blog team
ABOUT AYNOUK TAN
Aynouk Tan is a (fashion) journalist, consultant and art- director.
For museums and art institutions she creates installations and performances. For newspapers and several (inter)national (fashion) magazines- and books she discusses the historic, artistic and social significance of fashion.
In all of her work Tan tries to define our zeitgeist. What do our clothes, customs and behaviours tell us about the age we live in? Tan experiences and views fashion in the broadest sense of the word.
FASHIONTECH: WHAT’S NEXT? (PART 3)
The past weeks I have been blogging about fashion and technology, so called wearables. I discussed experiments, gadget- ish items and small steps towards collections where the estranged disciplines emerge in a fashionable manner. What’s next?
On the 17th and 18th of may V2, an institute that is experimenting with wearables for decades, is organising a conference called Crafting the Future. There will be a debate, a workshop and a chance to meet the international innovators in the fields of fashion and technology. Moritz Waldemeyer, the man responsible for Hussein Chalayans moving dresses will elaborate on the role of craft in his daily practice. Cutecircuit, a wearable label that introduced the galaxy dress, a dress with dozens of moving and colourful lights, will talk about the relevance of their practice. Syuzi Pakhchyan, author of the book Fashioning Technology: A DIY Intro to Smart Crafting and founder of the website Fashioningtech.com, will be moderator during the debates.
I urgently recommend all fashion designers to take a visit. Wearables have been in the experimenting fase for years. The Netherlands has been stimulating these developments through grants. The time has come to use them for fashionable, preferably Dutch, collections.
It is an idea that has popped up in the mind of innovator and stylist of Lady Gaga; Nicola Formichetti as well. Mid 2013 he will present a line that will include fabric that molds to a wearer’s body (to avoid having to use zippers), and solar power-enabled fabrics.
Until then, or rather, before then, let’s try to get inspired by the techno trend that is surrounding us on a growing scale. Not only in fashion we see proposals for the future, also art is getting more techno driven. What about ‘posthumanist’ artist Orlan who transforms herself into an alien through plastic sugery? Artist Ryan Trecartin involves internet aesthetics in his hysterical videos. Graphic designers Pinar and Viola created an app that allows you to transform into a panda bear!
Concerning young fashion designers we left were we have taken of – at the London Masters Fashion Design Technology. Take a look at the designs of Kay Kwok that consists out of printed neoprene fabric and 3D hats. Growing up in a day and age where technology was as normal as going to the supermarket, maybe we have to count on the next generation for the real innovation. Sooner or later fashiontech will define our future.
FASHIONTECH: WHAT’S NEXT? (part 2)
We can’t imagine our daily life without technology. Why don’t we see this development reflected more on the runway and in the way we dress?
Last week I ended my Fashiontech part 1 blog with the issue of the fashion aspect in techno clothes. There is a whole lot of experimenting going on when it comes to gadget- ish dresses and T-shirts. Look at this clip for instance where the so-called climate dress is shown. It lights up when there is a high concentration of CO2 in it surrounding. Or, the Intimacy Dress, designed by Dutch designers Anouk Wipprecht and Daan Roosegaarde. The closer a person gets, the more transparent the gown becomes. Last but not least: the spray on shirt.
Great experiments, but where is the fashion part? The part that makes the piece of clothing feel modern and makes the wearer feel refreshed; makes her dream about what you could be when wearing a dress like this?
Gradually a bridge is being created between the world of technicians and fashion designers. Two groups that you could imagine needed the time to get to know each other.
A great example of how the two can melt into a fashionable sculpture is a dress by Canada based designer Ying Gao. It seems as if the subtle moving gown is not just a gadget, but really adds to the fairytale atmosphere of her show. In other words: it makes you dream of nymphs and princesses in a windy forest.
Next week the last fashiontech blog will be about the activities concerning wearable technology on DEAF Festival, held from May 16th till June 3rd in Rotterdam. In the meantime the Dutchies can contemplate further on the subject by watching a talkshow I presented commissioned by Vodafone. Among guests are fashion designer Pauline van Dongen and Natasha van der Velden; researcher on sustainability and industrial design at the Technische Universiteit Delft. What if the two would start a structural collaboration?
Fashiontech: what’s next? (part 1)
In 2006 Hussein Chalayan proposed a fashion idea for the future. What if our dresses could move on their own? How would it look like when a hat turns into a mini skirt and when it gets colder, it folds out and you end up looking like a Victorian bride?
Six years later these dresses are not yet for sale, but there are some noticeable developments going on in the field that borders between fashion and technology. Suzanne Lee’s Bio Couture enables users to ‘grow’ a piece of clothing out of tea and sugar. Iris van Herpen makes fashion sculptures out of 3D prints.
