One of my lectures from Matt Gill was about how Art or Artists inspire fashion design or new fashion concepts. However from this lecture I also realised how easily combinations of art and fashion within design or when used for campaigns can be quite shocking or controversial.
I particularly took interest in Elsa Schiaparelli, a leading fashion Designer in the 1930's. She took inspiration and worked with Dadaist and surrealist artists such as Salvador Dali.
We were shown examples of her garments and the art that inspired them.
Surrealist Lobster Dress 1937, Collaboration with Salvador Dali
Her designs and use of shocking colours such as fuchsia pink were considered unusual for the 1930's making her a leading innovative designer of the time. Her surreal and unorthodox style was considered popular because it was so different from the usual 1930's shapes and colour palettes.
Schiaparelli was also mentioned in another lecture about Brand Identity due to the shade of pink used consistently throughout the brand being so recognisable. I noticed more surreal art that she had incorporated into her designs that took my interest. She became friends with many surrealists and most of her ideas were based on their principles and images. Elsa was able to have original sketches by Salvador Dali and Jean Cocteau embroidered or printed directly onto her dresses. Her collaborations with Dali are some of her best known designs
When I was in London in the V & A I was looking at the fashion section and noticed a Schiaparelli garment which I had seen pictures of in my lecture. The detail is amazing even though the shapes created by thin stitching is quite understated the bold colours used such as the orange, the red the blue and the pink really bring it life, again an unusual and rare concept for 1930's fashion.
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I was also Interested in the fashion/art collaborations regarding famous or religious art and the reactions they cause. For example Girbaud's controversial campaign.
I'm not a religious person however I'm not sure how I feel about
reproductions of Religious artwork to promote a brand and create a campaign,
however I'm seeing it everywhere so there must be an appreciation for it or a
desire to be controversial.
Advertiser’s Statement:
The advertisers´primary defence was that "modern society has
enabled women to achieve sexual equality with men only by sacrificing their
femininity.
This advertisement´s interpretation of Leonardo´s painting
does not trivialize the sacred, but rather creates a new perception of
femininity by presenting men - instead of women - in a position of fragility "
I decided to look into this a little further and I came across a T-shirt in Urban Outfitters.
Description : British street wear label Ichiban - “number one” in Japanese- presents this soft,
regular fit polycotton t-shirt featuring a hip hop-themed "Last Supper"
sublimation print to the front and ribbed crew collar; finished with an Ichiban
logo tab to the sleeve.
I spoke with the manager and came to learn that the T-shirt is actually really popular and in only 3 weeks they have sold over 70 of them. At £32 a pop I wouldn't consider this a cheap buy... I imagine that the recognisable painting with what could be considered a humorous or witty twist to the original appeals to many.
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