophy of Zen, the project explores the relationship between the body, the mind, clothing, art, and the spirit.
SAMURAIDREAM is more than fashion. It is conceptual art, a multimedia experience, a cultural dialogue, and a journey of the spirit.
We welcome other fashion designers, artists, photographers, filmmakers, and creative professionals who want to bring their own ideas and perspectives into this shared vision.
SAMURAIDREAM is an evolving collaborative project. All collaborators will be credited as part of the project's creative journey.
We are open to collaborating with designers, investors, entrepreneurs, and business owners who share our vision and wish to support the project as sponsors, creative partners, or collaborators.
Discuss a collaborationThis is a visual dialogue with Japanese textiles, not an authoritative account of Japanese culture.
We separate what can be seen from what can be verified. We do not assign an undocumented maker, date or prior owner to a garment. SAMURAIDREAM presents the selection and does not claim to have made the original pieces.
Read our approach
David De Hannay is a conceptual artist based in New York City. His practice spans painting, conceptual photography, documentary film, publishing, performance, and curation, and it has been shaped by years of documentary and photographic work in Iran, Afghanistan, Turkey, and the United States.
In 2020 he founded NYC Art Movement, an artist run platform whose inaugural exhibition drew more than 450 visitors under pandemic safety measures. Through the platform he documented more than 120 mural and street artists during the pandemic and Black Lives Matter era, curated the 2022 Stand with Ukraine exhibition at One Art Space, and produced the live performance Chroma.
His conceptual artwork has been presented by BBC World News. His unique fique paper lithograph Dreamer under the tree was selected for the Royal Society of Painter-Printmakers' International Original Print Exhibition 2024 in London, and his documentary LIBRE Monijara was named Best Documentary Film at IFFA 2025 in New York and listed as a Best Documentary finalist at ARFF Berlin.
He is the author of books on art, cinema, and politics, including Godard Forever, Guillotine in NYC, and Lost Paradise, and he continues to develop long term photographic projects such as Persona, Symbols of Transformation, and Seeing As.
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