GmbH Aw22 ’Talisman’
AUTUMN 2022 started with a deeply personal exploration of GMBJ’s relationship with religion, couture and sex. “We have always talked about fashion as a kind of protection, of the physical and spiritual kind. Fashion as a shield.”
GmbH Aw22 ’Talisman’
“We came across an Ottoman soldier’s undergarments from the 16th century. These silk robes intended to be worn under one’s armour were covered by hand painted protective calligraphy. This mixture of religion, superstition and art reminded us of Serhat’s grandfather, who wrote these protective scriptures in Arabic for anyone that required them in their village in Turkey. They would normally be hidden in leather pendants (in Turkish muskas) or sewn into undergarments. In a dream the words ‘Safe From Harm’ came to us, which became an affirmation we rendered in Arabic calligraphy created by Syrian artist Abdelrazak Shaballot, and printed on silk. Another trace is our study of the codes of formal and religious dressing.
“Kaftans and tunics paired with thigh high boots become dresses when worn without trousers, exposing a part of flesh on the upper thigh. The faux astrakhan is from memories of older family members, a common material in many Muslim countries. So were the taqiyah, the knitted skull cap, also known as kufi, topi or takke depending on region.
“Other traditional codes of dressing came from the studies of details of mid-century haute couture. Exaggerated collars and cuffs in synthetic fur, exposed backs as well as jewellery designed by Nhat-Vu Dang using a mixture of stones and reclaimed jewellery plated in silver and gold.”
The show was staged and filmed in the workshop of Brandlhuber+ architects in Berlin, with an audience of just 8 friends and no press. The video is a compilation of the documentation from the audience.
CREDITS
Creative Directors Benjamin A. Huseby & Serhat Işık
Music LABOUR, LABOUR is Colin Hacklander & Farahnaz Hatam
Jewellery Nhat-Vu Dang
Artistic Consultant Emman Debattista
Linguistic Consultant Enad Marouf
Calligraphy Abdelrazak Shaballot
Hair & Grooming Dushan Petrovich
Set Filip Berg based on artworks by Enad Marouf
Casting Affa Osman
Cast Alban Sacilé, Ayoub Erraji, Frank Wenzel, Jordy Ortiz, Luthando Ngema, Mouhamed Ndiaye
Special thanks to Enad Marouf and Brandlhuber+
This project has been supported by Paris Fashion Week
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With love,
FWO
