Botanical precision meets spiritual drama in Erdem’s Pre Spring 2026, a collection inspired by the life and work of Maria Sibylla Merian, the 17th-century German naturalist and illustrator who defied the conventions of her time. Drawing from Merian’s meticulous studies of metamorphosis and her complex inner world, Erdem weaves a story of beauty, transformation and restraint.
A devout Calvinist living in Amsterdam, Merian published her first book of botanical illustrations in 1675, and in 1705, became the first to document the full lifecycle of the butterfly. Her work was both scientific and poetic, driven by a fascination with the natural world that clashed with the austere moral framework of her faith. It’s precisely this emotional and ideological tension that informs the spirit of the collection by Erdem.
Referencing Merian’s own wunderkammer of flora and fauna, the designs unfold like pages from her illustrated volumes, each look a study in contrast: starched cottons against soft silks, the purity of white offset by bursts of insect-wing iridescence. Dresses bloom with hand-embroidered petals, while tailored pieces hint at religious restraint through modest silhouettes and high collars. The effect is one of composed eccentricity, like a field guide penned in lace.
There’s a quiet power in honoring a life lived between extremes. Through fabric and form, the collection channels Merian’s devotion to observation, her courage to question, and her capacity to find beauty in transformation.
Follow us on TikTok @veinmagazine
–
