Say and think what you will about Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Berlin, but no one can deny that the long hours, gruelling prep, and absolute mayhem that all designers involved go through to showcase their new collections every six months deserve a good send off. Last Friday Berlin’s underground sweethearts, Moga E Mago, were going to close the long week, and there was definitely something magical lurking in the air.
Known for their avant-garde design and undeniable individualism, Moga E Mago, were an unlikely name to put the closing stamp on the four-day event, but disappoint they certainly did not. Their SS14 collection, Notturno, was a decadent display of unique quality and a perfection in hand-making, with many of the pieces creating gasps of awe once the model turned to face. Leather sequins, goat hair, and leather chain structures, were incorporated into many of the pieces, with extravagance and the macabre working as one to create many a key piece. With minimal lighting used in the show itself, torches were given to guests to use to shine onto the models, inviting you to take a closer look at the handmade garments and creating a somewhat spooky tension in the tent.
Speaking about the beginnings of the collection, the design duo made up of Elisa Lindenberg and Tobias Noventa, found their inspiration in the most surreal of all places. “The inspiration were Naiads, who are hidden in the woods,” Tobias told Sleek directly after the show. “We discovered them, and are now on a journey through these woods, where we reach the secret spring. The Naiads take us, and they amaze us.” Surprisingly, with a collection as unconventional as this, Lindenberg and Noventa were keen to make their looks work on their own as much as when combined, adding another level to the wearability of the collection. “It was important that other pieces could go together with one another. They can all be interpretations of different looks,” beamed Elisa. “They can be taken apart and worn separately, or as one.”
In addition to the body cages, bondage sleeves, and goat coats, the models also sported one-of-a-kind glass headpieces, also created by Moga E Mago. Seen as a “representation of water and ice”, the making of the intricate headwear was no simple procedure: “how they were made, you really don’t want to know!” Elisa jokes backstage, “but for me the headpieces were very important, and it was as equally as important that they fit with the whole presentation and looks as one.”
Moga E Mago may not be for everyone, nor may it be for everyday wear, but if there is one thing Berlin Fashion Week needs more of is individualism, passion, and attention to detail, and this pair are the shining of example of what Berlin has to offer.