Martje's Fashion

Designer Focus: Monique van Heist

2009-08-04T08:59:00.000-07:00

''Monique van Heist's project:Hello Fashion is a new form of Fashion Activism. A fashion statement subverting the fashions system's vectors of power, but using its infrastructure for promoting multitudes, and transparancy of how fashion might be and what other means of expression and meanings it could manifest.''

On November 7th Dutch Designer Monique van Heist won the Mercedes-Benz Dutch Fashion Award 2008. She will receive a reward of 25000 to further develop her label ''moniquevanheist'', and to set further steps in the international fashion industry....

On Friday November 7th 2008 the Dutch Fashion Foundation organized the second edition of the Mercedes Benz Dutch Fashion Awards. This initiative to create a focus moment in the Dutch fashion industry saw its successful debut in November 2007. On November 7th 2008 an international jury once again chose the Dutch fashion design label most likely to succeed in bringing its label onto the international market. The winner of the Mercedes-Benz Dutch Fashion Award received a financial reward of 25.000 euro which will enable the label to take further steps in the international fashion industry. Last edition this award was won by the label Klavers van Engelen who used the reward to restart their label and are now among others exploring the Milanese market.

Monique van Heist also won the Media award,the Dutch Fashion Media Award is presented by leading Dutch fashion media and given to the designer that according to the Dutch Fashion Media Academy deserves an extra incentive on national soil through shown excellence in the past year. This award is made possible by Club Brillant, a collaboration of fashion conscious opticians, offering the Monique a possibility to collaborate with a renowned eyewear designer in the development of their own eyewear collection to complement her collections. She also won an incentive of 5.000 Euro to invest freely in the development of her brand....

And at last she won the Dutch Fashion Incubator Award, which is composed of substantial in-kind contributions from the industry to the realization of the ambitions of the winner of the Mercedes-Benz Dutch Fashion Award 2008. This Award extends not only to the support of the label, but as well to illustrate the value these products and channels have for the realization of the designer’s business objectives. This year introduced the generous offer of three companies in the field of software and technology, sales and production: Department store the Bijenkorf will take a part of the winning collection up in its assortment to be sold in its flagship stores in Amsterdam, The Hague and Rotterdam next year. Lectra offers the winner of the Mercedes-Benz Dutch Fashion Awards 2008 a package of and training-course of the Modaris ExpertPro and Kaledo software. These solutions will enable the winner to streamline and accelerate his or her design process and communication with production facilities. The Fair Wear Foundation offers not only to the winner but to all the nominated designers a course to get acquainted with the fair wear principles and are being brought in contact with production facilities that comply with the criteria of Fair Wear.

(source Dutch Fashion Foundation)

As the above shows, this a very innovative and clever use of the Fashion-Industry's network, enabling Monique van Heist to introduce her newest project ''Hello Fashion'' which was launched at the Bijenkorf (a dutch version of Bloomingdale's) last may 2009.

With ''Hello Fashion'' Monique makes a fashion statement, while at the same time offering an alternative vision on how Fashion might be....: a permanent collection of garments presented in a loose-leaf catalogue, to which new items will be added randomly..(this is: not according to the traditional fashion-cycle).

'' Designers are creating more and more collections, and i am thinking: who's going to wear all those garments'' Monique van Heist expresses in an interview. This made her reflect upon her own role and responsibility as a Fashion Designer. Her Fashion is a research into the industry's vectors of power, and the driving forces of novelty and speed, in the end resulting in unnecessary waste. Fashion starts with an analysis of what people wear, and where they wear it. Monique turns this research to her benefit as a sourceof inspiration: every day life. From sociological fashion observations into highly wearable and desirable new forms of fashion design. Clothes that relate to us on a direct day-to-day level. She is literally getting in touch with society by means of her designs....

Monique designs unisex-style collections with an own character, which are referred to her''alter ego's",

like the underneath description of alter-ego Nastasja:

Natasja, Me.

when they leave, she fakes to be busy. or better, hide and pretend to be gone.

where they make blazers, at night IT is hers (mine).

puts on the dustcoat and:

begin.

take the freshly oiled machine. push the button, hear that beautiful snoring sound. choose material(S)

shape by head, color by heart. instinctive distinction.

the rules of fashion are no longer at night, but her rules.

create what is hers, with innocent beauty.

posing, showing off and, happiness.

she is the maker of her universe- she releases her stars!

