by Rizvana Bradley

I am currently completing my sixth year of Ph.D. work in the Literature Program at Duke University, and am working to develop a variety of critical approaches to theorizing fashion and the body. I have taught courses at Duke that are intended to enable students to recognize how various literary, filmic and artistic texts continue to richly shape fashion culture, and highlight the complex theoretical and social issues contemporary fashion thematizes.

Having greatly admired the academic work coming out of Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, I was excited to introduce students at Duke to the field now referred to as critical fashion studies. Initially I was at a loss as to how to design such a course, as some four years ago there was nothing like the CSM model being taught in US universities. Typically courses would mention fashion incidentally, or as an object of inquiry. With respect to the latter approach, fashion is constructed either purely as an anthropological object, proposing an analysis of historical dress, or as a sociological phenomenon, providing a detailed account of subcultural styles, for example. I knew that content-wise, the course I wanted to develop would incorporate the best of these strategies, but be less a fashion history course. I was most interested in concentrating on aesthetics, and spotlighting the visionary photography and runway productions happening in fashion since the late 1980s.

From the start it was evident that students had little exposure to an international fashion culture, the richness and eclecticism of various fashion figures, image-makers, entrepreneurs and designers. The courses challenged them to think about designers’ creative efforts in refreshing new ways. The first course, “Contemporary Fashion: Image, Object, Idea,” I taught once. I then taught a course entitled, “Fashion, Literature and the Avant-Garde,” twice. The final course, “Art, Media and the Body,” placed fashion in dialogue with the contemporary arts more broadly. All of these courses include fashion in the context of discussions about contemporary artistic practices that are currently provoking key concerns in the humanities, specifically questions of discourse, identity, representation and subjectivity, as well as certain questions about aesthetics, materiality and difference. Students learn that some of the most innovative fashion designers explore these themes in complex, beautiful and challenging ways. For this reason, the readings for the courses draw from different disciplines, among them, philosophy, critical theory, science studies, and feminist theory.

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Papabygote, Elisava, 2010

Another end of the year show which I visited in July was organized in conjunction with the graduation of the masters students in fashion design at Elisava, a school of design in Barcelona. It was great to witness the experimental and imaginative projects completed by the graduating class. In a testament to the multi-media nature of fashion today, the students were recquired to complete a collection, stage a performance to present their collection and produce a short video showcasing their work and the concepts behind it. Also in the spirit of collaborations, the majority of the students worked in pairs or more for the completion of the work—a system that brilliantly debunks the outdated notion of the “genius” artist (and by extension designer) for the more realistic idea of collaborative work.

The program is directed by Beatriu Malaret and Toni Miró; the year-end presentation was attended by Diana Pernet, the Parisian fashion critic and video journalist. Through Pernet, I learned that a number of different tutors from various disciplines work at Elisava (for instance, Alex Murray-Leslie of Chicks on Speed). This is probably one of the reasons for the experimental and innovative nature of the work.

One of my favourite pieces was the film and collection by Papabygote. Their short is witty and subtle and reminded me of the work of David Bestué and Marc Vives, the brilliant video artist duo, also from Barcelona.

Francesca

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by Francesca Granata

From Fashion Projects #3

The work of New York-based British designer Shelly Fox came to prominence shortly after her graduation from the famed Central Saint Martins MA in 1996. Her beautifully- crafted “scorched felt” pieces, which made up her graduation collection, were promptly acquired by Liberty, the London department store known for championing independent designers.

Initially known for her textile experimentation and innovative pattern-cutting techniques, Fox eventually began to expand her practice into installation and film, at first in conjunction with her fashion presentations and later—as she became a research fellow at Central Saint Martins and ceased to produce seasonal collections—as stand-alone research projects.

What characterizes the various permutations of her work is an attention to the materiality of the fabric and garments she creates. This often leads her to explore the connections between clothes, memory and history—an exploration which is backed by extensive research in archives and collections. Perhaps counterintuitively, she combines this interest in the physicality of the clothes with an engagement with a variety of media. Partially thanks to her numerous collaborations, she has expanded her practice into film, sound installations, photography and, through a project she produced together with SHOWstudio in 2002, digital media. This multimedia aspect of her work is matched by a multi-sensorial one, as the sound and smell of the clothes and the fabric often play an important role in her work.

