Time & Fashion

Fashion is defined as the art of the perfect moment, of the sudden, surprising and yet awaited harmonious apparition -  the Now at the threshold of an immidiate future. Its actualisation, is at the same time, its destruction. By appearing, and giving its ultimate form to the moment, fashion is almost already part of yesterday, decayed, old. 

(The Power of Fashion, Eternity: A Frill on the Dress, Barbara Vinken, ArtEZ Press)

As the quote describes, fashion can be observed as a dynamic narrative, reflecting the characters of time. Through its constant need for renewal and innovation, time becomes an ally, as well as an opponent of fashion, depending if one sees the glass half full or half empty. Fashion can merge different times and era’s together, creating something new, and yet stay in a continual state of rebirth, repeating itself over and over again. Ultimately, fashion only exists in the moment, floating from one time to the next, eternally remembering the old and discovering the new. Time is an infinite amount of moments, and in between these moments, there are visible tides and era’s, which are understood socially by visual language. This language is an expression of our physical identity and the body in the context of culture and time. Because fashion is so deeply connected to time, it becomes its messenger. 

Clothing as a communication tool between neighbors, cities, countries and eventually between cultures is a significant way of manifesting the relationships we have with each other. The way one communicates with others has a significant impact, especially when looking at relationships in a family structure, such as the relationship between a mother and her daughter.  

My grandmother in the 1940's.

This text refers to my current research on the relationship between mothers and daughters, looking at the heritage, the memories and the legacy which a mother gives to her daughter through the context of fashion. 

Basic Instinct

Basic Instinct in Berlin   -   July 1st- July 31st 2011

"The exhibition Basic Instinct maps a range of ideas that originate in fashion, but border on and interact with other disciplines. The work of five leading Dutch fashion designers is linked to product design, architecture and art. The exhibition is an interpretation of today's Dutch creative culture, striving to imagine the future through the present."

VILLA ELISABETH

Invalidenst. 3

Berlin, Germany

For more information visit www.premsela.org

Amber - Arnhem Mode Biennale

"Women are like fashion, ever changing and contradictory. Fashion is like women who have fought, long and hard against fashion, to be taken seriously, on their own merit. But what if we take this attempt at slander and turn it on its head? What if, instead of defending ourselves against this charge, we take it on, like a bull by its horns? What if we start off by simply saying 'fashion is a woman and her name is Amber'?"
- a quote from Introducing Amber by Aronowsky Cronberg

Here are some of my favorite photos I took from the Arnhem Mode Biennale 2011.

Arnhem Mode Biannale 1.6-3.7.2011

http://www.arnhemmodebiennale.com

UNRAVEL. Knitwear in Fashion

Today I visited the latest exhibition at MoMu, Antwerp and it was all about knitwear. The exhibition presented knitwear in a varied and a vibrant way, showcasing items from knitted stockings to sculptural high fashion garments. As the exhibition brochure says, Thermatically, it will showcase the various roles knitwear has played in social and fashion (r)evolutions and will address knitwear's different and fluid associations with comfort, well-being and chic. 

UNRAVEL. Knitwear in Fashion is open until 14th of August 2011.

Here are some of my favorites from the exhibition:

Im happy to be spending the next few months at Momu here in Antwerp!

For more info visit www.momu.be

['werk, sh äp]

Yesterday I was at the opening of a new temporary curated store called ['werk, sh äp]. The name of the store means workshop also in a literal sense and this is reflected in the concept of the making and creating. The shop can be seen as a platform for uniting people together in the making process and this way the visitor can experience the crafts and the details of the designs more profoundly. The curated store presents works of the Master Fashion Design and the Master Fashion Strategy students of ArtEZ Institute for the Arts. 

Designs by Sabela Tobar

Designs by Glagys Tumewa

The three outfits in front (from the left) are by Yohji van der Aa, Matthias Louwen 

and Sabela Tobar

Guests enjoying the opening

Thank you guys!

For more information:

www.arnhemmodebiennale.com

www.workshopartez.blogspot.com

A quote

"If there is anything that can't be free it's undoubtedly clothing. The "I" that is expressed in clothing is not conducting an egocentric monologue. One is not oneself in one's clothes. At the most one becomes oneself. What an illusion it is to think that an individual's freedom could be realized in clothing. This is where the spirit of the time is expressed all the more profoundly, precisely because people think they can be themselves in clothing."

Dirk Lauwaert, The Power of Fashion, About Design and Meaning, ArtEZ Press, 2006

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

All images from  Marimekko, Fabrics Fashion Architecture, Marianne Aav, BGC YALE, 2003

  18 March - 29 May 2011 MARIMEKKO - A WHOLE LIFE 60 Years of Colours, Stripes and Shapes

Visit the website of  Helsinki Design Museum