I am then NATASJA. It fits me better.

I am ready to wear it. what it is.

she is a sewing factory.

she stands, still in fashion.

is her taste as fashion, is fashion tasty?

she knows.

All Monique's collections have a description of the character expressed by these collections.That said, the designs are such that they leave enough room to be personalized by the wearer. Monique explores the bounderies of uniformity within her designs, to just a level that the individual is triggered in developing/expressing its own unique persona, this in dialogue with ''the other'' expressed in the collection.

It's about the concept of dynamic interaction between people in creating identity. The'' I ''does not exist without the ''other'', within a balance we find ourselves....

( source Levinas, Sartre,Damasio and others Philosophy of Mind)

The above forms the (meta)physical and philosophical mindset out of which Hello Fashion was created. The garments that get into the Hello Fashion catalogue are called ''moniquevanheist classics''.

The catalogue can be downloaded from her website: www.moniquevanheist.com

Her other collections,and poetic descriptions of Alter-ego's can also be viewed on her website.

Monique van Heist has graduated from Arhnem Fashion Institute in November 2004, she launched her label ''moniquevanheist'' that same year with the launch of her first collection ''toni''. In May 2009 she launched her project Hello Fashion, and she is keen on developing this project/fashion concept worldwide....

working with the fashion-industry, instead of against it: this by subverting its power-vectors but using its infrastructure...and by offering a work-able, fashionable alternative of how fashion might/could be: HELLO FASHION!

Sources:

BOOKS

''Crafts: On Scale, Pace and Sustainability'', Li Edelkoort

''Awaking to the other'', Emmanuel Levinas

''Eco-chic the fashion paradox'' Sandy Black

''Seven days in the art-world'' Sarah Thortnon

''Fashion a Philsophy'' Lars Svendsen

Websites:

www.moniquevanheist.com

www.dutchfashionawards.com/

http://www.edelkoort.com/

http://www.premsela.org/home/-/en

http://www.arnhemmodebiennale2009.com/read/en

Final Assignment: Street trends

2009-08-04T00:39:00.000-07:00

How very inspiring street trends might be, i found this the hardest assignment to ''grasp''..., especially with Fashion turning into a conceptual era, the interpretation of trends in the street have become very diverse....Still i decided to focus on the interpretation of historical trends in the contemporary fashion scene, that is collections of 2009/2010....

Differences in suits as seen on the runway are very subtle....and styling have become an important issue to express the inspiration from historical street-trends.... as following images hopefully will express...

Zoot-suit image above, expressing political dimension of wearing these suits, leading to riots, and social-commotion in big cities like LA.

Underneath,interpretation by Lanvin ss 2010 men's collection: taking the 'activist' connotation as inspiring...

And totally becoming Mainstream, losing its political, activist dimension, in a beautifully interpretation by Chloe 2009, Fall collection:

Suits have played a literally ''power-full'' role in the history of fashion...like i described in a previuos post. Another suit-style that set a trend coming from the streets, was the Teddy-boy look, underneath image shows Teddy-boys in a London-street scene. This look originated in the UK, where it still plays an major influence in the fashion-scene....,

Underneath, again Lanvin 2010-collection....

An de Meulenmeester RTW 2009, revealing its sober-aesthetic value

In a chronological order, the next street trend making it up to the runway was Beatnik, associated with existentialism, a philosophy-stream that originated in France, more specifically with thinkers/writers Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir (underneath the image). This style stressed the intellectual dimension of dress.

Interpretation of the intellectual dimension of dress, by Comme des Garcons 2009

And a beautiful, mainstream version by Marc Jacobs, ready to wear 2009 collection

With the intellectual dimension openly adressed in Fashion, Music became an influence felt in Fashion trends caused by groupies got its counterpart on the runway.Music being considered the most ''intellectual'' form of art (Suzanne Langer, Philosophy in a new key) at that time....mere imagination.... The first street-trend assiociated with the music-scene making it upto runway was Mods-trend

Comme des Garcons, 2009,

Diane von Furstenberg

The mods where an introduction to its follower in street-style: the hippie trend. Within the music scene Janis Joplin can be considered as one of its trendsetters..... It was a critic on the values society was promoting...and a return to nature and humanity....On the Runway left image: Anna Sui, 2009. And a revival of the hippie- values in the new Levis add below....