In the last week of may, V2 – interdisciplinary centre for art and media in technology in Rotterdam and a leading player when it comes to fashiontech, organises the annual Dutch Electronic and Arts Festival (DEAF). One of the highlights is ‘Crafting the Future’ which will show the latest of the latest on fashion and technology through workshops and debates. It is good reason for some in- depth blogging about the subject that will define our fashion future eventually.
To start with: the collection of Jennifer F. M. Murray, graduate of the MA fashion design and technology in London. A study especially set up to challenge clothing through technology.
Murray’s collection ‘Cirque d’Amen’, in which she compares the role of the catholic church with the circus, proves that fashiontech doesn’t only has to exist out of smart textiles or moving fabric. The 24- old worked closely together with Preciosa, a Czech company that is innovative in combining lights and jewellery. The result is a subtle collection with a tech feel and spiritual references. In other words: fashionable. It’s an element that is somewhat missing in a lot of wearable technology these days. To be continued.
IN BETWEEN SEASONS
Do fall, resort, spring or winter collections still matter in a day and age where global warming and climate changes are upon us? It’s April and the sun is shining but the wind is cold and the air feels harsh.
It could be the perfect day for a road trip around town; preferably in a car without a roof and grand speakers. On our bodies we wear, indeed, a fall/ winter collection. Shaun Samson’s handsome boys would most definitely fit the picture. Sitting on the hood of the cabrio, they would be honking at the ladies while rollin’ some weed.
Samson, a British- trained menswear designer, was born and raised in San Diego, California. Growing up between surfers, skaters and Mexican gang members, the inspiration for his last collection is home- based. In an interview Samson tells about the fashion statements and hair styles back then: “everyone was wearing black corduroy house slippers being worn with socks – even Birkenstocks! (…) It was really popular to have a shaved head with long fringe that you could comb back. You were even cooler if you had a tail, because that took a while to grow. I knew these Asian girls who bleached their hair and wore blue contacts, you know, to accentuate an Asian’s naturally blonde hair and blue eyes, ha.”
With the wind being below spring temperature but the sun trying to warm our faces, Samson proposes the perfect outfit for a day in between seasons. It contains lots of layers that can be adjusted and see through tops that could be worn with or without a buttoned up blouse. An absolute must though, is the bad boy face. Samson’s soundtrack- Masta Ace’s ‘Born to Roll’- could help getting you in just the right mood.
FASHION PERFECTION
Dutch photography duo Maurice Scheltens & Liesbeth Abbenes are masters in portraying fashion as still-life images. They re-arrange clothes, objects or accessories with such precision that a composition of ties end up looking like the ocean; a set of coat- hangers turns into the skeleton of a fish. They organise perfume bottles in such a manner that the end result resembles a work of graphic design, rather than a photograph.
Essential to their work is the process in the studio where they construct their settings. A laborious process, in which Scheltens & Abbenes continuously move things around, painstakingly join pieces together and adjust little details. During this series of steps they take numerous shots and study them together intensively in order to arrive at the right composition.
Their list of clients is impressive, for years now, they are working for the most prestigious in the business of fashion, design and media. New York Style Magazine is a fan of the Dutchies their work, as well as the French newspaper Le Monde, Fantastic Man, Yves Saint Laurent, Vitra and Hermes. In February they got themselves the even more prestigious infinity award from the International Centre of Photography in New York.
This month it’s time for the big homecoming. Till the 26th of august, a grand selection of their work is presented at Museum Jan Cunen.
How fashion unites cultures
How do fashion designers translate clothing behaviour from different ethnic groups to their own work? It’s the main question that the Tropenmuseum in Amsterdam tries to answer with its current exhibition ‘Culture Couture II’. As case studies they took work from three students from the fashion academy in Antwerp, who in their third year created a contemporary collection based on a specific costume from the culture of their choice.
The exhibition exposes the investigative and design process of the designers through different mediums. In a video portrait visitors can see the Swiss Manon Kündig explaining why she was fascinated by Der Hobuspöönig: a group of men from her home country which have the habit of covering their whole body in an enormous suit made of wood splinters or leaves. Through his sketchbook Wali Mohammed Barrech explains how he translated the political values of a Croatian costume to a significant mens collection. By seeing the replica of a costume of the American Sioux tribe; Tabitha Osler shows that the techniques they used are far from old fashioned. It results in a small, but intimate exhibit giving the visitor a poignant insight in how fashion can unite cultures.
