By Gianna Madrini
Erdem Moralioglu’s latest collection took a distinctly new direction for Spring 2014 heralding a new masculine element transformed via romantic fabrications. In a departure that strayed heavily from his super feminine, signature lady like silhouettes towards youth and androgyny, Erdem upped the ante creating extraordinary ornamental fabrics with intricate embroideries and ostrich feathers.
“I’ve always been attracted to the feminine,” said Erdem Moraliglu,” but this season I thought about the masculine.” What came across was a poetic, melancholy spirit spurred on by a live cellist and pianist who played Arvo Pärt’s Fratres while poised center stage throughout the show.
The collection rendered almost entirely in monochromatic black and white palette featured new cuts and echoed a young, romantic sensibility. Organza shell tops were embroidered in poems by Emily Dickinson and Walt Whitman, while long white shirts were visible underneath sheer skirts, some with ostrich feathers or pleated mid-length skirts. One shirt covered in lace was embroidered with a poem by Emily Dickinson and veiled in a layer of tulle. “So it’s like a little secret,” the designer explained.
Biker jackets and sweatshirts were also rendered in sheer fabrics and decorated with delicate single ostrich feathers, while crisp white men’s shirts were veiled in organza and embroidered in tulle florals.
A lot of the work was done by hand, “It’s couture on Bethnal Green Road,” stated the designer. The extraordinary level of fine workmanship was evident in each of the garments, from sweatshirts to finely worked collegiate style jackets trimmed in piping. The collection featured limitless possibilities in it’s combination of separates that echoed classic Etonian school uniforms with bullion embroideries, beaded crests, ostrich feathers, tulle, and sheer overlays as the central theme. Silk blouses were laser cut and reworked into basketball jerseys and shrunken cricket sweaters were paired with transparent mid-length skirts. A knee length dress with black embroidered appliqued stripes seemed to reference English rugby uniforms and came complete with a diaphanous tulle overlay.
Erdems latest offering was without question one of the most beautiful collection of the season. The clothes were evocative of couture, but with a lightness and playfulness that is sure to delight his most ardent fans.
