On Thursday night, Erdem Moralıoğlu hosted friends including Keira Knightley, Sheila Atim, and Orlando director Sally Potter at an intimate dinner at Sessions Arts Club in London. Knightley, who has been wearing Erdem on the red carpet since the London brand’s early days, attended with her husband James Righton, and wore a white lace confection from the spring 2023 collection, unveiled at the British Museum in September.
Also floating around the artfully crumbling 18th-century courthouse, where the air was scented with palo santo and a pianist delivered genteel versions of ’80s classics: Alexa Chung, who wore look 30 from the restoration-inspired spring 2023 collection, and Jenna Coleman, whose one-shoulder floral dress with dramatic bow detail was from Erdem’s resort 2023 collection, inspired by florist Constance Spry. Atim also chose from the resort collection: an embellished satin black dress finished with a bow belt.
The candlelit dinner at one of the hottest recent arrivals on London’s restaurant scene (celebrated chef Florence Knight presides over the kitchen), was staged by Erdem and Matchesfashion in celebration of A Magazine Curated by Erdem, the 24th issue of the Paris-based publication, which invites a fashion designer to explore their personal universe within its pages.
For his part, Moralıoğlu has collated an eclectic mix of collaborators, references, and inspirations that takes in everything from Virginia Woolf to Glenn Close, and Derek Jarman to the Pet Shop Boys (Neil Tennant was a guest at dinner). Vogue’s Sarah Mower recalls the 2008 dress that told her Erdem was destined for greatness, and the designer enjoys a conversation with Tim Blanks, whose TV series Fashion File was his glimpse into the industry he longed to be a part of as a teenager growing up in Canada.
Then, of course, there are the clothes, which feature in a shoot styled by Gabriella Karefa-Johnson and photographed by Campbell Addy. The designer himself got behind the lens to capture Keira and James, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Claire Foy, and more for the issue, and wryly thanked those at the dinner who managed to bear the process, including his twin sister, documentary filmmaker Sara. In a speech before dinner, Erdem told his guests: “Thank you for being part of this journey.”
