September 21, 2026 |
A dance between masc and femme was on the menu for Erdem’s lunchtime show on Sunday. Taking place inside Camden’s Roundhouse, his muse for the season was a 1920s Texan aerialist called Barbette, a muse of Jean Cocteau and Man Ray. Barbette was a trailblazing performer who would take to the trapeze dressed in drag, before undressing and removing his wigs at the end of his performances.
“He transformed technical daring into an act of illusion: femininity was conjured, while the strength that kept him aloft remained almost invisible,” read the brand’s show-notes, with Erdem being drawn to how both Barbette’s masculinity and femininity was a performance in itself, not just his high-wire antics. And so, he proposed a stellar slew of looks that collided mannish tailcoats with bedazzled knickers, or bra tops thrown over periwinkle shirts. Crystal-adorned body suits and mini-dresses, each cut from textured satin, were a highlight, as were floral-printed gowns, equipped with draped skirts that migrated into elegant fringing. Throughout, Erdem signatures were given a youthful spin that made this outing soar.
Photography courtesy of Erdem.