After the hippie-period in which it was all about make peace not war...came the provoking Punk influence in the musicscene....Sex Pistols where a notoriuos group within this scene, and still today its influence is felt....

On the Runway: Miss Sixty 2009, showing punk trend being mainstream fashionable....

And on the mens runway:Dirk Bikkembergs 2009 showing provoking power of this streetrend, in ''firing'' colours, and cutting-edge shapes....mainstream in a non-mainstream way....

By end 70's the disco trend had arrived...also expressed in other cultural sphere's as musicals and films ( ''flashdance'' and ''saturday nightfever'')...and ABBA whining the Eurovisie Songfestival...

On the Runway: Louis Vuitton Resort 2010: influence on the shoe-designs....

And a print by Anna Sui on her series of ''printed t-shirts''....

To conclude with the Hip Hop trend, introduced by hip-hop bands....

On the runway: Dutch designer Daryl van wauw , known to incorporate all kind of street styles in his intriguing designs...

Men 2010 Bernard Wilhelm, in this collection he used reinterpreted ''ethnic-style'', hiphop can be considered as ethnic from a western point of view...

As far as new street trends, as a result of globalisation i believe the skirt, dress is losing its position of being a gender specific-garment....On the streets at Amsterdam Fashion Week 2009:

And on the Runway JP Gaultier:

And also on the runway...but as trendsetter...: Marc Jacobs...:

While his boyfriend is chasing streettrends with Courtney Love on another spot....: printed t-shirts...

On the runway, again designers as trendsetters themselves Gareth Pugh:

Historical Styles

2009-07-17T09:29:00.000-07:00

Elizabeth Peyton's Marc Jacobs, Spring 2009,Oil on Canvas

Within this assignment we have to compile 6 images of fashion designs that show influences from historical artistic styles....Now,for me that is a very hard task, as i view the influence of historical artistic styles in any and everything...slightest detail can be an object of my ''tracing back''and thinking through.

Ok FOCUS...my choices must communicate...and explicit enough for others to grasp.

John Galliano for Dior seems an easy choice to start with...balancing between Baroque and Rococo styles, exploring the bounderies between the two. In the Dior Couture 2009 collection influence of the Dutch Baroque Painters seems evident. But when one considers the show, a mere theatre play, with the models taking an ''artistic pose'' at the end of the catwalk...before turning around.

Dior Spring 2009

Jan Vermeer ,The Art of Painting c. 1666-73

When contemplating and reflecting on John Galliano's work for Dior. I eventually believe the spring show of 2009 was about''the art of painting'' itself....

or the '' technical mastering'' within creation of masterpieces.

Where the Baroque paintings depict a kind of silence, or ''pose''....Dior's show seems all about movement, theatre and a certain joy of life...So in the end i would place John Galliano as an example of Roccoco Artistic style...

Dior Fall 2009

Second Historical Artitic style i wanted to explore and track towards the fashion scene, was Impressionism....starting with Manet's painting being excluded of the Salon.This group was not as ''homogene''as i believed them to be , and even the ideas represented by impressionist artists did vary...

My favourite artist within this group of Impressionists was Paul Cezanne. (Cezanne's Doubt by Merleau Ponty is worth reading). For him living was by painting...

He was intrigued by human-perception, and gave this form by painting...He painted the world how he saw it...that being the only possible way...

Portrait of Gustave Geffroy,1895

The impressionists style tried to capture the way objects strike the eye...and Cezanne showed that ''capturing'' of this way, is dependent on the artist...

Painting by Gustav Klimt

An artist that rejected naturalistic styles and made use of symbols and symbolic elements to convey psychological ideas was Gustav Klimt(1862-1918).His work emphasizes the ''freedom'' of art from traditional culture. The influence of this Symbolist Style can be seen in the work of the first fashion designer Charles Worth.

Decorative parts of garments where exclusively hand made by the House of Lesage and could be considered as works of art in themselves...The underneath image of a gown designed in 1923 by the house of Worth just captured my attention....in resemblence in colour, style and pose when looking at the work of Klimt...

Design of Gown, 1923 , House of Worth

And then there was a guy that was called Duchamp, who shocked the artworld with his ready made's, and especially with a piece called ''Fountain'' in 1917. He changed the art-scene towards a new kind of art. An art that engages the mind instead of the eye, in ways that provoke the observer to participate and think....

