Nothing breaks or heals like the heart, something that the Greek designer Dimitra Petsa is currently finding out after coming out of an eight-year relationship.
“I’m really rediscovering what falling in love means and reflecting that self love onto myself,” said the designer backstage, who participated in her immersive show by writing a poem that she read out to the audience.
“It’s really important for me to expose myself and be as sensitive as the models because designers will dress a model, but they won’t put themselves in the same position that they put them in. This is a way for me to connect with them and it feels like we’re all supporting each other,” she added.
The collection remixed the Madonna–whore complex with Petsa’s own Greek Orthodox upbringing. She made her own tama, a small plaque embossed with images or prayers, marked with an eye, a leg or a teardrop that some of the models also wore on their faces.
It was a timely collection on the subject of love as Greece became the first Orthodox Christian country to legalize same-sex marriage.
Di Petsa’s signature wet trompe-l’oeil illusion dresses evolved this season with new shades of royal blue and silver.
Even though she designs for special occasions and experimented with wearable pieces last season, for fall 2024 she embraced it with confident dresses or pants made out of cactus leather that had a slight sheen to them when struck by light.
“I wanted to play with juxtapositions, such as hard and soft or sensitivity and power,” said Petsa.