Dear Shaded Viewers,
Maison Franck Sorbier has teamed up with musée des Arts et Métiers, to create a cinematographic narration of his 2020/2021 Winter Haute Couture collection with a short-film called “Il Medico della Peste” Revelation, directed by Amaury Voslion.
The short film carries stories of both past and present with a reference to the black plague in the Middle Ages to the Covid-19 pandemic we are facing now. A mask of the past, with the mask of the present.
The story of the short-film revolves around the dream of a doctor or il medico. In the 17th century, as the black plague spread around Europe, doctors would wear long beaked masks to protect them from airborne diseases and canes that they used to check their patients. In the dream, the doctor feels helpless as he is unable to stop the darkness from spreading and hence, a constant confrontation is artistically shown between good and evil, health and disease.
Humanity’s struggle with the black plague in the Middle Ages were also staged in the garments. All the garments except the last one, were underlined with silhouettes of black. The star of the show was Paisley patterns of the 19th century, which were used for waistcoats, skirts, minidresses, coats… There was also an organza bodice draped on one shoulder and embroidered with flowers with a jacquard mini-skirt, as well as a beautiful rich blouse with pagoda sleeves in hand-encrusted lace that flowed with the dramatic movements of the characters.
The film started with the Statue of Liberty, a symbol for freedom and enlightenment, entangled in robes and gagged, that left you wondering whether freedom can prevail in the end. But as the story continued, the message of the film became more clear, that life is stronger than death. “Il Medico della Peste” is a story of hope, there is nothing mankind cannot defeat and for humanity to prevail, there must be freedom.
