The Observer. (2020). https://www.dezeen.com/2020/09/30/jeremy-scott-moschino-puppet-fashion-show/
For study task 2, we were asked to identify 3 new approaches to making that inspire us, within a covid context. I immediately thought of Jeremy Scott's SS20/21 collection for Moschino, shown as part of Milan fashion week in September this year. Scott worked with the Jim Henson Creature Shop to create a whole fashion show, complete with runway and audience, using marionettes to model the miniaturised clothes. Describing the process in this interview with Vogue, Scott details how the collection was first curated in the same way as he'd ordinarily go about it, but then each gown was miniaturised by his team in Italy. The level of detail is really impressive, but I was interested to learn that Scott himself was inspired by the Théâtre de la Mode, a touring exhibition made on 1/3 scale mannequins in post war France.
Now housed in the Maryhill Museum of Art, Washington, the exhibition was originally created to revive the French fashion industry and raise funds for the survivors of WWII. Many of the leading fashion houses of the time took part in creating couture dresses made from the scraps that were available. Taken from the Maryhill Museum website:
Maryhill Museum of Art’s permanent display of Théâtre de la Mode presents post-World War II French haute couture fashions on one-third-life-size human mannequins. When it appeared at Louvre’s Museum of Decorative Arts in 1945, the Théâtre de la Mode opening drew 100,000 visitors. The exhibition toured Europe and the United States in 1946, before languishing in the basement of San Francisco’s City of Paris department store. The sets were lost, but the mannequins were saved through the efforts of Alma de Bretteville Spreckels, who championed their transfer to Maryhill Museum of Art.
Maryhill Museum of Art. https://www.maryhillmuseum.org/inside/exhibitions/permanent-exhibitions/theatre-de-la-mode
Again, the level of detail was amazing. Designers went so far as designing the undergarments and accessories. Zips and buttons were fully functional, tiny purses contained tiny hairbrushes. The exhibition was an enormous success and went on to tour Europe and America. Having looked further into this, I discovered that the exhibition even came to Leeds, on January 2nd, 1946.
It is easy to see why Jeremy Scott was inspired by this event. Although our circumstances are completely different from those in 1945, a global pandemic instead of a global war, some of the outcomes are the same. Reimagining what fashion is and what it can offer has been a real inspiration, and I love that Scott has seen this as an opportunity for creativity.
Another creative whose approach I have found really impressive is Grayson Perry. His TV series "Grayson's Art Club" was shown at the height of lockdown when most people were stuck indoors. Alongside his wife, the psychotherapist Philippa Perry, Perry showcased work made by members of the public, as well as special guests. Each week a new theme was chosen and members of the public sent in artwork related to that theme. The programme was engaging and inclusive. It did not require the participants to be "talented" or experienced in making art, but it gave a lot in terms of encouragement and support. Speaking here to Alex Marshall of the New York Times, Perry explains why the level of skill of the participants isn't important:
"Any professional artist would tell you it’s very difficult to be very good,” he said in a recent telephone interview about the show. “But that doesn’t matter. We should all go for a jog, but we’re not going to win an Olympic medal.”
Marshall, A. (2020).Creating an Exhibition of Britain’s Lockdown Dreams. New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/22/arts/design/grayson-perry-artclub-coronavirus.html
I love that Perry acknowledges this. It is something I recognise from when I am teaching dressmaking - a lot of students are scared to start because of the fear of failure, and this is something I also recognise in myself on occasion. The jogging comparison is a good one, as I feel that making stuff is as important to our mental wellbeing as exercise is to our bodies. It is for this reason that I really value and respect Grayson Perry's Art Club. In making a TV programme which is about making art, but also making connections, Perry made a community: A diverse and accessible community, which is not something that you would always find in the pre-covid art world.
For my third example of new approaches to making that inspire me, I would actually choose my course mates. We had to adapt very quickly to a huge change in circumstances, with very little warning. For me, as a part time student, it meant switching from sketchbook to website and dealing with a lack of resources. But for the full time students it meant handing everything in virtually. There were some advantages of lockdown, which I explored in my blog post here, namely that I became more resourceful and more conscious of how to work better with what was around me. I realised that just fabric shopping for whatever was needed was actually quite lazy, and that in making my own fabric I had more control over how the finished product looked. This process also reignited my interest in knit fabrics, which I intend to work with more for my final major project. I'm not sure that this is a path I'd have taken had I not had my options limited, which showed me that narrowing one's options can result in more creativity.
Comments