In 1994, I started a company called Poeta. It began as a fashion company — romantic, sweet, a little bit bohemian/grunge inspired (I still love all that silkscreened, beaded, distressed grunge high fashion from the 90s, Ghost, Alberta Ferritti...).I had a generous benefactor who brought me this whispy gray, black and mauve tri-tiered chiffon slip with a little cropped organza shift from Soho, a confection of a dress. I wanted to make hundreds like it. Paul Poiret was a notable influence, both in style and substance -- he had a marketing model by which he presented haute couture work to clients through a theatre of alluring promotion. Poeta's intentions were similar: to create a landscape of poetic style with intricate promotions, beaded samples, hand-tinted photographs, vintage styling and an evolving poetic narrative. This is some of that early work.