(The Wish Tree Dress collection was presented at the Fashion Week in Zagreb, in May, 2015. Click here for runway show video. )

The Oxford English Dictionary meaning:

a group of pictures, words, etc. arranged on a board or screen in order to create or show a particular style, idea or feeling

What follows is a page in the Wish Tree Dress collection mood board.

To my eye, nature is the finest work of art and the more i pay attention to its intricacies, I find endless inspiration for my own expression. It is interesting that the forms found in nature are always harmonious to the eye and a healthy dose of imitation leads to unforgettable designs that never tire.

This is a simple, happy mood board with lots of light and smiles.

An element in this page is the work of Van Gogh. His work is in almost every mood board that I have created in the last few years. Seeing his paintings in person, both in Amsterdam and in London, has been an unforgettable experience and, amongst the numerous intricacies in his work, I find special pleasure in the waves of energy that he recorded, the visual appeal and the innocent way in which he signed his works with a simple “Vincent”.

At the heart of the inspiration to create this collection was a genuine Banyan wish tree that I connected to in India, many years ago. I sincerely believe that mental intention made in special places, like wish trees, creates desired reality. Yoko Ono created an art project with the theme of Wish Trees many years ago, which also served as great inspiration in visualising the collection.

Inspired by Yoko Ono’s living Wish Tree art project within which she would plant wish trees in museums and locations all over the world for people to hang their wishes on and dream, one of the dresses in the collection, called Wish Tree Dress I, had become an art installation in itself, gathering several thousand wishes when displayed, and over internet communication. This dress inspired a series of wish tree dresses, of which the first one is the now famous sculpture dress called Mandala of Desires (Blue Lotus Wish Tree), a work I will write about in another post.

The cloth I chose as the predominant material for making the Wish Tree Dress cocktail dress collection was peace, or ahimsa silk which, even though traditionally appreciated by yogis in the holy places of India for its non- violent origin (no silkworms are harmed in the making of), cleanliness, durability, versatility and adaptability to climate changes, I used it as a cocktail dress material (the innovative collection was recognised by the organisers of the Month of Design in Ljubljana, Slovenia, who one of the dresses, called Happy III, in their exhibition).

– Mandali