Zimmermann's SS27 collection, titled Kaleidoscope, had a quiet, focused determination. Inpsired by the 19th-century scientific illustrations of Harriet and Helena Scott, a kaleidoscope of butterflies was at the core of the collection, exploring softness, fragility and the elements of nature. We spoke to Nicky Zimmermann backstage about the collection and of course, the soundtrack:

What was your inspiration for the collection?

For Spring '27, I kept coming back to strength, movement and colour, and this idea of finding strength in softness. I was really drawn to the butterfly, not because it’s delicate, but because it’s actually incredibly resilient and constantly changing.

That led me to the beautiful illustrations of Harriet and Helena Scott, and then I started looking at lots of other Australian artists and creatives – Gillian Armstrong, Kim Gehrig and Lara Merrett. They all have very different ways of looking at colour, nature and movement, and those references slowly came together in the collection.

We loved all the block colour pieces, the black lace pants and the cream jumpsuit. It felt like Zimmermann core DNA at play. Is that what you intended?

Yes, absolutely. I always want the collection to feel new, but it still has to feel like us. There are certain things we naturally come back to – colour, lace, tailoring, something feminine mixed with something a little stronger.

There’s quite a lot of detail in this collection, so I liked having those cleaner pieces in there as well. They give everything a bit of breathing space. And I love when you can look at something and think, “Yes, that’s very Zimmermann,” but it still feels new.

You worked with Karen Elson on the soundtrack which is very cool. What was it like working with her?

It was really fun. Karen has such a strong point of view, and she worked with Mimi Xu, who we’ve known and loved for a long time. I really liked the combination of the two of them. They understood the mood of the collection and brought something really special to the show.

What inspired you to work with her?

I’ve always really liked Karen and the way she approaches things. There’s something very strong about her, but also quite sensitive and romantic, which felt right for this collection. It just felt like a really natural fit.

What was the process behind crafting the soundtrack?

We talked a lot about the collection and the feeling we wanted for the show. Movement was obviously a big part of it, and I wanted the music to have that same sense of energy and change. Then Karen took those ideas and made them her own, which was really lovely to see.

Best moment for you on the SS27 journey?

Definitely seeing it on the runway. You spend so long looking at everything separately – a fabric, a colour, a technique, a particular look – and then suddenly you see it all together.

And because movement was such a big part of this collection, seeing everything actually move on the body was really special. That’s when it really comes alive for me.

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