For my garment, which I decided to call “Planted Culture” I had the theme of Cultural appropriation. As I was walking through chinatown what really stood out to me was the contrast between the normal American buildings that have been adapted to fit the Chinese culture maybe by adding a pagoda style roof or traditional Chinese symbols such as red lanterns. Chinese culture wrapping itself around the American buildings is what gave me the inspiration for the fabric and patterns of my garment. To choose the elements for the fabrication of my piece I wanted to select something that was very symbolic in Chinese culture and that is why I chose the orchid. Orchids represent love, beauty and most importantly unity. That is what I was trying to portray, unity between the two cultures. The American culture is represented by the element that originally inspired me, the buildings. They are present in the part of the garment that wraps around the body. As for the sleeves I was trying to represent the Chinese culture in a way “growing” and wrapping itself by using the fake plants.
The following is the presentation board for my garment, I enjoyed making this part the most since graphic design is something I am very interested in.
Making my croquis on Illustrator was one of the hardest parts of this project for me but I am very content with how my final croquis turned out.