Marcel Duchamp

Comme des Garcons Spring 2008

I think that Commes des Garcons shows the influences of this artistic ''style''.

Its an Art-style referring and questioning herself....just as Commes des Garcon's fashion is referring to herself...questioning and suggesting...by means of creations.

Pop Art and Conceptual Art both carry the inheritence of Marcel Duchamp thoughts...

Famous artist within the Pop-Art style was Andy Warhol,

Silkscreen ink on painted wood,1964

With his Brillo boxes he showed that everything can be art...in principal...And in the opposite reasoning, everything can be merchandised, even art. The commercial aspect is entering the art-scene, and the art work becomes possible as mere ''decoration'' or ''illustration''.

Influence of this artistic style can be seen in the ''mondrian dress'' created by Yves Saint Laurent in 1965. The plenarity of the dress seemed an ideal field for colour blocks. Whereas Mondrian's work was about the utopian ideal of ''spiritual harmony and order'' YSL's blocks in the dress become functional and serve the feat of dress making. The art-work is just a means...and semblance to the Mondrian order is aesthetic within the form of the dress.

YSL ''mondrian dress' 1965

Conceptual Art is an Artistic Style that has been viewed as the end of''traditional'' art, when art turns into philosophy ( Danto). Although when one considers the artworks, which function as mere symbols within a system of ''meaning''...they become crucial to communicate this meaning. Conceptual Art is a symbolic language expressing a theme the artist wants to communicate. The work of Kosuth is interesting within this Artistic Style, he takes you along a ''mental travel'', along objects and definitions in order to ''(re/de)construct'' a meaning in the mind of the observer...

Art as an Idea:Nothing, Joseph Kosuth 1968

The influence of the Conceptual Art can be seen in the work of Viktor&Rolf always working within a conceptual framework, and every element of the collection,is a representation of thought, thought within concept...their creations are symbols of a language typical for their own style...

Viktor&Rolf Fall RTW 2008

And atlast the Belgians. Within the Contemporary Painting (and i just love paintings...) Scene, the Belgians have developed special style, maybe due to culture, the ''un-identity'' of ''Belgians'', I have experienced in 9 years of living and studying, there is a special ''open'' environment, or maybe a kind of ''nothing-ness'' out of which the most elevated ideas come...

I just think its intriguing that both within Fashion (Antwerp 6) and within Art, the belgians seem to just do their thing, and in that...have their own style...

Underneath a painting by Luc Tuymans, and a garment of Maison Martin Margiela

The Worshipper , 2005

GENEALOGY OF A GARMENT: powersuits

2009-07-04T23:51:00.000-07:00

So for this assignment, i finally choose the Power Suit

Ralph Lauren is considered to be the first designer to have introduced the Power Suit. Georgo Armani claims differently....

Although the term Power Suit might not been used before the 1980's, research througout history shows that the suit functioned, as a so called ''power'' suit, a century before its formal introduction by Ralph Lauren.

A contemporary Power Suit by Ralph Lauren.

Oscar Wilde 1882

The image of Oscar Wilde, above was taken in New York in 1882. Oscar Wild was part of a art- movement called Aestheticism, which was a reaction upon their perceived ugliness due to Industrial Revolution. Their aim was Beauty in Art, detached from any other notion.

Oscar Wilde was very aware of the social functions of dress, decoration not only as aesthetic purpose, but enhancing all social functions... Hence my choice of these images of him in ''Power Suit'',as the Power of the Suit has to do with the awareness of the one who wears it...and his concept of Power.

Charming power of the suit ... 1950's

Photo from the Webmaster's Collection

Army wear can be seen as the ultimate ''Power Suit''. I like the content of above image of Marlene Dietrich,in 1945, wearing pants, pushing an Army man. Showing the Zeitgeist of end 40's beginning 50's,time was ready for the first women's suit.

In Yves Saint Laurent, 1950 introduced ''le smoking'', could be considered first real 'Power Suit'' for women. At that time focus was on gender(in)difference.Power Suit was symbol for the power of women in general.

''Almost anything can be worn by both men and women. The clothes themselves have no gender. What is considered feminine today was masculine before, and vice versa. All my career, I have tried to make men equal to women: a woman can be feminine in a pantsuit and a man very masculine in a skirt. ''
- Jean Paul Gaultier

Power Suit icon 007,Roger Moore in 1960's

As mentioned Ralph Lauren is considered to have introduced first the Power Suit into the fashion scene in the 1980's.Characteristic where its wide shoulderpads, symbolising Power. During 1980's this was especially economical power.The Power Suit got connotated with business(men/women), and was symbol of flourishing capitalist system.

