ERDEM is releasing a limited-edition Pride t-shirt in collaboration with Gay’s The Word to mark their support of LGBTQIA+ communities. The t-shirt features artwork by Derek Jarman, an artist who worked across many forms, including film, painting, writing, theatre design, gardening and political activism. The image is taken from Bliss, a zine by Jarman. Bliss was the original title of Blue, his final and most personal film. The work reflects the final years of Jarman’s life living with AIDS, during which his eyesight became increasingly impaired, at times leaving him with what he described as a “haze of blue” in his vision.
To accompany the launch, Erdem Moralioglu has photographed British actor Russell Tovey wearing the limited-edition t-shirt, celebrating the enduring influence of Derek Jarman’s work on contemporary British culture.
The project is also accompanied by a short film celebrating Derek Jarman’s work through rarely seen footage and archive material drawn from The Garden. Created by filmmaker and longtime Derek Jarman collaborator David Lewis together with filmmaker Sara Moralioglu, Erdem’s sister, the film features music by Simon Fisher Turner, a longtime friend and composer on many of Derek Jarman’s films.
The t-shirt will retail for £120 and will be available exclusively on Thursday 11th June at ERDEM.com, the ERDEM stores in Mayfair and Sloane Street, and at Gay’s The Word bookshop in Bloomsbury. All profits from the sale of the t-shirt will be donated equally between the charities.
Russell Tovey shot by Erdem Moralioglu
