Why do people wear garments?This is very first question I have in my mind when I started this course. Function, expression, answers are varied but all are only in my suggestion.
Trying to find the real answer which could be seen and touched, I interviewed my friend Nico. She has a different style from people around her. Geometric elements, unusual texture, the play with colors. All these elements were used to create her own style.
She used to follow the trend, shopping and wearing blazers that other girls are wearing. But later she realized that it doesn’t fit her. “I have my own style, and my style fit me in different occasions.” She summarized that her style is childish, silly, like a little girl. But you can see variety in her different dresses. Sometimes the girl is cute, innocent, with white shirts and Japanese student uniform outfit. Sometimes the girl intended to be a naughty, even rebelling, with red velvet boots and tight black leather necklet. To her, wearing is like a game of role play. And she uses some classic, symbolic elements to build up the appearance that support the role she wants to be at that day.
The similar method were also seen in the costume design, while theater is just another way of role play. In the design of Peter Pan, the 1924 version UK stage play, Marguerite Moreton used so many environmental elements to create the garments of Peter Pan, who is a naughty, energetic boy that lives in nature, and is able to fly.
The vivid color, tight skinny design suggests the energy. The spider-web like net between body and sleeves suggest his ability to fly and his living environment. And this, inspired me to reconstruct my own project.
The Chambray Shirtdress I chose is made with tencel, a soft and strong fabric that have all the property of cotton, but made of wood fiber. The imitation also appeared in the production of the cloth.
The way it weaved and dyed is so similar to denim, and the actual result is also denim effect. The other interesting part is the style of the shirtdress, which is an womanwear’s imitation to menswear, shirt, that originally were only be wore by men. Also, the shirtdress was designed to be worn by daily city female, who work in the office, as it offers an fantasy of busy western cow boy life.
That’s how my reconstruction result came up. I teared down the original shirtdress into many pieces of fabric, and then put them together to be a new garment, that wearer , what ever gender they are, can have the experience of cow boy/ cow girl role play.