The connotation became individualistic, where as YSL Power Suit 1950 was referring to a group, Ralph Lauren is referring to the individual wearing the suit, and by that showing his personal(economic) power. This is a different attitude and shows the individualistic&capitalistic values of modern culture.

Now we are in the 21th century, Power Suit seems to be shifting between all sort of connotations. Capitalism has failed to supply ultimate Power...crisis is the turn soil for new meanings of 1980's Power Suit....

Vision of Power Suit, by Jean Paul Gaultier, SS 2010 mens collection

assignment 5.1

2009-06-30T21:35:00.000-07:00

Classical Revival in Medieval setting....

Guess that is what has happened in the history of fashion cycles...... up to now..My mind is spinning around in circles, about the question ,if, with the end the 20th century, Fashion reached an end of these historical cycles, as style cycles. Have they become subject of a theme, or part of seasonalstyle adopted by a designer.Has Fashion emerged into a self concsious identity of what she is about: a continious change of shapes, in all its possible styles (new as historical)....

CHANGE AND CONTINUITY AS DRIVING PRINCIPLES FOR SHAPE?

Classic style, the greeck and romans....

Statue of 1915, by Cipri Adolf. A statue of Aristotles, showing draped garment -classic style.

A detail of a fresco by Raphael ''The Athens School'', 1509-1510. Beside the classic style shown in a variety of garments. Its cultural content is symbolized in this fresco, showing the greek philosophers Plato and Aristoteles in a dialogue,in the centre of the fresco, with rest surrounding them (literally...).

It shows importance of physical as well as mental fitness, as well as the cooperation between individuals. The classic style is a result of that culture.

Another interesting aspect of the fresco, is its ''classic'style''of painting, done in the beginning of 15oo,(start of Rennaissance period)........as opposed to the next image, out of a previuos era (image dated 1493)

Aristoteles is portrayed as 15th century scholar...in a medieval style garment.

The contrast in style is very clear(look at the triangle shapes)...

Artwork by Abrecht Durer, Melencolia

This artwork depicts the longing to a more, a better, a more beautiful life in all its aspects...typical for medieval world (triggering Renaissance, rebirth of historical values)

Relating this aspect of medieval thought (human thought...) i would like to state a

a quote by Oscar Wilde (1854-1900)with reference to Fashion:

''Fashion is a form of ugliness so intolerable we have to alter it every six months''

In search for my images of revival of both classic and medieval style...i ended in a mental state that i started to see revival in everything...transformed into personal, contemporary vision...

i choose to post very evident images of revival...

To start with this YSL dress, which i think its important,as the dress itself has had several revivals.Yves Saint Laurent being an influental designer, within the Paris tradition.

Classic style, with an image of John Galliano men's Collection spring 2010.

Photo is taken by fashion photographer Sonny van der Velden.I love this image as its shows the new setting with graffiti on the back....and Galliano is always very upfront as where his designs refer to...

Medieval revival with Garth Pugh

and showing cultural difference...

Belgian modesty in Dries van Noten 's interpretation of Medieval

and last but not least images of ethnic and folkoristic styles...

Folkloristic Dutch by Monique van Heist 2006

Ethnic and/or Folkoristic?Chanel Paris-Moscow

Folkloristic Costume Hindelopen,before 19th century

to end my assignment 5,1 post with this amazing ''look'' by Commes Des Garcons.Folkoristic,Ethnic elements are clear,but the look has this mysterious touch that just makes it work...(for me)

assignment 4.1

2009-06-25T14:27:00.000-07:00

In this first image we can see Elmur in historical tailored trousers with socks attached to them and a tunic, and a viking helmet (referring to his Northern roots).

I just love the historical Greek versus Nothern(European)-symbolism in this Looney Tunes image of Elmur Fudd and Bugs Bunny. I could fill the whole post( and more pages) with the content and symbolism i see in this cartoon, but i will stick my rambling mind to the assignment: compiling historical tailored and draped garments.

This above painting,of which i did not write down the source/painter but i think is just too beautiful not to share, especially as it shows in a superb way the greek/roman draped dresses and veils, and even a hooded cloak. It appeals to a certain level of sophistication, typical for the greek and roman civilization as opposed to the ''barbarian'' Northern countries.

