A Robot on the Runway: What to Know About TULASI and Omnia Vanitas

A humanoid robot appeared on the runway in the final moments of TULASI’s show. For British designer Tulasi Parmar, whose practice embraces artificial intelligence and digital fashion, the appearance felt like a natural step. Yet Omnia Vanitas began with a much older question: why are we so drawn to things that will eventually disappear?

The show took place on 20 September at The Royal Horseguards Hotel during London Fashion Week. The collection’s title references the words of Ecclesiastes: “Vanity of vanities; all is vanity.” Parmar explores our attachment to beauty, wealth and power—a particularly intriguing subject for an industry fuelled, in large part, by the desire to possess.

One source of inspiration was Paolo Veronese’s Allegory of Wisdom and Strength. In the designer’s interpretation, Wisdom turns towards the light, while Hercules is held down by the weight of earthly possessions. Parmar brings this narrative into the present: alongside the human body, there now exists a digital image that can be endlessly altered, perfected and kept young.

Behind TULASI is a designer of Kenyan-Gujarati heritage who grew up in Britain. At 16, Parmar won the UK’s Young Fashion Designer of the Year competition. In 2024, she graduated with First-Class Honours from Ravensbourne University London, where she studied womenswear and digital fashion. That background shaped her approach: working with fabric and cut goes hand in hand with creating virtual designs.

Technology also serves a practical purpose. Before garments are made, the brand refines their fit, drape and movement in 3D, reducing the number of physical samples needed. Pieces are then produced on demand in-house in the UK. Digital experimentation has become part of the everyday process of making clothes.

The robot’s appearance, developed in collaboration with Humanoid Robot Solutions, gave the collection’s themes a literal presence on the runway. Here was a participant for whom ageing and the human desire for beauty have no meaning. This is what makes Omnia Vanitas intriguing: fashion turns to the technology of the future to explore desires that have barely changed in centuries.

Photo BLACK PR