At Erdem, The Past Is Present
The designer used his London Fashion Week show to celebrate pioneering Weimar artists, and make a statement about looming authoritarianism.
By ALISON S. COHN - published
Photo: Erdem
At Erdem, The Past Is Present
The past is always present at Erdem. Perhaps never more eerily so than in his Fall 2022 collection, which took as its muses five pioneering female artists of the Weimar era, the interwar period from 1918 to 1933 when Germany was ruled by a liberal, democratically elected government and avant-garde culture flourished. Three of the artists were Jewish, and all made work that was eventually targeted by the Nazis.
The show notes cited Austrian fashion photographer Madame d’Ora, as well as a quartet of German creatives: dancers Anita Berber and Valeska Gert and painters Jeanne Mammen and Elfriede Lohse-Wächtler (who was murdered by the Nazis for her schizophrenia diagnosis).
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“In the early 1930s a new band of female artists and photographers captured the fringe culture in the underbellies of the glittering capitals in mainland Europe,” wrote Erdem in his show notes. He added, in case the comparison he was drawing to looming authoritarian aggression was not immediately obvious, “We are with them, underground in a club that could be in Berlin, Vienna or Paris. Electricity is in the air — the febrile energy of abandon that comes in the calm before the storm.”
The collection indeed had an underground edge — well, underground for the buttoned-up world of Erdem — featuring several jacquard dresses and coats with cuffs and hems ripped to tatters to create a fringing effect. Black bustiers were worn over demure maxi dresses and an almost entirely sheer lace gown was paired with studded elbow-length black gloves and a sequined boa. It was all very Sally Bowles in Cabaret.
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Weimar clubs were LGBTQ safe spaces for both performers (Berber was openly bisexual) and patrons, and their cabaret shows championed gender fluidity. Erdem chose a gender fluid cast and offered dresses and suits that looked great on everyone. “Our artists are ... liberally exploring notions of gender and sexuality, identity and expression,” he said. “Everyone is welcome, and all participate.”
Even the venue, Sadler’s Wells — the historic London theater that stayed open during the Blitz — seemed latent with significance, sending a powerful message about the vital role of fashion and art in our darkest hours.
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This article originally appeared on Harper's BAZAAR US.