EP!C MOONWALK
Moon Spoon Saloon could be best described as <3 0MFGL0L EP!C <3 + <3. Or, to put it differently: it’s the fashion brand of a digital hipster generation. For those who do not immediately understand what is meant by this term, check out this Tumblr, this Tumblr or this Tumblr. After Facebook and Twitter, where the persona and/ or branding of a specific person stands at the forefront, an anonymous Tumblr seems to be the next best thing for those at the frontiers of contemporary culture. The current trend on Tumblr can be described as spiritual atmospheres mixed with hysterical bright colored futuristic GIF animations. And that is exactly how Moon Spoons fashion looks like. Most noticeable are the fully printed and hysterically high, spacy, platform shoes. They are featured on Moon Spoons own Tumblr/ website in between inspiration images, past or present collections and videos of art performances. However there is loads to discover, it’s a not a very consumer friendly page. It means that whoever wants to know what exactly is the brands design and where it is for sale, should go find that out on their own. In a time where news and information are available instantly, it might be an inspiring challenge. It proves that how ‘t0tally rad’ or ‘ep!c crazy’ Moon Spoons platforms may look like on the surface, they sure walk to the exact beat of the zeitgeist.
BEHIND THE FAÇADE
Film: Joost Vandebrug
The Royal Academy of Fashion In Antwerp has held up a reputation for years as being one of the leading fashion educations in the world. One of their secrets? A combination of bold, outspoken design aesthetics and a storyline full of references. In other words: lots of messages- wrapped in poignant design.
German designer Frederick Hornof portrays a perfect example of this kind of work ethic. For his master’s collection ‘This is My Neophyte’, he was inspired by leading ladies from movies as Sunset Boulevard, Great Expectations and Grey Gardens. The resemblance between the three women lays in their passion for a glamorous appearance while balancing on a thin line between madness and sanity. Or as Hornof put it: ‘its about the evolution of a wealthy woman, loosing all her property, while keeping up the façade of a diva-esk lifestyle.’
Photo’s: Sonny Vandevelde
Hornof translated the theme in big hoods where the women are hiding and red glasses as a reference to their obsessive mental state. Hornof: ‘my collection is about vulnerability, control, hiding and showing, fantasy and reality.’
For those who look beyond the surface of this, at first glance, simple storyline of a character sees that there is more to it. Fashion after all sells a fantasy. A fantasy we can hide behind to cover up our true self. Aren’t we all a little mad by defining our identity by the brands and clothes we wear? Or is our outer appearance just a façade? If so, when do we crack? Or, has the fantasy of our outer appearance become so ‘normal’ that it has turned into reality?
Hornof presents a piece of work that is, just like art, asking questions while not losing sight of a clear design aesthetic. In other words: leading fashion in one of its purest forms.
THE BRAVEST OF MEN
While the women’s wardrobe has a lot of possibilities – skirts, pants, jeans, suits- the fashion choices for men are way more limited. Skirts are a no- go area, as well as dresses or a pink pants combined with a pink shirt. The biggest reason for this non- development is that men generally have a very conservative view of their own and each other’s identity: they have to be tough, strong and brave. The biggest insult you can give a straight man is to call him gay.
It is this theme where Dutch- Surinam designer Samira Algoe is contemplating about with her label Zem. She makes delicate, androgynous menswear in pastels or to put it in her own words: ‘my label explores the boundaries between male and female identity’. In addition Zem- Men, which her label is also called, is often interpreted as a variation on Zemmel- the Arabic name for a faggot. It makes Algoe’s label a daring and poignant one since it reflects the core of our stagnation in men’s emancipation. We expect only the bravest, strongest and toughest of men wearing her beautiful garments.
Photography by; Peter Stigter
TOM NIJHUIS AND HIS GABBERS
When was the last time you saw an authentic gothic or psychobilly- a.k.a. a person who shows his or her individuality through their clothing- around your street corner? I’ve noticed that, while we live in an age where- when it comes to fashion- so much is possible (jeans to the office, suits as casual wear) so few people stand out in a crowd. Through the internet the world has democratized. What we used to call the elite, say the doctor or a high end fashion designer, we can now add as ‘ a friend’ on Facebook. Class segmentation is less present. It’s a good thing because power is more divided.
At the same time the underground, the place where Punk, Gothic, Skinheads and other subcultures were born, is not as existing as it used to be. In my opinion it makes street fashion uninspiring.
Girls wearing a flower- ‘hippie’ dress combined with high ‘punk’ Dr. Martens (read: hipsters) make me long for the days I was surrounded by ‘gabbers’- one of Holland’s most striking subcultures. Tom Nijhuis must have felt the same way when he designed his graduation collection at ArtEZ – the renowned fashion academy in Arnhem.
His collection was inspired by, or better said, a fashionable copy of the way the gabbers dressed in the early 90s. Although I think he could’ve been more inventive within this theme, Nijhuis had the guts to make a bold statement. Sad enough it’s a rarity in this day and age.
Soundtrack to Nijhuis’ collection:
