“Fashion moves in space and time. It shares in the complexity of physics and mathematics, making patterns and networks, forming mazes and constellations. Through its forms we have an opportunity to re-unite art and science and to heal the rift of the two cultures.”
-Christopher Breward
I agree with Breward’s point of view. Fashion, essentially, is defined by the behavior of chosen fabrics, the interaction of criss-crossing threads, and the mutual response in sewing tensions. It’s never a 2-dimensional surface we are dealing with when it comes to fashion. Building a piece of garment requires thoughtful calculation and thorough plans beforehand in order to make a mental image in a designer’s head happen. It’s a common error of public thinking that when fashion design approaches more to a high end it becomes more of a free form of expression, which vast amount of creativity forms the greatest creation. In fact, that’s not really the case, since as the designer’s initial inspiration gets wilder and bolder than usual more precision is required. That means more details are left to be defined and more calculations to be executed. At the end, unlike Van Gogh’s Starry Night can deliver an undefined magical fantasy, vague image that were initially in fashion designers’ head have to be crystalized into formulas, measurements, patterns once they become garments in reality. Therefore, it’s not accurate to define fashion designer as an artist. The amount of consideration and boundaries they have to overcome in order to expose their ideas in reality don’t allow to be completely spontaneous or fictional. To earn an almost complete freedom in such an industry, fashion designers have to separate their brains into two sections, one being a rigorous architect that calculates and compromises under circumstances, one being a fine artist that thinks wildly and destroys upon current frames.
“Fashion can be about confirmation, of self and others. But it is also about anxiety, ambiguity and worry. As an aid to understanding psychological complexities it is unsurpassed.”
-Christopher Breward
Breward’s interpretation to Fashion’s essence is outstanding and crucial. Fashion’s instinct is to help people hide, and disguise. Clothes are used to cover a naked body, while fashion are used to elevate one’s inner self and cover their physical and psychological defects. When one’s appearance doesn’t match with his or her imaginary inner self, fashion is there to rescue. By dressing towards the perfect person that lives in his or her mind, one can reassure a more confident inner self, which allows him or her to perform better in social circumstances and gain psychological comforts. Being in clothes that reassures one’s inner self makes one feel secured and protected while being exposed to others, because one feel like the right image is being presented and deliver to his or her surrounding. However, on the other side, it also brings out worries and insecurity of dressing improperly and inaccurately. To sum up, fashion is about a visual representation of one’s imaginary self, and the psychological complexities undergoes in one’s mind while being put on various spots and assigned for different roles in a society.
