Inflatable / Deflatable

The project involves creating a “shaped” garment that appears to be inflated or deflated, its form separate and apart from the shape of the body.

For this project I used a beach ball as inspiration. I rearranged the ball according to how much air was inside it to create shapes and then try and accomodate it on the human body. I usually design body concious garments so this project really pushed me away from my comfort zone. Using the ball in its differents stages of inflating and deflating I was able to come up with new ideas.

I wanted to recreate my thinking process of how Im usually constricted by my own self, and I wanted to explore this through the material. I was immediately attracted to boning because of what it represents. It is a material that has always been used for corsets with the purpose of supporting or maintaining a desired shape. As boning is very rigid and tough to handle, and mostly used for garding the body, I tried to bend it to my favor.

Inspired by the beach ball’s own deflating state where the air is not completely out nor is it still inside, It created an inflated, deflated and inflated again look. I bent the boning outside of the body for the top part and as it deflated I maintained a corset-like look at the waist which later blew out of the body into a more augmented volume. This type of shape came out as an exaggeration of the female body, some people even suggested the dress looked as if it was expecting.