ghazal | ‘gazal | noun
Written here in Urdu, a ghazal is an amatory poem or ode, with a fixed number of verses and a repeated rhyme, often set to music. A ghazal can be a poetic expression of both the pain of loss, separation, and the beauty of love.
It is used in Urdu, Hindi, Farsi, Arabic and Turkish, while originating in Arabic and Persian poetry, and used in South Asian and Southwest Asian literature and music.
GmbH
From the designer:
“Dear,
It’s been a while since we saw each other. We have missed you, and we are so excited to see you, but also sad.
Since weeks Pakistan has experienced catastrophic floods due do the Climate Crisis, displacing an estimated 33 million people. Vast parts of the country is still under water. Pakistan is the 5th biggest cotton producer in the world, but the fashion world has remained silent. While we in the Global North are collectively the ones primarily responsible for the Climate Crisis, Pakistan, like other countries in the Global South, are often the ones affected the most.”
This collection was intended as a fragmented, personal celebration of South Asian beauty and culture, as part of our ongoing research into our own heritage(s). GmbH is a project of unlearning, as we work towards decolonising our minds. In this process we are reclaiming a kind of personal spirituality, within the complexities between freedom and morality.
For the SPRING 2023 ‘Ghazal’ collection we collaborated with Muhammad Fatchurofi, known as Rofi an Indonesian artist based on Java, for the seasonal prints. We were drawn to his drawings who often depict mindfulness and calm. The prints evolved out of our conversations about the healing and transformative properties of water. Waterdrops spell the words ‘LOVEFULL’.
Continued are the prints originally made for AUTUMN 2022 ‘Talisman’, by Abdelrazak Shaballot, a Syrian artist based in Berlin. Written in Arabic calligraphy, are the words ‘SAFE FROM HARM’ ‘WISDOM’ and ‘KNOWLEDGE’.
The collection previews our new collaboration with the shoes brand Scholl. The inventor of the famous wooden clog (The Pescura), which are handcrafted in Italy, debuts together with GmbH a range of sandals with technical mesh uppers for the SS23 collection.
Benjamin & Serhat
Creative Directors Benjamin A. Huseby & Serhat Isık
Artistic Consultant Emman Debattista
Jewellery Nhat-Vu Dang
Prints Rofi
Calligraphy Abdelrazak Shaballot
Graphic Design Rupert Smyth
Hair Mustafa Yanaz
Make Up Peter Philips
Nails Cam Tran
Casting Affa Osman
Sound Design Lukas Heerich
Show Production Daniel Hettmann
GmbH Studio
Maike Lüer, Leonie Barth, Nektarios Stamadianos, Tom Finger, Keke Opata, Kaan Turgut,
Manal Fathi, Eliot Heissat, Leonore Culemann, Luca Migliaro, Jutta Klingel
Special Thanks to Nam Nguyen, Edward Buchanan, Olivier Bourgis, Antonin Dansicare, Rachel Elliston
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With love,
FWO
