EmiLie StarKe
Born to Laurent Starke and his wife Isabelle Safronkova.
Laurent was a wordsmith and part-time organ grinder from Brussels. A complete recluse except for his books and trusted companion- Javier: a Peruvian monkey he found at a flea market. He never ventured further than his home town and was not curious as to what lay beyond its parameters.
Isabelle was born in the Czech Republic to a very right wing family. She ran away at the age of 16 to join a travelling gypsy procession. She was a performer, musician and eternal wonderer at heart. To say it was love at first sight would be an understatement- and even though they were polar opposites to the external passer-by, their souls were intertwined in appreciation and adoration for one other. Emilie emerged 10 months later…
Emilie grew up in a constant state of unpacking, packing, travelling and returning to the family home in Brussels. She was a recluse at heart like her father, though her legs had the wondering spirit of her mother. She spent most of her days in her imagination… and soon it became second nature for her to weave tall tales and design dreams. Her parents saw this talent from a young age and encouraged her throughout. However at the age of 20 her mother died of Leukaemia- and a few weeks later her father became incapacitated, due to a broken heart that was beyond medical care.
Emilie spent an entire year- in a self enforced house arrest taking care of her father; with the aid of her Grandmother. She considered it her most creative phase- tongue in cheek claiming it as her “ash strewn period.” Little is known of what happened between then and her arrival in South Africa. And no-one ever ventures to ask…
What we do know about Emilie is this: She is intensely nostalgic and a sucker for anything vintage (especially veiled hats and antique broaches). She has a weird relationship with stripy tights, that we feel goes beyond a fashion statement. A disgusting pipe smoking habit that should belong to an ancient British colonel. Her wit is sharp and anyone who comes too close can feel its cut. Her theatrical world is said to be that of a Scandinavian great-great-grandmother - full of trinkets and memories stashed in old shoe boxes, set in a vast cold nightmarish landscape of nothingness.
