Nymphs Are Departed
The story Nymphs Are Departed is a poetic pondering on mythology and mythological creatures, while addressing their authentic behavior and fantasizing on the subject of unexpected wild desire to depart to unfamiliar places. Leaving the natural habitat of the forest brings the characters to explore the lost in time Lithuanian Soviet buildings.
The viewer experiences the bewilderment of the encounter with architecture through the carefully displayed elements of paintings of the exterior. Old pieces of furniture, hardwood floors, heavy curtains in the interior of the space emphasize these emotions. Along with the nymphs, we consciously embrace the adventure in the recently rediscovered environment. Nymphs Are Departed is a fashion story by Saulė Gerikaitė, a Lithuanian photographer and creative director and Viktorija Stasevičiūtė, a Paris based fashion designer.
Location scouting, as the team recounts, resulted in shooting in several spots in which the HBO series Chernobyl was filmed. The story is shot on an analog camera; it focuses on the idea of a quest for self-search and openness to new adventures. We speak with Saulė and Viktorija about Greek mythology, the depiction of nymphs, childhood spells, and Brutalism architecture. Viktorija depicts nymphs as possessing “chaotic magnetism, melancholy, and mystery”, while Saule adds “She is like a ray of sunlight penetrating through the clouds of dull, toneless fog that surrounds the city.”
Photographer and Creative Director Saule Gerikaite Designer Viktorija Staseviciute Talents Fausta, Milda and Paulina Smirnovaitė at RUTA model management
‘I spent many hours being obsessed with Greek mythology and some classical art depicting it. My muses were nymphs, my clothes were for them. I associate nymphs with chaotic magnetism, melancholy, and mystery. I adore complexity they give: virtuous and pure from the first glance but savage, even fatal, whilst fueled by jealousy or temptation towards men.’
— Viktorija Stasevičiūtė
How do you define nymphs? Where does this idea come from for the editorial?
Viktorija: I think both of us have a personal relation to nymphs, don’t we? So, the idea came in a natural flow. I spent many hours being obsessed with Greek mythology and some classical art depicting it. My muses were nymphs, my clothes were for them. I associate nymphs with chaotic magnetism, melancholy, and mystery. I adore complexity they give: virtuous and pure from the first glance but savage, even fatal, whilst fueled by jealousy or temptation towards men (may pass a deadly love potion or allure them to the depths of water). I wanted my clothes to be about it, and this mood is reflected in editorial surroundings.
Saule: Yes, we have, although with different nuances. For me, an important element was these girls’ friendship with nature, inhabitants of water and probably a well-entangled conspiracy with the moon. Nymph, in her spare time which undoubtedly occupies most of her life, is engaged in making sketchy astrological predictions for herself and her friends, and not in very clean spells – pinch of black magic is definitely involved. But without any remorse, she calls it white magic and claims to be a very spiritual personality overall.
As a child, I had a friend who taught me a spell – to press a nettle leaf in the palm, and in the marks it leaves on the skin, one will see the first letter of the love of their life's name. I had a long belief in this painful game and performed it with other friends. I truly wouldn’t be surprised if such spells were invented by the same nymphs from the pond near my house.
‘From the first look inside at grim, monumental, and even frightful-looking Brutalist buildings nymphs saw hidden gems which took their breath away.’
— Saulė Gerikaitė
One of the main elements in the story is architecture, specifically the 70s Soviet buildings' decor both inside and outside. The painted walls, high ceilings, enormous old lamps, heavy curtains, and golden wall decoration holistically complete the attitude of the nymphs. How did you come across those locations?
Saule: From the first look inside at grim, monumental, and even frightful-looking Brutalist buildings nymphs saw hidden gems which took their breath away - immense spaces with the grandeur of massive murals, curtains, and chandeliers sunken in calm silence and lost time. I was interested in the overall contrast – such uninviting, cold spaces gave so much warmth and sensibility through camera lenses.
What do they add in your opinion to the story?
Viktorija: I agree with you! For me, it almost gives an illusion to the nymphs’ natural habitat. Nymphs departed, but they found something reminiscent of their home. I will dare to get poetic and say that these elements remind them about their beloved forests and endless woods, calm lakes, how they played hide-and-seek there, danced with fauns and satyrs.
‘Velour blue, for me, associates with depths of water or pitch-black cloudless night, and I adore how it works against the red, almost carnal red, background.’
— Viktorija Stasevičiūtė
Clothes are pieces form a personal wardrobe collection, including dresses with soft liquid fabrics, heavier coats, and a velour blazer. Let’s speak about the contrast of clothes colors and the inside decor in the building.
Viktorija: This one is a bit of a tricky question. I will get poetic once again and will quote a few lines from the poem I once read:
"Do you come from Heaven or rise from the abyss?...
From God or Fiend? Siren or Sylph?" - from Hymn to Beauty by Charles Baudelaire.
It partly answers about colour symbolism and how garments work with their surroundings. Keeps one wondering and interpreting as there is no one right answer. Velour blue, for me, associates with depths of water or pitch-black cloudless night, and I adore how it works against the red, almost carnal red, background. But it’s my personal interpretation, and it’s where the beauty of editorial comes from.
Saule: Ha! you're getting quite elaborate. It would be right to say it's not about the contrast but more about how clothes and surroundings work together, although it's extremely contrasting: soft fabrics and brutalist, massive, strict shapes of interiors. Sometimes it gives contrast as red vs. blue, but most of the time, it works along: lust greens and golds of interiors match with the green dress; soft, transparent fabrics show nymphs almost stepping out from the mural, like one of the dancers.
‘Sometimes she chats and says more than is expected to hear, is quite naive and confident but viciously charming and with a sense of otherness – it’s always fun to meet such a creature.’
— Saulė Gerikaitė
What do you think happens with the nymphs who decided to depart and leave their natural habitat?
Viktorija: It's quite rhetoric for me. I would say, as spirits of nature by their origins, they are unpredictable and driven by their emotions and lust. After departing, they will enjoy their new surroundings and fulfil their curiosity, but on the same note, they can get bored, homesick, and decide to come back from where they departed, or maybe not.
Saule: On the other hand, nymphs who departed from their initial home to some urban surroundings can be seen as transformation. I imagine the naturalness of a nymph as a rural girl who does not know urban manners or fashion but is magnetizing beautiful. Sometimes she chats and says more than is expected to hear, is quite naive and confident but viciously charming and with a sense of otherness – it’s always fun to meet such a creature. She is like a ray of sunlight penetrating through the clouds of dull, toneless fog that surrounds the city. This is a young, inexperienced girl, full of fantasies and idealism, looking for her sexuality, and maybe that’s the reason she departed. But by no means, it's a Lolitaesque depiction of a girl with a sticky lipstick.
What is the most memorable moment or episode from the shooting day or the preparation for it?
Saule: While not crowded with people, all buildings were public ones – school, office hallways, etc. Nymphs distracted people who passed with extremely curious gazes on their faces. They never saw things like that happening, and it might give a chance for them to see their daily surroundings in a different light, different context as it felt like something out of this world to their eyes.
Viktorija: Yes, I totally agree. I remember how during the photoshoot at the golden-green room behind our backs, in the same room, which was obviously quite big, amateur musicians’ rehearsal was happening. Ironically, all were men with their musical instruments in their hands a bit shyly and confusedly looking at us with extreme curiosity in their eyes all the time of the shooting. It was some real-life alluring nymphs' experience to have, wasn’t it?
