Tulasi’s Omnia Vanitas: Where Fashion Meets the Digital and Divine

48 minutes ago

3 min read

Tulasi presented ‘Omnia Vanitas’ for their SS/AW 27 runway, exploring the relationship between ‘beauty, power, wealth and desire’, whilst questioning what remains once the material world begins to fade. Drawing from the biblical phrase, “Vanity of vanities; all is vanity” in Ecclesiastes, the collection considers our attachment to the physical and our desire to create something that can exist beyond our own mortality. Adding a philosophical dimension to the collection, delving into the divide between attachment of material possessions and the search of something abstract, potentially the Greek phenomenon of Sophia - wisdom.

The collection takes inspiration from Paolo Veronese’s Allegory of Wisdom and Strength, which depicts the contrast between spiritual wisdom ascending towards the heavens and Hercules being drawn towards the earth by his attachment to worldly possessions. This idea of movement between the earthly and the divine becomes central to 'Omnia Vanitas', with TULASI examining the tension between what keeps us grounded and what allows us to transcend the physical.

The Duality of Materials

The collection focused on a limited number of pieces, allowing the audience to fully embrace the tension at the heart of 'Omnia Vanitas'. Prominent materials included leather, fur and silk, with the contrast between each texture visually expressing the collection’s exploration of earthly desire and spiritual transcendence. The combination of these materials created a sense of duality, where the physical weight of the garments stood against the delicate nature of silk.

Look four of the show in particular illustrates the delicacy of silk. A gold, draped silk gown with a boat neckline is layered with a flowing cape. The softness of the material creates an ethereal quality to the look, while the gold colouring adds a sense of opulence, further reflecting the collection’s exploration of wealth and material desire.

To contrast, Look seven illustrates the physicality of the collection, combining a black fur coat with leather shorts. The use of these heavier materials creates a sense of weight and structure, particularly when paired with the fur-collared boots. In comparison to the delicacy of Look 4, this look embodies the earthly and material side of Omnia Vanitas, reinforcing the collection’s tension between fragility and physicality.

The sound production further enhanced this atmosphere: a cellist and a singer repeated the same chords to create an eerie allure throughout the show. The haunting composition allowed the audience to engage with the collection’s biblical undertones, as the models made their way down the runway. The singer’s incorporation of deep breaths added another layer of intimacy, evoking the question of what remains when the material world fades. Are we left alone with nothing but ourselves and our breath to navigate through life? In this moment, the soundscape became more than an accompaniment to the garments, encouraging the audience to reflect on the fragility of existence and what lies beyond the physical.

An increasingly digital world though the lens of fashion

Rather than separating the digital from the physical, Parmar allows the two to exist simultaneously, creating a space where the boundaries between the body, clothing and technology become increasingly blurred. The exploration of mortality and permanence. TULASI brings these ideas into a contemporary world through the relationship between technology and the human form. This was illustrated through the debut of a humanoid robot on the runway, dressed in a faux fur coat. Its presence questions whether AI could eventually replace us, and how technology may begin to influence the decisions and behaviours of humanity. By blurring the boundaries between the physical and digital, Parmar challenges the traditional idea of who belongs on the runway, transforming fashion into a wider conversation about identity, existence and the future. The robot’s presence questioned the traditional idea of who belongs within fashion. Is the runway reserved solely for the human body, or can technology become part of fashion’s future? In bringing a humanoid figure into the collection, Parmar creates a moment where fashion becomes more than clothing, instead becoming a conversation about identity, existence and the future.

Omnia Vanitas ultimately presents fashion as something caught between the temporary and the eternal. Through spirituality, technology and the human form, Tulasi Parmar encourages us to question what we value, what we leave behind and whether anything physical can truly last forever especially with the rise of AI.

Images courtesy of Tulasi Press Release, on behalf of Black PR.

Edited by Katie Sweeney, Co-Fashion Editor.