Fox has recently been appointed Donna Karan Professor of Fashion and chair of the soon-to-be-launched MFA program in Fashion Design and Society at Parsons. This has prompted her move to New York, where she plans to convey this expansive idea of what it means to be a fashion designer to her students.

I met with Fox in the West Village coffee shop to discuss her past and present work.

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K8 Hardy’s various guises for her Fashion Week performance at JF & Son. All Photos: Eliza Douglas

Travis Boyer started a series titled MFT for My Favorite Things in which an artist collaborates to create “textile-based artist multiples that explore material and materiality using the innumerable resources of JF & Son.” K8 Hardy, with her longstanding engagement with fashion and performance, was an obvious match for the project—as was the store JF & Son, which, as the Times recently pointed out, is one of the most interesting new stores to open in the last year. Known for their unique textiles, the company—comprised of Jesse Finkelstein, “Katie” B. King, and Travis Boyer—partners with artisans and artists from New York and India to create “forward-thinking clothing through socially conscious strategies.”

K8 Hardy celebrated “the launch” of her collection, ironically titled J’APPROVE, with an irreverent performance in which she wore the various pieces from her collection in a day-long event, creating a new persona with each changing outfit. I only caught the tail-end of the performance, in which Hardy wore a bustier reminiscent of 1980s Gaultier. Perhaps surprisingly, the collection is eminently wearable and at times quite pretty, veering as Hardy’s various personas seeemed to do from a tough 1980s inspired body-con look to a slightly off-kilter pretty look, which featured whimisicallly printed dresses and shirts. Hardy’s “styling” was also reminiscent of early Ann-Sofie Back. The collection will become available on line at the J & F Son today.

Francesca

threeASFOUR, Spring/Summer 2010. Photo: Marcio Madeira

I attended the threeASFOUR show this past Thursday—both the show and the collection were inspired by Yoko Ono, who also contributed some prints for their collection.

Fashion Projects contributors Sarah Scaturro and Jay Ruttenberg were both in attendance. The latter wrote a witty report on the show, which comments on the use of music in fashion shows, for Time Out New York:

“The experimental fashion label threeASFOUR, a kind of art collective that sews, presented its Spring 2010 collection last night at MAC and Milk, on 15th Street. Usually, when fashion designers claim to use a music figure as a “muse,” it seems to mean their collection bears vague resemblance to a British depressive from the early ’80s, or Debbie Harry. The trio of New York designers behind this show turned to an infinitely more engaging idol: Yoko Ono.

The label was not merely paying lip service to the artist’s work. Ono sat front and center under an enormous hat, sandwiched between Sean Lennon and Carrie Fisher. Many of the coolest pieces incorporated prints made by the artist decades ago; other garments came in Manhattan black, Ono’s color of choice—she is not a floral-print kind of gal—as well as a nod to the old avant-garde world in which she made her name. The event’s soundtrack came courtesy of Ono too—relying predominantly on her more ethereal work but concluding, cinematically, with the resounding thump of “The Sun Is Down” from her handsome new album, Between My Head and the Sky. At assorted Fashion Week events this year, I heard music by Palace Brothers (in the background of an art-type thing), Spaceman 3 (accompanying a menswear show in which every model seemed to be auditioning for a Jesus and Mary Chain biopic) and, of course, dreadful dance music (do these designers aspire to cliché?). Ono’s music fit best, lending the threeASFOUR show a savage, dreamlike aura.”

Read the rest of the Review on Time Out New York
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Tim Hamilton and Collier Schorr, Rope, 2009

I always find ways of presenting fashion design other than a typical fashion show interesting—particularly as a number of shows in New York are often streamlined events due to the nature of the industry and, at present, recessionary pressures. (For instance, I just returned from a Maria Cornejo’s show which was visibly paired-down both in terms of colors and looks.)

Among the non-model heavy presentations was Tim Hamilton’s event, which showed two short films by the New York–based artist Collier Schorr (best known for his portraits of adolescents) of a male model climbing a rope in various stages of dress in Hamilton’s pieces. The British designer Gareth Pugh also presented a number of films which he completed in collaboration with the filmmakers Ruth Hogben and can be viewed on SHOWstudio. (Both Hamilton’s and Pugh’s films, however, served as prelude to their upcoming fashion shows in Paris.)

