Designer: Margarita Robertson
Based: Dunedin

In the London of the 1790's a popular diversion for the monied classes was to go and look at the unfortunate inmates of the Bedlam asylum.

Occupants of Bedlam were incarcerated yet remained on show for the titillation of the visiting public. Such were the famously unruly scenes they created, that Bedlam has now become a watchword for chaos and disorder.Designer: Margarita Robertson
Based: Dunedin

In the London of the 1790's a popular diversion for the monied classes was to go and look at the unfortunate inmates of the Bedlam asylum.

Occupants of Bedlam were incarcerated yet remained on show for the titillation of the visiting public. Such were the famously unruly scenes they created, that Bedlam has now become a watchword for chaos and disorder."Bedlam" is another in the series of experiments in form and construction which have become the hallmark of the label. Margi Robertson and her team have long been aware that fresh new ideas are often born from the chaos of creativity.

Key pieces get the instantly recognisable NOM*d treatment. Blazers are boiled, while shirts and waistcoats are doubled and extended. Dresses are wrapped securely around the body; to keep the wearer from causing a commotion perhaps? Who knows?

Vintage-look pajama prints and Fair Isle knitwear pieces testify to the importance of traditional fabrics for NOM*d. It's not surprising to see uniforms of different types referenced throughout; this is a collection concerned with institutionalization in its many forms after all. Take it all too seriously at your own peril though; NOM*d aren't, as their motto reads "Cum Grano Salis" might suggest.

About NOM*D

Dark and wittily sombre, NOM*D has created an iconic image on the New Zealand fashion landscape. The label's designs, which reference traditional tailoring and use reworked vintage garments, are anchored by a utilitarian approach and the concept that clothes must, above all else, be wearable.

In every collection, NOM*D maintains its credibility as a label unaffected by trends and whims, instead adopting the cool, considered gaze of the fashion outsider.

Since its inception in 1986, NOM*D has been among a small number of directional fashion labels which have been responsible for defining the style that is now referred to as 'The New Zealand Look'. As one of the ground-breaking New Zealand Four who showed at London Fashion Week in 1999, NOM*D firmly established the dark, intellectual qualities that are now synonymous with New Zealand design.

In part, the label owes its noir-ish aesthetic to Dunedin, a city situated in the remote, rugged surroundings of New Zealand's South Island where NOM*D's designer Margarita and her husband Chris Robertson are still based today. A university town, with an international reputation for its alternative music scene, and a preternaturally gothic atmosphere, the culture of Dunedin permeates the mood of Robertson's clothes.

Margarita was born of Greek/Ukrainian refugee background. A pre-occupation with fashion has been with Margi since childhood. As a young girl she was a devout op-shopper. That passion for vintage continues in her designs now with reworked vintage pieces frequently included in the range, alongside deconstructed, androgynous suiting and clever knitwear that defies traditional concepts of structure and texture.

NomD

Photo by Michael Ng/Air New Zealand Fashion Week 2008

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