Gerdago is the pseudonym of the Austrian costume designer Gerda Gotchlich (Gerda Gottstein, Gerda Irro).
Gerda Gottstein (1906-2004) received her art education in Berlin in 1927 and in Paris in 1928-1929 and worked as an assistant to architect Oskar Strnad. Between 1925 and 1930, Gerda created a series of Art Deco figurines. They are mostly actors or dancers in dramatic poses and futuristic costumes with eccentric headdresses. The figurines are usually decorated with colorful enamel and gilding.
In the future, Gerda connected her life with theater and cinema. She has created beautiful costumes for many theatrical productions and films. She was especially successful at outfits for historical films, such as the biography of Schubert or in the operetta film Masquerade.
During the occupation of Austria by Germany for the Jewess Gerda Iro-Gottstein became an ordeal. Only marriage to a non-Jew saved her from the gas chamber. Her parents were sent to a concentration camp, where they died. After the Second World War, she was again able to practice her profession at the Vienna City Theater and cinema. She has been the costume designer for many Austrian films, including the Sissi Empress trilogy starring Romy Schneider, which you have probably seen.
