Laura Gerte Is Elevating Sustainable Fashion

I have a hot take. Upcycling shit on a runway usually bores me. I have found myself repeating this sentiment lately, and it's not to be a hater, but I think sustainability shouldn’t have to be a niche branding tactic. I understand it for the current climate, I respect it, and I am so grateful that upcycled and sustainable fashion brands are actually becoming a saturated market. But in an ideal world, being sustainable is not a marketing angle, it’s just the standard.   

When it comes to Laura Gerte’s upcycled Berlin Fashion Week show, this was so much more than meets the eye. Entitled “Deviant Defiant” the AW26 show explores how, throughout history and culture, women are deemed ‘villainous’ once they grow into adulthood. Sexuality, knowledge and autonomy are not sexy when utilized by a woman; being less controllable is when a woman becomes ‘off the rails’ and ‘evil’.  

In what looked like an abandoned department store, the runway truly began before the clothes even came out. Starting with an ominous voice reciting poetry composed by Gerte and artist Samja Zad, the words held the sentiment of power and submission, performance and narrative, and living unapologetically as resistance, as empowerment. 

“Power comes from completion, a voice without caution, a body without apology. No innocence, no shame. Both are performance. Villain and icon, one vision different. Danger draws closer, tension seduces without asking. Marked like a spider, condemned by instinct; before birth, before motion,” Zad said. “Formed as a mirror in a world built to avoid reflection, my sisters, a chord without harmony, a force without a leader. Measured in doubt and answered in defiance, risen from denied existence.”

The monologue was followed by a runway show that was just as impactful. A heavy techno mix of “Meditation Will Manifest” drummed throughout the liminal space, as models swiftly made their way through the catwalk. 

The opening look was one of immediate feminine dominance. Hair slicked back into a bun, light makeup, and an all black ensemble; a blazer with structured shoulders, fileted between the bust exposing the chest, while still keeping a tight mock neckline. Paired with black low-rise trousers, the look felt like a nod to the stereotypical corporate assistant (or Office Siren as we’ve all re-defined it) meets McQueen. 

“I think the very first opening look is my favorite,” Gerte said. “Because we made the jacket and then in the first fitting, the stylist [Luisa Probst] took the jacket and made this opening and that's how the whole collection sparked. We work very collaboratively together with styling. That's why it was the first look as well.” 

The McQueen references didn’t stop there. Other looks sported the iconic bumster low-rise pants, an ode to McQueen’s controversial design choice from the very beginning in his 1993 AW 1993 collection, “Taxi Driver.” Other looks that utilized sheer materials to expose the body and exposed hems felt lightly inspired by McQueen’s SS 1995 “The Birds.” 

Throughout this all-black, 24-look collection, the ‘villian’ woman is embodied in contrasting tropes. Some silhouettes were very free flowing and carefree –– take the reworked vintage band tee-shirts into slouchy, backless tops –– while others constrict the subject. Literally. A few slinky sheer gowns included extra fabric at the waist and around the model’s wrists, restricting the arms from movement. 

A favorite look of mine incorporates both tones, manifesting a very chic, subversive, “I don’t give a fuck” style. The look in question was an upcycled hooded top with a V-neckline, flared long sleeves, and a sheer, fitted short skirt, layered with a leather torso/waisted corset on top.   

Although the designer cited no influences directly to us, she explains that her mantra is that, “Everything should be cool, confident, and cunt.” 

Sustainability practices are a primary catalyst for Gerte’s design work, but do not take away from the narratives built into the forefront of the collections entirety.  

“Everything is upcycled or almost everything is upcycled. My signature material is the vintage t-shirts, which are always there. It's a very intuitive approach,” Gerte said. 

Expanding upon that this season, Gerte worked collaboratively with Dr. Martens, sourcing old boots to transform them into corsets, bags, boleros, and skirts. Standouts were the calf-length pencil skirt, designed with lace-up corsetry down the sides of her body and fingerless gloves with shoelaces hanging down past the hands. 

Gerte’s use of draping, storytelling, textiles, and tailoring feels gracefully slouchy, experimental yet sensual. She describes the work as, “when fear and arousal become one” and it shows. Perhaps these are women you should be afraid of; because they don’t give a fuck what you think, and they’re inevitably going to look sexy while doing so.

Defiant Deviant was more than the typical reworked, patchwork band tees, it was sustainability with a storyline: misunderstood women plagued with otherness for simply being sure of themselves. Lilith, Medusa and truly any woman would rock the all-black ensembles with their heads held high, not taking shit from anyone or anything. 

Runway Production Credits

Creative Direction: Laura Gerte

Production: Elli Crespo,Maxine Schall

Styling Direction: Luisa Probst

Hair & Make Up Direction: Philipp Verheyen

Casting Direction: Benedikt Verheyen

Set Design: Marilena Büld

Light Design: Lars Murasch

Movement Direction: Dafni Krazoudi

Monologue: Samja Zad

Video: Thilo Garus

Guest Management & PR: haebmau Atelier

Photos Courtesy of Laura Gerte Instagram, taken by Emilio Tamez.