Interviewed by Catherine Mur for Porterium Magazine
In a world where fashion often celebrates perfection, Simon Ershov embraces the beauty of contradiction. From Yekaterinburg’s industrial chill to the artistic pulse of Paris, he transforms melancholy into art—turning emotion, style, and philosophy into one hauntingly beautiful narrative.
Catherine Mur:
Simon, you describe yourself as “a citizen of the future.” Tell me about your journey, from Yekaterinburg to Monaco, and now Paris.
Simon Ershov:
I was born in Yekaterinburg, a cold industrial city in Russia. That landscape shaped my early fascination with contrasts—the mechanical and the poetic, the brutal and the fragile. Monaco has been my home for more than six years, a place where the Mediterranean light softened that industrial past. But recently, Paris became my latest creative playground—a city that allows me to suffer beautifully for fashion.
Fashion is my religion, my reason to breathe. I live, laugh, cry, and suffer for it. It is both my sanctuary and my torment.
Catherine Mur:
Your work often merges art, emotion, and philosophy. How would you define your aesthetic?
Simon Ershov:
I dissociate myself from outdated fashion tendencies. I’m drawn to the transgressive—to what disturbs and seduces at once. My vision is a purely conceptual, philosophical chic.
I exist in ambivalence: love and hatred intertwined. I am a stylist, designer, auction assistant, journalist, and dreamer—a modern sufferer and a twisted paradigm of fashion. My inspiration comes from human fragility, broken hearts, and modern tragedies.
And I truly believe beauty has killed more people than ugliness. Absolute beauty is dangerous—almost deadly.
Catherine Mur:
Let’s talk about your latest editorial, “An Endless Suffering in Parallel Universes.” It feels haunting yet poetic.
Simon Ershov:
It’s a tear-filled gospel about a young man’s loveless suffering—his endless reincarnations through parallel universes. It was photographed by my visionary friend, Nicholas Efimtsev, and styled, directed, and embodied by me. Together, we sought to capture what I call “modern sadness”— a fusion of elegance and chaos.
The two-face makeup by Anna Grego represents the murder of time, erasing the border between life and death, beauty and decay.
Catherine Mur:
Tell me more about the fashion itself—the looks, their meanings.
Simon Ershov:
The first look, also titled “An Endless Suffering in Parallel Universes,” features a black Loro Piana vicuña coat over a Valentino chemise, with a Bottega Veneta tie and YSL derbies. It represents an internal torture chamber—the darkness of a glamorized dictator of fashion. Inspired by Ayn Rand’s objectivism, Marcel Breuer’s architecture, and old Hollywood noir, it asks: What is left to build once all is gone?
Voyeurism becomes the answer—the fascination of watching something just before it ends: a flower drying, a sunset fading, beauty decaying.
The second look, “Polarizing Luxury of Vulgarity,” is my boldest statement. I wear Maison Margiela thigh-high patent boots, DSquared2 faux leather pants, a Balenciaga haute couture belt, and a Kenzo schoolboy jacket. It’s my futuristic Marquis de Sade—inspired by Robert Mapplethorpe, German techno, Lars von Trier, and Egon Schiele.
Catherine Mur:
There’s a clear tension between decadence and despair in your words. Is suffering essential to your art?
Simon Ershov:
Absolutely. My youth is a curse; my tears and my time are treasures. I exist between agony and transcendence—what I call fatal serenity. Fashion, for me, is not about surface—it’s about the wounds it conceals and reveals.
Catherine Mur:
And if you could leave readers with one final sentiment?
Simon Ershov:
Thank you to Monaco for teaching me light. Thank you to Paris for teaching me shadow. And thank you to beauty—for killing me softly, every single day.
Between light and shadow, suffering and elegance, Simon Ershov reminds us that fashion is more than fabric—it’s a reflection of the soul. His story is not about perfection, but the poetry found in imperfection.
Interviewed by Porterium Magazine contributor Dr. Catherine Mur — an international lawyer with a PhD in International Law, accomplished journalist, and poet — this feature bears the touch of a true global citizen whose intellect, cultural sensitivity, and refined sense of style illuminate every conversation.
Contact:
📧 simon.ershov2@gmail.com
📧 catherinemichellemur@gmail.com
Photography:
Nicholas Efimtsev (@efimtsev_nicholas)
Art Direction, Styling & Modelling:
Simon Ershov (@unconscious_wonderland)
Makeup & Hair:
Anna Grego (@anngrego_makeup)
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