As fashion inspirations go, 17th century Calvinists tend not to be high on any designer’s list, what with all of the starched collars, ruffs and puritanical approach.
But Erdem Moralioglu finds inspiration — and beauty — in the strangest places, and has based his latest collection on Maria Sibylla Merian, the 17th century German entomologist, botanical illustrator and strict Calvinist.
Merian was a trailblazer, traveling to South America with her daughter to further her naturalist studies, and in 1705 became the first person to discover the life cycle and metamorphosis of the butterfly.
Her life and work provided rich pickings for the designer who turned those starched white collars and stiff ruffs into guipure lace cocktail dresses, and elegant separates such as a long asymmetrical white top, and the trim on a strappy powder blue dress slicked with sequins.
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He did some fancy flower arranging, too. Moralioglu used colorful blooms that recalled the work of the Dutch Masters as placement prints on a silvery cocktail dress made with metal threads, a sleeveless sheath and — in a rebellious move of his own — a leather motorcycle jacket and matching skirt.
Those flowers also came as the sparkling embroidery on sharp skirt suits, and as etchings and 3D embellishments on car coats. They sprouted in bright red splendor on the sleeves of everything from chunky knits to evening gowns.
The designer worked Merian’s own botanical drawings and bug illustrations onto sarong-like skirts and dresses with handkerchief draping. He pulled flower and bug elements from those drawings and turned them into pins on a lush green cardigan or the fabric embellishments on an evening dress.
It was lavish, sensual — and utterly scandalous from a 17th century Calvinist point of view.