UNIT 2
- Mar 3, 2021
- 4 min read
Updated: Mar 30, 2021
DRESS PROJECT EVALUATION
For this project we were given a list of vocabulary from which we were asked to choose two words and produce an outcome inspired by their meaning. I chose to study the words 'couture' and 'armoured'.
Couture and armour both reflect a more structural approach to fashion which is something I wanted to capture in my collection. Couture focuses on the construction of a garment made to fit the model perfectly, with this you can also achieve a strong silhouette and manipulate the figure into a much more accentuated version of itself. I initially chose to pair this with armour because of my love for historic clothing however later on acknowledged animal armour and was interested to research the similarities of this with traditional style. I visited my local museum where I was able to take photos of turtle shells and other armoured animals. I wanted to explore the idea of imitating animal skin textures but with materials suitable for armour, I specifically explored up cycling metal items such as blinds and tin cans.
FINAL OUTCOME
My final piece was made up of three parts to emulate the way armour is produced in segments to fit different parts of the body. The shoulder and thigh piece are both made up of scales I created from old tin cans; they have been cut into various scale shapes and sizes then coated in copper electrical tape as I thought this colour palette would work better. To achieve the discolouration I used a blow torch which resulted in a more worn and dappled affect. I then hammered holes into each individual scale so they could be hand sewn in layers to imitate the texture of a pangolin. The other half of the design is a dress covering only one side of the top and the opposite leg which I added texture in by gathering and sewing ripples down the leg. I chose to use muslin fabric because I wanted something lightweight that didn't detract from the main armoured pieces. All three sections connect by being tied together to unify the piece.
To ensure the shoulder piece fit perfectly I made a mould on my sisters shoulder using plaster of Paris, I then used this to create a fibre glass version which would hold much better. I also made a helmet to go with it, however later on decided it wasn't needed and looked better without.
Overall I am very pleased with my outcome and I think it depicts everything I intended it to. I especially love the scales, despite taking the longest to achieve but I believe it was worth it.
Bibliography (Armoured/Couture)
Websites
Books
Thierry Mugler, Galaxy Glamour - Daniele Bott
Vogue on Jean Paul Gaultier
Addressing the Century, 100 years of fashion - Hayward Gallery
The House of Victor and Rolf - Caroline Evans
The Northern World: the history and heritage of northern Europe – David M.Wilson
Documentary's
The making of Game of Thrones, looking at costume
Places
Exeter Museum- looking at the Hawksbill turtle and the structure of echinoidea
THE BAUHAUS
For this project we were told to base our research on the Bauhaus, when looking at artists of the time I was really intrigued to learn about the development of costume. After watching the Triadic Ballet by Oskar Schlemmer it became apparent that the movement of costume was of great importance. What stood out the most was seeing clothes made to appear very structured and solid yet flexible in movement. The illusion of creating something that looks one way but functions in another whilst enabling motion inspired me.
Whilst researching I came across the early 20th century diving suit. I found this really interesting because not only was it produced around the same time that the Bauhaus was put in place, but it also demonstrated some similar qualities to Bauhaus costume. Pictured on the right is the Tritonia suit, despite there being many diving suits created before this one, engineers had not yet been able to construct a joint that would remain flexible and was watertight at depth without seizing under pressure. Joseph Salim Peress invented the first properly usable diving suit.
I used my sister to picture during mid movement, this allowed me to observe the shape of the body and changes in posture. I used these images to start generating ideas for possible designs revolved around the body's shape.
Sample made by marbling onto cotton fabric with inks. The idea of also using movement as a way of creating pattern worked really well, this combination of colours reminded me of the Triadic Ballet.
For these final designs I really wanted to capture movement and flexibility, I think a variety of colour palettes could work really well for any of these ideas.
Due to the third national lockdown I found this project more challenging, but despite being unable to produce a final piece I really enjoyed researching the Bauhaus. After watching the Triadic Ballet by Oskar Schlemmer, and observing the costume, I became particularly interested in motion and the use of different materials to create the illusion of a solid garment which still enabled dance movement. I noticed the use of foam in sleeves to give a sleek look but was also extremely flexible. To experiment with this idea I firstly took video footage and images of my sister mid movement, I used these pictures to draw around the body and analyse different shapes. From these shapes I created more illustrations and added colours typical of that used in the Bauhaus. Whilst researching this I also came across the early 20th century diving suit that I thought had interesting similarities with the ballet costumes- the Tritonia suit included a twelve-fingered steel hand manipulated by the diver to pick things up from the floor. This also linked to my research on Sophie Taeuber's puppets for König Hirsch by Carlo Gozzi in 1918- these puppets look very similar to the dancers in the Triadic Ballet and as objects that are manipulated by hand movement which reminded me of the diving suit. If I were able to produce an outcome for this project I would've loved to experiment with use of texture such as foam and materials with more structure, I think despite this my research has really developed and I am pleased with the design ideas I have produced.
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