Animal Madness

 

 

There seems to have been a strong theme of the animal world emerging within haute couture, Paris S/S 2014. Above Jean-Paul Gaultier uses the butterfly as a theme quite literally. Highly embellished symmetry.

 

 

 

At the Valentino show animals were also key. Basic tribal-esque, appliqued shapes and animal forms such as swans and snakes wrapping around tutu like gowns.

McQueen

Sarah Burton

In 2000, Burton was made Head of Design – Women’s wear. On May 2010, Burton was announced as Creative Director of the Alexander McQueen brand and has worked alongside Lee McQueen for more than 14 years. 

Since her appointment, Burton has produced acclaimed collections with a focus on handcraft, establishing herself as an accomplished designer with artisan and technical excellence which is what I admire.


Butterfly details from the 2011 Collection



Mosaic effect bodices with pin-tucks/ ruffles and pleats to the skirt part



Thousands of feathers and couched metal work adorn this beautiful gown

 

Burton was recipient of the Designer of the Year award at the British Fashion Awards in November 2011. After an 11 year absence from London, Burton presented the AW12 collection of McQ, a higher-end contemporary line from the house at London Fashion Week in February 2012.

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McQueen Himself

Alexander McQueen was born in London on March 17th 1969, the youngest of six children. He left school at the age of 16 and was offered an apprenticeship at the traditional Savile Row tailors Anderson and Shephard and then at neighbouring Gieves and Hawkes, both masters in the technical construction of clothing.
 

From there he moved to the theatrical costumiers Angels and Bermans where he mastered 6 methods of pattern cutting from the melodramatic 16th Century to the razor sharp tailoring which has become a McQueen signature.

Aged 20 he was employed by the designer Koji Tatsuno, who also had his roots in British tailoring. A year later McQueen travelled to Milan where he was employed as Romeo Gigli's design assistant. On his return to London, he completed a Masters degree in Fashion Design at Central Saint Martin's. He showed his MA collection in 1992, which was famously bought in its entirety by Isabella Blow.

Alexander McQueen shows are known for their emotional power and raw energy, as well as the romantic but determinedly contemporary nature of the collections. Integral to the McQueen culture is the juxtaposition between contrasting elements: fragility and strength, tradition and modernity, fluidity and severity. An openly emotional and even passionate viewpoint is realised with a profound respect and influence for the arts and crafts tradition. Alexander's collections combine an in-depth working knowledge of bespoke British tailoring, the fine workmanship of the French Haute Couture atelier and the impeccable finish of Italian manufacturing.

In less than 10 years McQueen became one of the most respected fashion designers in the world. In October 1996 he was appointed Chief Designer at the French Haute Couture House Givenchy where he worked until March of 2001.

 

Beaded Corset, again about silhouette and fine details...

 Beautifully fragile and decayed. Melancholy yet romantic...

Curvy padded hips to create the ultimate womens silhouette.

Shells used as embellishment

2003 - Irere

 

NEC: Fashion Embroidery Exhibition

This exhibit was something I really wanted to go and see. I found materials such as threads etc were expensive, its still cheaper to buy online. 

It was very interesting to watch the catwalk of City and Guilds and Uni students Textiles work.

Butterfly machine embroidery on display- unknown
Textures created via layering and quilting.

Peacock Costume- layered netting, dip dyeing and feathers.  Intricately detailed and rich colours.

Above: I had a go at Marbling (see sample in sketchbook). I would like to take this further used as backgrounds for drawings or as fabric decoration. The fluid movement lends marbling to a sea themed project. 

Red machine emroidery- a collage of various stitches and materials combines to give a luxurious sculptural appearance to surface decoration.

Below: Combined textile piece, use of emotive text as if on a journey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Karen Casper

My favourite find of the day was the work of Karen Casper (Madeira Threads) on the sponsored stands. I adored her pieces, in fact there was nothing about them I didn't like. They are quirky, sculptural, colourful, mystical and eclectic- the epitomy of mixed media which is something I want to focus on. Her work can't be pigeon holed maintaining qualities suitable for fashion, art and costume.  Below her work can be seen literally dripping with lace and embellishments combining tradtional techniques (devore, quilting etc) with other materials such as Latex.

Above: vintage lace and sculpted fabrics into millinery pieces

Karen's s

ketchbook- it was good to see that she overlaps her drawings with her evaluation and her samples. Somehow this way of working makes everything come together more.

Article: http://lancashire.greatbritishlife.co.uk/article/karen-casper--the-young-mum-from-helmshore-creating-waves-in-the-design-world-44609/

Karen Casper had never touched a sewing machine until the age of 31. But when I met the mother-of-two five years later at her Helmshore home she had just graduated with a first class honours degree in contemporary textiles from Blackburn University Centre. Not bad for someone who has had to learn from scratch.

‘I have always been creative, but never did anything with it,’ says Karen who previously worked as a personal assistant at the BBC. ‘My sister taught me to hand sew and I just thought that if I don’t take it further now I never will. When I first started I remember my tutor having to show me how to thread the sewing machine needle!’

Soon she was using needles to create beautiful embroidered designs on fabric and that has led to even more innovative designs and materials. Techniques include devore, quilting, embroidery, fabric manipulation and embellishment to produce fine art pieces and commerical items.

‘I’m known for a particular piece using glow-in-the-dark wire,’ says Karen. ‘I like to give texture and depth to the pieces I create whether it’s a textile for the wall or a cape to wear.

‘I always start off with a textile but it often turns into something wearable. I mainly do one-off pieces but have been spending the summer looking at creating more for sale, things like head pieces and fascinators for fashion shoots or special occasions like weddings or the races. I don’t like to use just one medium, I tend to use mixed media like embroidery, screen and digital prints in my work.’

Karen’s reputation is growing as an innovative designer and maker of items from the vintage era to the futuristic but she intends to continue her education with a master’s degree in Manchester. ‘It’s been hard going back to college, studying and looking after two young children, but I have loved every single minute of it.

‘I’ve always tried not to hem myself into one particular box so that I can grow and develop. My tutors say my talent lies in costume, so who knows what the master’s degree could lead to, maybe collaborating with other mediums like sculpture?

‘I would love to work with a team doing editorial and costume pieces. The work Sarah Burton is doing for Alexander McQueen is amazing – that would be my ideal job producing avant garde couture in a place like that. I want people to interact with my work, to touch it.’

People will soon be able to do just that. Karen has been selected to take part in a project being staged at the Whitworth Art Gallery in Manchester.

You can see more of Karen’s work at http://tulleandcandyfloss.blogspot.co.uk.