Designers inspired by the past/Research

We had to research modern artists, that are inspired in some shape or form by the past.  I have chosen some artist that I think take great inspiration form the past as well as having modern day influences


Alexander McQueen remains well-known for his highly original collections and spectacular fashion shows which frequently evoked historical themes. McQueen took apprenticeships at the Savile Row tailors Anderson & Sheppard and then Gieves & Hawkes where he learned traditional British tailoring techniques. He later worked as a pattern cutter at the theatrical costumiers Angels and Bermans where he further focused his training in historic garment construction. McQueen’s 1995 Highland Rape collection, which placed him firmly on the world stage, was inspired by his own family history and the Highland Clearances. His radical re-presentation of historical narratives continued throughout his career alongside his innovative combination of contemporary and historic cut and materials. ‘I like to challenge history', he stated in the 2008 BBC series British Style Genius, in which he emphasised the semi-autobiographical nature of some of his historical subject choices. McQueen’s genius lie in being contemporary, futuristic and historical all at once. 

Opera dress 

Satin-Duchesse Puff Sleeve Dress

Alexander McQueen Runway Review | Fashion Week Fall 2013

“I don’t really get inspired [by specific women]. . . . It’s more in the minds of the women in the past, like Catherine the Great, or Marie Antoinette. People who were doomed. Joan of Arc or Colette. Iconic women.” 

Yves Saint Laurent  was a French fashion designer, and is regarded as one of the greatest names in fashion history. I found this dress design in 1965 and inspired by the Dutch art movement De Stijl and in particular by the works of the painter Piet Mondrian.

''Mondrian'' dress

''Mondrian'' dress

Pien Mondrian

Piet Mondrian

Piet Mondrian

Versace is an Italian fashion company and trade name founded by Gianni Versace in 1978. Gianni Versace‘s Spring 1991 collection featured outfits printed with Andy Warhol‘s brightly colored, silk-screened portraits of Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, another other famous icons.

Warhol’s works, which depicted pop culture icons in a brightly colored palette, were a perfect match for the flamboyant designs of Versace,

Marilyn Monroe and James Dean print

Marilyn Monroe and James Dean print 

Andy Warhol 

Andy Warhol

The 18th century/ Inspired by the past

Manchester from Kersal Moor , by William Wyld

In this session we talked about the 18th century known as Age of Enlightenment . We discussed the major changes in society that occurred in the 18th century and some typical forms of art of that time and modern day artists inspired by  past and in particular we compared some of the modern artist's work with that of artist of 18th century.  We looked at several famous artists of the period and compared them with modern day artists inspired from the past.
major changes that occurred in the 18th century аre:
- beginning of the modern age
- the expansion of empirical knowledge
- seeing and thinking for yourself
- age of enlightenment
- industrial revolution

'Enlightenment is associated with the pursuit of spiritual and material upliftment of people through both personal and through public education, and with the development of democratic principles. Supporters and promoters of the Enlightenment promise relief from superstition (to which some European philosophers and religions attributed) release of ideological and political oppression of the absolute monarchies that dominate European countries, highlighting the human person, the recognition of their rights and opportunities for physical prosperity through the development of science and education '(Karamuzi2004).

The worship of science is a feature of the Enlightenment  when many new sciences occurred  - political economy, sociology, psychology, statistics.  the eighteenth century is Often called. "Century of Philosophy"

We can talk a lot about the era of enlightenment, as these are the doors to the modern world we live in now. and yet the focus of our session was more on the art of this period and some modern artistс inspired by the past.
One exaple is Vivienne Westwood:

''I'm a great believer in copying. There has never been an age in which people have so little respect for the past''

She is known to get her inspiration by visiting historical museums like the Victoria and Albert Museum and London’s Wallace Collection. and taking ideas for designing clothes for her brand.

18th century coat

Other example of past-time inspiration in modern times is the logo used by Mc Ewan's beer which originated from the Dutch painter's  Frans Hals painting of ''Laughing Cavalier''

Laughing Cavalier

Mc Ewan's logo

Mc Ewan's logo 

Some of Grayson Perry's works are also inspired by the past. He is really interested in history and modern day society . His series of six tapestries depicting the taste ideas of Britons, entitled "The Vanity of Small Differences." analysed the ideas of taste held by the different social classes. they are inspired by the tapestries from the past who normally depicts the daily life of different social classes. like the famous Devonshire hunting tapestry;

Devonshire hunting tapestry

Grayson Perry's 'painting from "The Vanity of Small Differences." series 

Grayson Perry's 'painting from "The Vanity of Small Differences." series

Grayson Perry's 'painting from "The Vanity of Small Differences." series

We discussed some works of William Hogarth -  ''an English painter, printmaker, pictorial satirist, social critic, and editorial cartoonist  who has been credited with pioneering western sequential art .His work ranged from realistic portraiture to comic srtip-like series of pictures called "modern moral subjects". Knowledge of his work is so pervasive that satirical political illustrations in this style are often referred to as "Hogarthian" .  
We compared the modern artist Banksy as the modern version of Hogarth. Hogarth's as well as Banksy's works are focused on some problems of the society and show the moral issues of it. 

