Inspired by Gandhi, Aristotle and Marc Aurele, as suggested by his press notes with quotes from these three philosophers, Gardem deconstructed the costumes from these men’s era and reconstructed them with a 1980s twist.

Opening with beige harem pants with low crotch similar to the Indian malong, Gardem set the tone for a neutral palette with beige, khaki, white and black as the dominant colors.

As you might have guessed, the show was divided into three segments – Indian-inspired for Gandhi, Grecian-inspired for Aristotle and French-inspired for Marc Aurele, Gardem was very successful in combining three different eras into one coherent collection.

Gardem’s homage to Gandhi was beige and khaki ensembles that featured low-crotch trousers that were also sometimes low rise. They also came as leggings matched with lightly fitted blouson tank tops to imitate the Indian tunic. Pleated fabric were added to short-cropped tees, again to imitate the Indian costume, this time the traditional woman’s attire.

The Grecian influence was shown in white frocks, dresses and gowns that used pleating to emulate the mythical empire-waist garments of the gods at Olympus. Pleats were crisscrossed and sometimes twisted for the new Diana or Hera to emerge.

The most memorable piece – a layered gossamer white gown with the stitches on the layers intentionally left open to create keyholes, giving a spider web effect.

For Marc Aurele, the tuxedo was reworked. The tailleur became short-cropped with the tail becoming three strips of cloth. The vest became the outer garment and the lightly fitted pants were made of gossamer material. Pageboy shorts were ruche, beaded or rolled at the hem.

It was a good debut collection though slightly experimental. Meant for individualists, Gardem has a good chance of having a cult following for his designs.