Fabric
The Royal Menagerie by Catherine Martin
THE ROYAL MENAGERIE reimagines the glamour of the 1970s with an opulent and nostalgic collection of textiles and wallpapers, intertwined with the legacy of a musical icon. The French-language Methodical Encyclopedia by Order of Subject Matter of 1782 defines a menagerie as an ‘establishment of luxury and curiosity.’ Mokum’s latest collection, The Royal Menagerie, is a compendium of luxury textile and wallpaper designs featuring peacocks, monkeys, tigers, and leopards. Created under the masterful direction of Academy Award winner, Catherine Martin, the collection is inspired by the forthcoming film, Elvis. Directed by her husband Baz Luhrmann, the film depicts the rise of one of the most significant and enduring cultural icons of the last century, Elvis Presley. Catherine and her design team meticulously researched Elvis’s beloved Memphis home and stage costumes for the film, finding inspiration in the design periods of his lifetime and particularly embracing the decadence of the 1970s. An era adored by both Catherine and Mokum’s Designer Director, Stephanie Moffitt, two self-proclaimed children of the seventies with a shared appreciation of patterned textiles and wallpapers. The Royal Menagerie also builds on the successful design elements from their previous collaboration, the Majorelle Collection. Illustrating the glamour of Elvis’s rock and roll lifestyle are plush, richly coloured patterned velvets, animal prints, an exquisite embroidery, and densely pattern wallpapers. The maximalist patterns of the collection are underpinned by a divine silk-look velvet plain and an artisanal hand-loomed drapery. Tropically scented palm greens, deep teals, whisky tinged blush pinks, and burnished gold are set into a base of refined neutrals, constructing a rich, heady colour palette.
