Aloise Mahe-Stephenson, design process

The collection Dans Les Bras de Morphée was inspired by two of her passions: Greek Mythology and Philosophy/Psychology. Her artistic inspirations varied from Surrealists and Jean Arp to Julia Crabtree, from Ernesto Neto to Ancient Greek statues and classical Renaissance statues.

Through the research of the unconscious mind and how it relates to the ancient myths that have forged Western society, she was able to create her story of four goddesses in our present world: Aphrodite, Artemis, Hebe and Persephone. Each of them representing a part her my own and our collective psyche, these strong female entities were both Powerful and Protected, ready to face our contemporary society and its challenges.

For her graduate collection scrim-foam fabric, used for a car’s interior, helped her achieve the right texture in order to create moving sculptures. With a heavy weight machine, she developed a “pinching” technic on the scrim foam that creates dramatic voluminous drapes. She also further developed her padding technic by cutting out individual thick wadding shapes. Then, by pinching and stitching the shell fabric, she imprisoned the wadding inside, keeping it in place but still free for movement.

Through extensive draping and fabric experimentation, Aloïse was able to create her dream-like collection of statues in motion. Bringing back a sense of fantasy into fashion, but with a contemporary and abstract approach, the collection Dans les Bras de Morphée is a true ode to our revery.