Narrative of Fashion: Marimekko

I visited the Marimekko exhibition in the Design Museum in Helsinki last week and liked it. Personally, I admire the early days of Marimekko, the 1960's and 70's. Marimekko has such a dedicated history behind it, I really hope the brand will continue to have a positive impact and ultimately will remain loyal to the heritage of the authentic Marimekko. Also, not to get too absorbed in the unsustainable and fast paced fashion cycles, which never have reflected the initial Marimekko ideology or neither try to compete in the globalized fashions of the high-street, where it might loose touch of its heritage.

Unfortunately I was not able to take any photos of the exhibition, but here are some images from the book Marimekko, Fabrics Fashion Architecture, which is linked with the exhibition and available at the museum shop. The exhibition is curated and the book is edited by Marianne Aav, the director of Design Museum, Finland.

"As twenty-first century gets underway, Marimekko is experiencing a resurgence of interest and appreciation - a true revival. Maija Isola's Unikko (poppy) pattern, designed almost forty years ago, blooms as never before. With new colors and sizes, Isola's exuberant flower, which was introduced in 1964, the same year as Amdu Warhol's cerise and yellow Flower paintings, has required a new, broadly based audience and market. Marimekko has always been surprising. The company's original emergence in the international marketplace of the 1960's and 70's reveals a tangle of success, euphoria, and the uneasiness that often accompanies radical design philosophies. Marimekko has always existed on a roller coaster. Its progressive fashion sense, utopian design vision, and uncompromising ambition have been key to both its successes and its failures, including at least one near-bankruptcy."
Marimekko, Fabrics Fashion Architecture, Marianne Aav, BGC YALE, 2003