FASHION

Erdem Commits His 20 Years of Unforgettable Fashion & Muses to the Page

On the twentieth anniversary of his label, the designer presents a monograph filled with archival images, literary contributions, and personal snapshots.

Written by Alison S. Cohn

Backstage at the Erdem fashion show as part of Spring/Summer 2026 London Fashion Week on September 2...
Backstage at the Erdem spring 2026 show in London. WWD/WWD/Getty Images
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Erdem Moralioglu is the first to admit he’s a bibliophile. Since the fall 2006 debut of his mononymous label Erdem, the designer’s London Fashion Week shows have never been just about clothes. They are thoughtful excavations of history, each built around a woman who inspires him—for spring 2026, Hélène Smith, the 19th‑century Swiss medium whose trances fascinated the Surrealists and shaped their view of the subconscious. On every seat, he leaves a ribbon‑bound mood book: a meticulously assembled volume of research that anchors his storytelling. Thus as he approaches his label’s 20th anniversary, it feels entirely fitting that he has edited a 367‑page Rizzoli tome titled simply Erdem, which he calls a “prologue.”

Almost two years in the making, Erdem knew exactly what he did not intend: a standard issue fashion coffee‑table book, heavy on images but light on text. “I want the reader to understand me not only as a fashion designer but as a person,” he says. Erdem is a richly layered reflection on two decades of creativity, shaped by a chorus of friends and collaborators including Christian Lacroix, Glenn Close, and W’s own editor in chief, Sara Moonves. “That’s more interesting than a single authorial voice,” he explains. Contributions range from a scene from The Attitudes, Polly Stenham’s play staged in lieu of the spring 2021 runway show, to Hanya Yanagihara’s short story “The Green Dress,” inspired by a spring 2025 fringed flapper dress, and Ruthie Rogers’s recipe for strawberry sorbet to match a spring 2018 confection.

Courtesy of Rizzoli

The book is equally a feast for the eyes, offering a carefully curated selection of fashion imagery that enriches its intimate scope. Highlights include “About Time, About Her,” a retrospective photo essay by Paul Kooiker featuring cover model Guinevere Van Seenus—who walked in Erdem’s very first show and has since been a constant presence on the runway and in campaigns—embodying twenty muses from the archive, including Maria Callas, George Sand, and Queen Elizabeth II. Louvre curator Olivier Gabet contributes “Objects of My Affection,” a collection of still‑lifes exploring clothing as objects of desire. And in “Erdem’s Lens,” the designer takes a turn behind the camera, presenting a unique portfolio ranging from architectural studies at Sir John Soane’s Museum to portraits of Alek Wek, Claire Foy, and Keira Knightley.

Courtesy of Rizzoli

The back cover bears Emily Dickinson’s memorable line, “Forever is composed of Nows.” For Erdem, those Nows stretch from childhood—a paper doll made at seven in Montreal and his first dress for his twin sister’s Skipper doll—through his Royal College of Art sketchbooks and graduate‑collection Polaroids. “Fashion is so ephemeral, but when you add up all of these moments they really create a kind of permanence,” he reflects. The final image is an Inez & Vinoodh photo for W of Raquel Zimmermann posing in front of Gilbert & George grid-like artworks in a spring 2009 silk-and-lace ensemble. “I appeared in W early in my career and it’s been this thread throughout,” Erdem says, “ That image felt so graphic and chic—like the beginning of something.”