One-night-only luxury Mariam Seddiq runway is taking over Adelaide’s iconic Mortlock Chamber

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One of Adelaide’s most breathtaking rooms is about to become a runway, with acclaimed Australian designer Mariam Seddiq bringing a major 30-model fashion show to the Mortlock Chamber for one night only.

Presented by Finesse Models Australia and THE MODELS during Adelaide Fashion Week, the luxury event will mark MARIAM SEDDIQ’s Adelaide Fashion Week debut, with guests seated just metres from the runway as an extensive collection moves through the historic State Library space.

And Adelaide will get more than a showcase of existing favourites, with never-before-seen pieces set to make their debut on the night.

Mariam Seddiq has become known nationally for her architectural silhouettes, sculptural tailoring, intricate handwork and dramatic approach to contemporary Australian fashion.

For event organisers Brigette, Bec and Letitia, that sense of occasion was exactly what they wanted when they began planning an independent Fashion Week event.

“We knew from the beginning that if we were going to create an independent runway during Adelaide Fashion Week, we wanted to do something that felt genuinely special rather than simply adding another show to the calendar,” they said.

“Mariam’s work immediately made sense for the kind of experience we wanted to create.”

Rather than choosing a traditional blank event space, the team looked to one of Adelaide’s most recognisable interiors.

The Mortlock Chamber’s towering bookshelves, galleries and heritage architecture will remain firmly on show, creating a dramatic contrast with MARIAM SEDDIQ’s contemporary designs.

“It would almost be criminal to hire the Mortlock and then cover it up!” the organisers said.

Instead, lighting, sound and runway production will enhance the room, rather than attempt to transform it completely.

The scale of the runway is equally ambitious.

Thirty models from Finesse Models Australia and THE MODELS will walk in the MARIAM SEDDIQ presentation, including a diverse cast spanning different ages, backgrounds and looks.

Before the main runway begins, 13 models will also appear in a separate fine jewellery presentation from DDS Diamonds, taking the number of models involved across the evening to more than 40.

Behind them will be a much larger team working across styling, hair, makeup, lighting, sound, photography, film, hospitality and production.

But it is the proximity to the clothing that organisers believe will make the experience particularly special for guests.

Rather than watching from several rows back, the intimate Mortlock layout will place the audience only metres from the models, offering a close-up look at the construction, texture, movement and hand-finished details of Seddiq’s work.

“There is nowhere for fashion to hide at that distance and with Mariam’s work, that’s incredibly exciting because the closer you get, the more there is to appreciate.”

The experience will begin at 6:30pm with pre-show hospitality before guests take their seats from 7:45pm. DDS Diamonds will present at 8pm, followed by the MARIAM SEDDIQ runway at 8:15pm.

The night will then continue with post-show celebrations until 11pm.

Tickets are priced at $160 and $200, with organisers saying the limited-capacity format was deliberately designed as a complete night out rather than simply a fashion parade.

“Once that night is over, that exact combination of collection, cast, venue and atmosphere won’t exist again,” they said.

For the team, bringing a nationally recognised designer into such an unmistakably Adelaide setting also sends a broader message about what the city’s fashion industry is capable of producing.

“Adelaide has an incredibly talented fashion and creative community, but we sometimes have a habit of assuming that the really ambitious fashion experiences need to happen somewhere else. We don’t think they do.”