The Dance of Alchemy and Baroque Decoration
Juliette et Justine’s designer Mariko Nakamura has long been deeply interested in magic and interior decoration. This preference is vividly reflected in the prints of this dress.
Product: Élémentaire Divinité, Left: White, Right: Yellow
The dress is fully printed with designs inspired by French designer Daniel Marot (1661–1752), who, during the Baroque era, created architectural, garden, wallpaper, and furniture designs for royalty. He lived during the reign of Louis XIV, witnessing the construction of Versailles, one of the Baroque masterpieces. He can be said to have seen the most magnificent European architecture still existing today.
Portrait of Daniel Marot, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
During religious unrest (Edict of Fontainebleau), many Huguenots fled France, including skilled artisans. Marot was among them. He fled to the Netherlands but, being familiar with Versailles’ grandeur, he was welcomed by the Dutch royal family and wealthy patrons, and was sometimes invited to England. He contributed to Baroque-style architecture and preserved his designs through prints.
Left: 1702 Bedroom Design, Smithsonian Design Museum
Right: Het Loo Palace, Netherlands (during William III’s reign)
Left: Front of Knoiteldijk Palace, Netherlands
Right: Mirror Room, Castle Zeist, Netherlands
All the World is Made of Four Elements
The prints on the skirt depict the “Four Elements,” which are closely associated with alchemy. While modern science recognizes 118 elements, in the past people believed the world was made of just four: air, fire, water, and earth. Alchemy, often called “the royal art,” involved attempts to create gold, the philosopher’s stone, and elixirs from these four elements.
Left Front of Skirt: “Fire” – men holding hammers appear to be smelting something, possibly blacksmiths.
Right Front of Skirt: “Air” – figures with wings appear to be soaring and spreading their arms across the sky.
Left Back of Skirt: “Water” – depicted by waterfalls flowing from a jar and a mermaid.
Right Back of Skirt: “Earth” – a man holding a globe above his head represents this element.
Juliette et Justine: Magical Dresses
This non-overlapping placement of the four elements is thought by Nakamura to represent “the girl” or the Tarot’s “High Priestess.” It symbolizes the creation of new life from a place without mating. While designing, she imagined the Virgin Mary conceiving, hens laying unfertilized eggs, and stem cells with self-replication and differentiation abilities. This dress is meant to draw out your “purity” and “sublimity” while creating a new, beautiful personal moment—a magical dress in every sense.
Written by: Mariko Suzuki
★ First solo book “Gothic & Lolita Dictionary” (Seibundo Shinkosha), 3rd printing confirmed!
https://amzn.asia/d/4AXx1xW
References:
“Alchemy: The Secret Experiment of Knowledge” by Guy Ogilvy / Sogensha
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daniel_Marot