Innocence and Other Stories of Loss
What role do current affairs play in creativity, fashion and art? Can and should we separate these out?
Over the past year, we have been mulling over this question. We've realised that, as a small team pouring our heart into our work, it's hard to separate out our hopes about the world from our work. This is especially the case at a time of conflict.
The good news is that these feelings can contribute to beautiful art. They inspired our new collection, Innocence and Other Stories.
This is a story told in five Chapters. Each Chapter tells an optimistic story of loss, resilience, and rebirth. Here’s a closer look at the patterns and the significance they hold:
Chapter 1, Innocence
Moments fleeing safety. The Court Print blends East and West, drawing from Medieval court life, where abundant fabrics and heavy gold jewellery reflected status and power. This design contrasts the weight of experience with the fluidity of silk capturing the moment before innocence is lost and re-emergence begins. How can we transform life’s burdens into something beautiful?
Chapter 2, Breakdown Palace
Who's absurdest of them all? The Turtles Print playfully fuses elephants and turtles, inspired by ancient chess and ancient Asian mythology. This infinity spiral represents chaos and joy. For us, this is about finding beauty and joy in life's unpredictability.
Chapter 3, Between Light and Dark
As it is, as I want it to be. The humble pomegranate is a fruit steeped in history and tradition. It symbolises fertility, life, paradise and righteousness across Middle Eastern cultures. With its vibrant crimson hues and lush green backdrop, this we wanted to capture the idea of renewal and hope, faith in the future and beauty in adversity.
Chapter 4, Killing Socrates
Acts of remembering. Embroidery patterns carry cultural identity, memory and oral history and the Levant is rick in its tradition of embroidery. Women often wove complex motifs especially onto their wedding dresses, their choice of embroidery and thread colour was deeply rooted in local symbolism.
Based on ancient Palestinian embroidery from Jaffa, Hebron and Gaza. In Jaffa, it was called the Almond Branch; in Hebron and Gaza it was called Dumo, Arabic for Tears. With it, we remember that beauty and culture can flourish, even in hardship.
Chapter 5, Homage to the Past
Based on the Tears embroidery pattern from Jaffa, Hebron and Gaza, this Chapter images in future that accepts yet is freed from the past.
Weaving together gold, royal purple and crimson, the Regal print creates new beauty anchored in the past. An optimistic celebration of resilience, culture and creation.
Can we create a future brighter than the past?
Each piece in this collection is more than just a fashion statement; it’s a chapter in a story that reflects the complexities of our times. We invite you to be a part of this journey, to not only wear these designs but to feel the narratives they embody.
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