The Looney Tunes cartoon refers in a very subtle way to this intellectual(spiritual) dimension of historical dress by picturing especially the character of Elmur, in a historical tailored garment, trying too master ''sophistacated manners'' through a posture....

..but its not about posture/gesture in the end,its intellectual, its what is in the mind ...

And do i like the creative minds of below designers first image is a design by Jan Taminau, Draped dress, collection 2009, and the second image , a design by Marc Jacobs Tailored Tunic tight together by a rope....Resort 2010 collection.

Jan Taminau Draped Dress 2090

Marc Jacobs Tailored Tunic 2010

and from a different historical period, the 1920's, a historical furr cloak

designed by Fourrures Weil in Paris. I like this image because it expresses the Environmental Protection , the main historical function of the cloak, as well as its ''body-covering'' shape.

and i think an image of dresses designed by Paul Poiret should not be missing within an assignment of historical draped garments... Image is called ''the brides of the future''...sub-title says ''costumes for brides and honorable ladies''.

As a last image, i want to add a an garment by a future designer, a 2009-graduate student of Antwerp Fashion Academy, Emilie Pirlot. She gives the concept&vorm of historical garments a contemporary, personal interpretation; creating a totally new (her own)style....

preparation assignment 4.1

2009-06-25T14:19:00.000-07:00

still inspired by Missoni Fall 2009....

not only going back to her own historic roots of knits, Missoni seems to have gone back to the Historical Draped and Tailored Garments for her inspiration....shawls, stola's, gloves and mittens, socks and woolen trousers....

Since i am living in Urkraine having extremely cold winters...this collection is very tempting!

assignment 3.1

2009-06-22T07:28:00.000-07:00

After a lot of thinking and contemplating lovely creatons, I made the choice of posting several a images, an image that ''has it all'' (all 6 functions i mean) is the above garment by Missoni 2009 Fall collection. I believe this garment/outfit expresses all 6 functions in a way that is very subtle, yet expressive-Missoni kind of way. Environmental Protection in the classical sense, meaning ''keeping warm'', with knitted scarfs, woollen outfits.

A way I personally like, a multi-layered (yes i like layers), hip-hop meets romantic-hippie look. This ''spider-web-y'' dress, gives the garment a delicate touch suitable for a party, or just feeling good at home on a gloomy day.

Apparantly Angela Missoni's daughter Margherita was wearing a 2009-collection dress on front row of the show....this expresses the ceremonial, but even more the group membership function of dress in a very direct way.

And from a different culture,a garment by Japanese Kimono designer Jotaro Saito. The Kimono expresses also the 6 functions within one garment. Gender differentiation is achieved by the middle belt,which for women is much broader, and from bust to waist line.

An image i am adding ,at the latest moment, as the class discussion is covering the topic of Environmental Protection just now.

The Urban Security Suit by the dutch designer Tim Smit

In reality its all being about the perception of danger

...I believe this image to be very appropiate...

preparation assignment 3.1

2009-06-22T02:41:00.000-07:00

label Y-3 by Yamamoto (daughter)

since i have been going to school, i have been found''difficult'',never fitting in, as i did not seem to be able to simply answer a ''normal''question....instead always raising new ones.

this was not a problem when doing my Bachelor of Philosophy

...but i feel ''being difficult'' once again during this course...i don't understand the word ''compile''...

ok. but i do understand the 6 functions of dress, so in my preparation to the final post of assignment 3.1, i just want to share these great images i found ...in the mean time i will try to figure out what compile means, and what we are expected to submit...

unknown boy in street

images of garments, assignment 2.1

2009-06-19T08:49:00.000-07:00

De Boertjes,photo taken in 1938,of curator Willem Sandberg of the Stedelijk Musem, explaining an exhibition on 100yrs of French art to visitors.

...i find this image fascinating, somehow capturing everything...The visitors are dressed in typical dutch folkloristic costume made of cotton, and by that showing their status as farmers. The ''artistic/intellectual scene'' is represented by museum curator dressed in a suit (probably wool).To me this picture shows different worlds, just by the way the people in the picture are dressed, they are connected via de Artwork.Art Communicates....

