A Cure For Sorrow
Henry Marsh is a British artist and fashion designer, practicing and studying at the London College of Fashion. As one of my closest friends, I often get the great chance of watching his work processes unfold and garments come to life. For his newest collection ‘A Cure For Sorrow’, I had the opportunity to photograph and edit the first looks.
The two garments featured in this shoot are made from fully reclaimed fabrics and textiles that found their new purpose in these beautifully made pieces of art. Curtains, once attached to a ceiling now act as sleeves for a dominant full-body garment, while an old pillow case, found at the London Portobello Road market was cut up and now builds the centre-point for the first look.
Marsh says “I wanted to reflect on what people around me have used in order to cope with the process of mourning, identifying the natural, immediate human reaction when dealing with loss, away from the critique and stigma built up through societal standard. In my experience, people crave comfort over all else when dealing with grief. The colours and silhouettes that build up this collection originate from the physicality of my observations and represent the more abstract concept associated with the process of decay, such as the contrast between descent into and ascent from the mourning process.”
Fashion Film
After the death of their brother, this film follows two sisters as they come to terms with death and the revereance of grief. Existing within the same space, they must both simultaneously grapple with their individualistic approaches to mourning, while still retaining their own fragile bonds. Frozen in a continuous state of dysphoria, each of their coping mechanisms, spurred on by their pre-existing ideals, becomes increasingly divisive as time progresses.
Models: Gaia Pierobon, Beatrice GilardI Direction, Videography & Editing: Sufyan Belhoche Fashion & Direction: Henry Marsh
Models: Charlotte Bensa, Gaia Pierobon Design & Creative Direction: Henry Marsh Photography and Editing: Sufyan Belhoche
He continues “When looking into how mourning and grief appears within my immediate community, I reflected on a memorial on the side of the road I had seen recently. Filled with flowers and letters of grieving family and friends, what could have been a macabre yet beautiful scene of life and joy, had instead been left neglected and allowed to decay. A sea of wrinkled and distorted flowers, in a haunting arrangement of beige, browns, whites and dull pinks. Something that was once intended to represent the memory and life left after death, has now succumbed itself to the factuality of the same process it aimed to contrast. This display of grief and mourning led me to reflect on the immediate human reaction to follow the processes of death and funeral etiquette, such as putting out flowers or wearing all black, as a means to mask ones true capability of dealing with something so monumental as the death of a loved one. As humans, we should not simply follow one formula for how we conduct our lives, how we choose to mourn, to love, to celebrate should be an incredibly personal and intimate act, as opposed to something historically established based off patriarchal and in most cases religious values, which is not a true or accurate representation of how modern humanity functions.”
While following the works of this collection and working on its production, being on the same page with the designer has always been essential. Henry Marsh’s creative vision is strong, energetic and infectious - translating not only through his designs but especially through his way of working and communicating.
As Marsh and I share many design perspectives and artistic approaches, the photography and editing for this shoot has been one of my favourite collaborations. The result of this is a series of photos that translate the designer’s artistic vision not only through his final work, but with the help of two amazing models and dancers - through movement, dynamic and energy.
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