Slow and Steady Wins the Race celebrated fashion week with an installation which opened last night at Saatchi and Saatchi, where it will be on view through September 18. This incorporated works from a range of other designers and artists (Andrew Kuo, Miranda July) alongside Ping’s own. (Talking with some of the British guests at the show, it was interesting to reminisce,in the midst of an artsy and, one assumes, progressive crowd, how Saatchi and Saatchi came to prominence through an advertising campaign for Margaret Thatcher.)
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New York Fashion Week was book ended by alternative fashion week events, which were, unfortunately, scarcely written about. Prior to the official beginning of fashion week, a number of independent designers staged a show in Long Island City inside a great industrial space—a repurposed foundry.

I was late to the show—and, oddly, was admitted to the backstage area as opposed to the actual venue. Despite its timely nature, the format of the show seemed similar to a traditional fashion show (at least judging from the view from backstage). It was organized by a boutique-cum-gallery in Queens called Subdivision, whose mission is to promote designers working across media; it hosts performances as well as art shows and carries an array of clothes and design wares.

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United Bamboo held their Spring/Summer 2009 show on Saturday. Designers Miho Aoki and Thuy Tham continued their artistic exploration by juxtaposing unexpected elements throughout their latest collection. Their loose fitting, feminine dresses were paired with geometric accessories (provided by designer Eugenie Huang). The beiges and pastels that appeared in the majority of the looks were interspersed with jolts of pink, orange, and green. The structured jackets and shorts, with a clear menswear influence, provided a pleasant contrast to loose dresses. Though fusing these many elements, the collection worked seamlessly, tied together with intricate details like pleats and buttons.

-Grace Edinger

Lika Volkova of SANS demonstrates their knit hats with embedded sunglass lenses, perfect for a sunny winter day.

The other night Fashion Projects stopped by the SANS home base to check out their most recent designs. Instead of a full line, for Fall 2008 duo Lika Volkova and Alessandro DeVito offered a precisely edited collection of knit sweaters and hats. The tops were multi-layered, with a finely tuned textile foundation supporting their cerebral shapes. Squares, rectangles and arcs formed the basis for SANS’ polymorphic garments – each item (made from supple yarns) can be worn any number of ways, allowing the wearer to claim ownership of their look. The designers mentioned they had actually created many new garments, but had held off on showing them until the time was right. This low-key approach was a restrained, but successful design exercise focusing on the perfection of a single wardrobe element.

After chatting a bit about the gross prevalence of retailers and designers jumping on the green-washing wagon, it became apparent that SANS is not primarily about sustainability. Rather, Volkova and DeVito craft thoughtful and high-quality designs through their own unique synergy – Volkova’s creative eccentricities mesh well with DeVito’s textile knowledge and sourcing skills. SANS should not be considered as eco-design merely because it uses ethical textiles like organic or reclaimed wool, recycled polyester, or peace silk; in practice, SANS is sustainable because it resides outside the trend-driven fashion system, with each garment a conjoined effort of vision and substance.

Sarah Scaturro

Ann-Sofie Back, AW 2008, Over-sized Boyfriend Blazer and Shredded Black Thong Gown.

If public banality is the cornerstone of celebrity culture, then the French situationist, Guy Debord got it right in his critique of the media-dominated western society when he described the celebrity as “the spectacular representation of a living human being”. Kick starting London’s Fashion Week, Ann-Sofie Back’s A/W 08 collection pays homage to an unlikely source—-the pervasive presence of celebrity culture in our every day lives. Drawing inspiration from her three muses, Britney, Paris, and Kate, she re-imagines the spectacle by reworking silk lace drawn from thongs as decorative motifs on the shoulders, hem lines and knees of tops and camisoles, classically cut gowns, and tights.

Asymmetrical 1930s bias cut satin gowns, reminiscent of the Kate Moss v. Courtney Love fashion mishap at the V&A gala last year, are paired with an equally exaggerated asymmetric motorcycle jacket or tempered by an oversized grey peacoat. Back brings a slice of the voyeuristic world of tabloid culture in the pixelated prints of the OK! Magazine and Heat logos on t-shirts, dresses, and gloves, as well as in the accoutrements of piercings, à la Ms. Hilton, found on dresses and shoes. While the line was loaded with a dissonance of fantastic shapes, particularly with the over-sized boyfriend blazer teamed with a shredded black thong gown, there was also an element of the predictable…in the appearance of the cringe inducing, light stone washed jeans (go back to the 1990s!), raw hemmed tailored trousers, and strapless dresses. All in all though, Back infallibly delivers on making the sensational, a commercially appealing success.

Patty Chang

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