Fashion is Art, Art is Fashion

The image above is considered to be Johannes Vermeer's Masterpiece , the milkmaid, painted in 1658. The reason choosing to post this painting, next to its beauty ,and showing garment and textiles, is its influence in today's fashion... The aesthetic contemplation of paintings like these become a source of inspiration for contemporary fashion, transcending the historical content of what is shown. Designers like Galliano ,in a creative act ,show their interpretation of the Golden Age paintings....The Dior Haute Couture Spring 2009 Collection....

Theatrical fabrics as velvet/silk/organza and lace are used. Main feature in the work of Galliano is the textile/ fabric choice, especially the middle dress, creating an illusion of ironwork. The fabrics are intrinsic to the design of the dresses. This design technique/style is not new, like shown in underneath image, dated at the end 19th century. A silk evening dress by the House of Worth.

The black velvet and white satin textiles are woven ''a la disposition'', with the intent that each piece becomes a specific part of the dress. The House of Worth, was one of the most important fashion houses in Paris during 1858-1956, owned by the 2 brothers Jean-Philippe and Gaston Worth. Their dresses where made of Crepe the Chine, mousseline, lace, tule, chiffon and Jugendstil embroideries.

Another designer inspired by painters, and considering himself as an artist was Paul Poiret. He had the painter Raoul Duffy design textiles for him.Paul Poiret broke with the tradition, of women wearing a corset, he introduced dresses with a high waistline, and his gowns where simple with no thrills compared the era before. He dominated the fashion scene untill 1914.

I choose below images to grasp ''the feeling the form' of his designs. These images where made

by Paul Poiret, and show the contrast with House of Worth design-style, soft fabrics are used, and instead of the illusion of an iron look, rubber was used when the silhouette of a women was such that a ''corset''was needed. Smooth and soft draped fabrics....

Another designer breaking with tradition was Coco Chanel, introducing in 1926 ''the little black dress'',a short, collarless, longsleeved, blouse-dress. Coco Chanel was the first to make clothes out of woolen Jersey. The little black dress became an icon in the fashion world...and today its considered as a ''must have'' in each women's wardrobe

jersey wool dress

I started this post with the dutch art influences on fashion, discussing some french fashion houses, to conclude my assignment with the Belgian.Belgian Fashion stands out according to me, one only has to look at the website of the Antwerp Fashion School, and look at the shows and work of the different years, (not only graduation).

Antwerp Fashion Show 2009

Last but not least.... Dries van Noten, especially his use of natural textiles, and a balanced use of printed fabrics in his collections continue to inspire me for years...

Dries van Noten 2009,

inspiring textile project

2009-06-18T13:30:00.000-07:00

In my search for the second assignment concerning images of garments made out of different textiles, i went for inspiration to Gerrit Rietveld Academy , and clicked onto their Textiles divison,

website:

http://www.gerritrietveldacademie.nl/txt

i just want to share these beautiful images of 2 of their projects

But one should really take some time and explore all of these projects, very inspiring and interesting i believe...

Fashion Source Book

2009-06-15T10:40:00.000-07:00

i just love fabrics...i discovered i have a new addiction, instead of websearching on YOOX or NET-A-PORTER, i am now dividing my weekly ''routine'' into visiting the fabric stores in the city (discovered 4 great ones)...

apparently all left-over fashion fabrics from Dolce&Gabbana, Moschino, Armani are shipped to eastern europe....

This is my main source of inspiration, my starting point of whatever i am creating...

there fore i believe these pictures to be a good staring point of my Fashion Source Book, that i am going to start creating as from today within my Master Course History of 20th Century Fashion Arts. Being mainly influenced by Western European cultures, lived in Italy, France, Belgium and Holland, i now find myself living in a country where Fashion & Street Wear show an inconsistency i have never experienced before....

The local Fabric stores sell Dolce & Gabbana (notice the dots on the picture...), Versace, Dior, Armani...but when you then take a look at the people in the street...a bigger gap in style between the style of these Fashion Houses and the Ukrainian people wearing these fabrics i have not experienced before. The length of the high-heel's is approximately the same as the length of their mini-skirt, and everybody has a certain dose of ''bling bling''

I suddenly realise how Fashion and StreetWear is influenced by culture, social status and history (both social and political). I am living in a former Communist Country, with poverty and curruption all around. Electricity and tabwater are not for granted...and yet, everybody (poor to rich) is ''dressed up'', and glitters its way in the street....