 In 1731 Hogarth completed the earliest of his series of moral works, a body of work that led to significant recognition. The collection of six scenes was entitled  A Harlot's Progress .A Harlot's Progress depicts the fate of a country girl who begins prostituting—the six scenes are chronological, starting with a meeting with a bawd and ending with a funeral ceremony that follows the character's death from venereal disease.The inaugural series was an immediate success and was followed in 1735 by the sequel A Rake's Progress  consisted of eight pictures that depicted the reckless life of Tom Rakewell, the son of a rich merchant, who spends all of his money on luxurious living, services from prostitutes, and gambling—the character's life ultimately ends in Bethlem Royal Hospital.

One of the scenes from  Rake's Progress by William Hogarth

One of the scenes from Harlot's Progress by William Hogarth 

Banksy 

Banksy 

Banksy 

 British painters from 18th century:

Newnham-on-Severn from Dean Hil - William Turner of Oxford 

William Turner was the most famous landscape artist of 18th centrury, specialised in watercolour landscapes.

Flin Castle - William Turner 

John Constable

Salisbury Cathedral  from the Meadows - John Constable 

''Painted in 1831, one year after the death of his wife, Maria, this painting was a personal statement of his turbulent emotions and his changing states of mind. He later added nine lines from “The Sea” by the eighteenth-century poet James Thomson that reveal the painting's meaning: That the rainbow is a symbol of hope after a storm that follows on the death of the young Amelia in the arms of her lover Celadon.The sky reflects this turbulence and shows his emotional state of being.

Possible political meanings have been attributed to it, one of which being the clash of industrialization and nature represented through the clash of elements.

Some symbolism in this painting includes:

• Grave marker: symbol of death
• Ash tree: symbol of life
• Church: symbol of faith and resurrection
• Rainbow: symbol of renewed optimism''

Thomas Gainsborought

''The work is an unusual combination of two common types of painting of the period: a double portrait, here of a recently married couple, and a andskape view  of the English countryside. Gainsborough's work mainly consisted of these two different genres, but their striking combination side-by-side in this extended horizontal format is unique in Gainsborough's oeuvre, and extremely rare in other painters. Conversation piece was the term for a portrait group that contained other elements and activities, but these normally showed more figures, set engaged in some activity or in an interior, rather than a landscape empty of people. Gainsborough was later famously given to complaining that well-paid portrait work kept him away from his true love of landscape painting, and his interest probably combined with that of his clients, a couple from two families whose main income was probably not from landowning, to make a more prominent display than was normal in a portrait of the country estate that had formed part of Mrs Andrews' dowly'' 

Classic design - ''Vans''

Classic Vans

 Vans were founded in California in 1966 by the Van Doren brothers under the name The Van Doren Rubber Company, which was later shortened to just Vans. In the early years they worked closely with skate boarders and created three very distinctive models, The Era, the Vans Classic Old Skool and most importantly the Slip-on. These were popular among skaters due to the no slip sole. The mighty Waffle sole!  The waffle sole is their child, something that has matured over the decades to be the best in the world. It is called the waffle sole, because well it looks like a Belgian waffle. During this time they were the go to shoe for skate legends such as Tony Alva, Steve Peralta and Christian Hosoi whom were all members of the legendary Dog town and Z-boys, the god fathers of skateboarding. Some of these members went on to create some of the best skate companies today, all because of what one shoe had inspired them.  Vans gained international attention when Shaun Penn was seen wearing a pair of slip-ons in the 1982 film Fast Times at Ridgemont High.

Waffle Sole

During this time vans had incorporated the phrase “off the wall” as their company slogan. This comes from when skaters started skating in pools and were literally off the pool wall and made air. In modern day terms it regards something as being Crazy, awesome or when some one is excited, “wow, that film was off the wall!”

But this doesn’t make it a classic design, no this makes a classic foundation for a classic design to be built on. A foundation that paved the way for generations to come. Vans are a classic design because they are instantly recognizable, from extreme sports athletes to musicians to the casual dog walker. Vans are original. In music you have everything from punk rock to hardcore, like skins had Martens, they had Vans. The look, the comfort, the style and most importantly the legend that preceded them. Many great Bands have collaborated with Vans, from the sex pistols to the clash to Suicidal tendencies. Vans to this day organise music festivals, extreme sports events and are one of the leaders in this field.

Slip-on

Vans define style, they complete the look that people desire and now almost forty years later they have stood the test of time. But they are not all about aesthetics, they offered performance and function. The waffle sole is as famous as the Nike tick, the Addidas 3-stripe.

Vans, they were original, they are original. Trends come and go but classics do something, they are the winners of wars, and the winners as we all know re-write history.

Vans, the shoe of choice for the freeman, often copied, but never bettered!

What is Art?

In our first session we talked about the definition or art.  what is considered as an art? Who decide what is art and what is not?
We mentioned different types of Art like : Design and crafts.
Craft as an activity involving skills in making things by hand
and Design as functional and more practical use of 'art'
What determines an object as an piece of art, and what like a piece of design?
While  we asked ourselves all this questions we mentioned Grayson Perry - an English artist, famous for his ceramic vases and cross-dressing, also for unusual sexual desires and habit to dress as a woman. We were told that he is really eccentric and do lot of seminars asking the same question.
We talked about how art can be even our bed if we're too famous artists to exhibit it. The fact that an artist states something as art, it is now art. (becomes art)

We discussed how the times we lived determined also what to be called as art
and how art reflects the world in which they were created, because art, craft and design are constantly evolving
And yet there are some Classic designs, which are being judged over a period of time and are objects that most of us recognise over the years. Most of these classic design are everyday objects  with a timeless quality.