Silk and Sirens: Fashion grad Beth Davidson-Sims reclaims mythical sexiness through lingerie

In the depths of an enchanted ocean lies an island inhabited by a sisterhood of sirens. They lounge on the sea floor, bask on mossy rockfaces, and dance in shallow rock pools. Their lure draws in the wandering eyes of passing sailors who try to drag the sirens ashore. But the sisterhood detest them, sending the sailors back to their ships bruised, blue and battered — forever haunted by their harrowing song.  

This world is created by recent Massey Fashion graduate, Beth Davidson-Sims. Her grad project, The Sirens, freed – underneath, reclaims sirens as a symbol of female empowerment. It looks at how sirens reinforce how female seduction is vilified, turning this narrative on its head.  

She drapes her sirens in frills and silk, embedded with pearls and salt crystals. Her Bob Mackie-like dresses move like seaweed. And the 1950s-style lingerie gathers like seafoam on the model's body.  

Beth found her love for fashion through second-hand clothing and whimsical designers like Alexander McQueen and Maison Margiela. But her true inspiration was drawn from mythology and folklore, and the “evil women” they depict.  

Folklore of sirens have been tied to many cultures, most notably, in Greek mythology. Here, they are depicted as half-bird, half-woman creatures who lure people in with their sweet song. In the Greek poem Homer’s Odyssey from around 700BC, sailors put wax in their ears to block out their alluring song, avoiding shipwreck. According to myth, if the sirens fail to seduce their prey, they die by suicide — their song both a weapon and a curse.  

Later in the medieval times, literature started to depict sirens with fish tails. We see this today most famously in Pirates of the Caribbean, and the TikTok tend of ‘siren energy’. They use sirens to portray women’s sexuality and unapologetic desires as dangerous.  

But Beth strongly rejects this patriarchal depiction of the siren as a dangerously seductive force. “It’s like wild women are something to be feared,” she says, “The siren is a warning against a woman using her voice.”  

In her thesis, Beth explains that even though her project depicts folklore, the story of the siren reinforces the very real patriarchy. She writes, “Sirens are feared because they represent the male fear of female seduction and sexuality. The siren fools and tricks the sailor by singing her sweet song to lure him, then on his fatal arrival, he sees her true monstrous form.” 

Beth’s siren allows women to be sexy, without male dominance, echoing that men’s lust isn’t the fault of women.  The designs are raw and delicate as Beth follows the body of the model. Once the fabric is draped over the figure, it shows her what it will become.

Last year, Beth’s work was showcased in Te Wiki Āhua o Aotearoa — an underground collection of New Zealand fashion run by a group of young creatives in Tāmaki Makarau.  

Beth says the experience gave her more creative freedom than her degree. Rather than strict direction from Fashion lecturers, she was able to explore independence.  

“The people who are running it are smoking cigs with you on the rooftop,” she recalls laughing. 

And later this month, Beth is taking part in Āhua again, with a showcase that challenges the wearability and use of lingerie as normal clothes. Her inspiration for the collection came from the revival of Y2K fashion and silk nighties. Beth experimented with uncomfortable materials often worn outside, like Possum fur and leather, and made them into lingerie.  

“Lingerie is so fun and like sexy, and I’m a big fan of bringing sexiness back personally.” 

Through myth, fantasy, and silk, Beth envisions womanhood as seductive yet defiant. The sirens speak like her lingerie — unapologetically sexy, wild, and deeply feminine.  

Through Beth’s retelling of patriarchal narratives, she reclaims not just the siren — but also the true essence of being deeply feminine.