Puppets and Puppets: Designer Carly Mark found inspiration in Dante’s Inferno and Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut

Orgies and Hell. 

With those inspirations, one expected some wild viewing. But Carly Mark doesn’t do the expected. Though the Puppets and Puppets creator drew from across centuries, looking at Stanley Kubrick’s Eye’s Wide Shut and Gustave Dore’s illustrations for Dante’s Inferno, she came away with her most pragmatic collection to date. 

While Mark kept elements of humour (those chocolate chip bags), the fine artist-turned-designer clearly tempered her more euphoric visual expressions – no glued-on teacups here. While the collection lacked the whimsy of past efforts, it was appealing and indicated the emergence of a commercial mindset. 

Mark opened with a long jersey dress in a moody Dante-esque print. Its deep, wide cowl plunged beneath the navel, exposing the model’s breasts, that were covered with stick-on butterflies. That look played saucily into spring’s baring-it trend while introducing a lineup of more wearable options – skinny Ts with skirts, both long and short; flirtatious dresses; sparkly party set with a short skirt and tunic top slashed vertically in front and at the elbows (a la Helmut Lang); straight-forward tailoring and cosy sweaters. Of course, there were indulgences, including a delightful slip-dress with a series of huge 3-D bows down the front, and a me-Jane number made from undulating strips that looked like flames. But these weren’t outrageous.

Mark even introduced a partnership with a brand she loved as a teenager, Michael Stars, known for its t-shirts and other basics. Pragmatic indeed.