Erdem - by Erdem Moralioglu (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

A landmark first book from the celebrated British designer, Erdem Moralioglu, published to coincide with his 20th year in fashion.

ERDEM is a poetic and personal immersion into the world of Erdem Moralioglu and the globally renowned fashion house he has built over two decades. The monograph delves into the designer's vision and process, underpinned by his vivid imagination and narrative flair. The book captures Erdem's inspirations and obsessions, the muses and collaborators that forge his compelling approach to fashion and design.

Echoing Erdem's own layering of historical references and cultural touchstones, the book interweaves primary source material, artworks and photography from seminal 20th and 21st century names including Alasdair McLellan, Campbell Addy, Craig McDean, Ethan James Green, Inez & Vinoodh, Juergen Teller, Steven Klein and Tyler Mitchell. A striking portrait series by Paul Kooiker of Guinevere van Seenus embodies the multiple, mercurial characters of Erdem's female muses, introducing archival looks from two decades of collections. Short stories, scripts, recipes, interviews and contributions from close friends, ardent admirers and long-time collaborators of the house, ground each chapter with context and insight. Erdem's own photography reveals more candid moments in his studio and backstage at his shows.

This monograph establishes Erdem's position, not just as one of the most celebrated contemporary independent fashion designers, but as a virtuoso of the 21st century.

Authored by Erdem Moralioglu; foreword by Anna Wintour; contributions by Andrew Bolton, Charlie Porter, Christian Lacroix, Glenn Close, Hanya Yanagihara, IB Kamara, Maria Balshaw, Nicholas Cullinan, Olivier Gabet, Polly Stenham, Ruthie Rogers, Sarah Mower, and Tim Blanks.

Review Quotes

"And yet...does one really need fashion week when they have @rizzolibooks." -- Carla Rockmore

"Moralioglu's first book, "Erdem," published with Rizzoli, is a medley of the label's archival images from the past two decades, spliced with essays from friends and collaborators like Nicholas Cullinan, the director of the British Museum, and Andrew Bolton, a prominent fashion curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. There are snapshots of Moralioglu's parents and twin sister alongside his early sketches, and portraits of the muses who have inspired him (including the dancer Adele Astaire, sister of Fred Astaire, who left Broadway to marry a lord and live in an Irish castle, and Fanny and Stella, a pair of Victorian-era drag performers). The book also contains surprising tributes, like a recipe for strawberry sorbet by Ruth Rogers, a founder of London's River Café, who likens the dessert to a pink Erdem dress from 2017, and a gossipy scene from a play by Polly Stenham. "The book moves through fragments," says Moralioglu in his introduction, "moments, voices and images that together build a larger picture. It is my story, yes, but also the story of everyone who has helped shape this journey with me..." -- New York Times

"With a foreword by Anna Wintour and contributions from leading voices across art, literature, and style, the monograph offers a poetic look into Erdem Moralioglu's inspirations, process, and the creative world he has built over two decades." -- L'Officiel USA

"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. 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." -- W Magazine

"I didn't want the book to feel chronological, but rather something very personal, a manifesto, almost, of how I've approached creating this body of work over the last twenty years," Moralioglu tells me one bright autumnal morning in his Paris showroom, which is humming with activity. (Between us chatting, he's fielding congratulations on his spring 2026 collection every five minutes.) "There is, yes, the chronology of the thumbnails of every single collection I've done. But the book is much more than that." Indeed it is. Just before the holidays last year, I had visited Moraliglu at his London atelier, where there were boards and boards of layouts and pages and ideas-a sense of order finding its place amidst creative spontaneity. Erdem is, thank goodness, more than a repository of look book images and advertising campaigns, so often the curse of the contemporary designer monograph. I will always remember one colleague sniffing and declaring the glut of such dull unimaginative books as "the new scented candle"-i.e., omnipresent, inescapable, and something everyone has done. Moralioglu has also gotten behind the camera to shoot his clothes, images which are included in Erdem. There's no danger of that here. Instead, Moralioglu offers an intimate snapshot of who and what makes him tick, which runs the gamut: There's a breakdown of key books in his library, from Irving Penn's Flowers to Giovanni's Room by James Baldwin; we read Moralioglu in conversation with the majestic Glenn Close; novelist and editor Hanya Yanagihara contributes an original short story about a dress; chef Ruth Rogers, of London's River Café fame, came up with a recipe inspired by his clothing; and British playwright Polly Stenham offers an excerpt from a play. And then there are contributions from writer Charlie Porter, British Museum director Nicholas Cullinan, and Andrew Bolton of the Costume Institute at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York." -- Vogue

"Perfect for fashion enthusiasts, Edrem Moralioglu's first monograph covers 20 years of his work, including studio photos, archival images and contributions from friends and collaborators, with the foreword by Anna Wintour and contributors including Glenn Close and Nicholas Cullinan, the director of the British Museum. Essays, interviews and candid behind-the-scenes moments reveal his process, inspirations and muses." -- Elite Traveler

About the Author

Born in Montreal to a Turkish father and British mother, Erdem Moralioglu graduated with an M.A from London's Royal College of Art in 2003. His first womenswear collection debuted in 2005 and quickly gained recognition with its poetic and bold language of modern femininity.

As an independent fashion house, ERDEM has forged its own path in the industry. Each collection is centred around a forensically researched narrative and a belief in the power of craftsmanship. Collections are formed with a muse in mind, depicting stories of heroic women.

ERDEM has received global recognition and industry accolades, including the 2010 inaugural British Fashion Council / Vogue Designer Fashion Fund Award and the 2014 BFC Womenswear Designer of the Year Award. The brand opened its flagship store in Mayfair in 2015. In 2020, Erdem was honoured with an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List for his contribution to the fashion industry.

A passionate supporter of the arts, Erdem has shown his collections in a series of historically and culturally significant London locations, including: The British Museum, The National Portrait Gallery, Sadler's Wells, White Cube and The V&A. In 2024, Erdem opened Imaginary Conversations at Chatsworth, an exhibition dedicated to the process of creating the Spring Summer 24 collection and its muse, Duchess Deborah. Erdem collaborated with The Royal Ballet, designing costumes for Christopher Wheeldon's piece, Corybantic Games, the ballet debuted at The Royal Opera House in 2018 and returned to the stage in 2023. Pieces from Erdem's collections have been exhibited globally, at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, The Victoria & Albert Museum in London, The Palais Galleria and The Louvre in Paris.