AD5604 EXHIBITION BOOK CHLOE THOMSON

EXISTING BEING SURVIVAL VIVACITY JOURNEY ENTITY EXISTENCE LIVING

EXISTING BEING SURVIVAL VIVACITY JOURNEY ENTITY EXISTENCE LIVING

PURPOSE

BUILDING ON THE FOCUS OF CONNECTION AND THE PLEASURE OF FUNCTIONALITY, FROM PREVIOUS COLLECTIONS. IGNORING GLAMOUR, AND THE HIGH STATUS THAT COMES WITH THE LUXURY FASHION INDUSTRY. BRINGING BACK BASIC FASHION STAPLES UNIQUE TO PRADA, THROUGH THE IDEA OF INVESTMENT PIECES. TAKING A TRADITIONAL APPROACH OF THE ROLE OF CLOTHING AGAIN. RESPONDING TO THE CALL FOR AUTHENTICITY, THE CAMPAIGN WILL BRING THE FOCUS TO FEELING AND SENSES, GROUNDING AND CONNECTING THE CONSUMER TO REAL LIFE. THE CAMPAIGN WILL CONSIST OF 3 DIFFERENT SHOOTS, INCLUDING 3 IMAGES IN EACH SET. THE SHOOTS WILL ALL BE AT DIFFERENT LOCATIONS AND WILL BE USED AS INDIVIDUAL SETS OF 3 AS WELL AS A 9-PART SERIES TOGETHER. LAID SIDE BY SIDE TO FORM A NEW ABSTRACT NARRATIVE OF FEELING AND SENSES. REFERENCING THE FW 21 PRADA CAMPAIGN, FEELS LIKE PRADA. PROMOTING THE REJECTION OF LIVING OUR LIVES THROUGH TECHNOLOGY, INSTEAD LIVING IN THE MOMENT, AND ACCEPTING THE EVERYDAY. ESPECIALLY IN TODAY’S CLIMATE OF UNCERTAINTY AND THE COST-OF-LIVING CRISIS, ENCOURAGING THE CONSUMER TO ONLY LIVING BY THEIR MEANS…

“DESIGN IS OFTEN DISCONECTED FROM THE REAL WORLD WITHIN THE LUXURY INDUSTRY”

CONNE

CTION

MODEL 1

NAME: TALIESEN YOUD REZGUI

AGE: 19

RELATION: PARTNER

MODEL 2

NAME: LUNA BENNETT

AGE: 4

RELATION: NIECE

MODEL 3

NAME: SEAN SNAPE

AGE: 52

RELATION: STEP-FATHER

AN IMPORTANT PART OF THIS PROJECT WAS THE EXECUTION OF ITS MESSAGE. A MESSAGE OF AUTHENTICITY, AND CONNECTION.

IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN A COHESIVE MESSAGE ACROSS THE PROJECT I INVOLVED MEMBERS OF MY FAMILY. CREATING A DEEPER PERSONAL MEANING TO MY WORK. REFERENCING THE WORK OF EDEN LOWETH AND THE BRAND ART SCHOOL, AS HE INCLUDED HOMAGES TO HIS PARTNER THROUGH HIS WORK.

UNCOMFORTABLE ITCHY SECLUDED DRY COLD FOCUSSED

CLEAN INNOCENT PLAYFUL CALM BLURY IMAGINATIVE

GLOOMY MESSY ZONE

TRADITIONAL POWERFUL UTILITARIAN

REFLECTION

IN ORDER TO CAPTURE FEELING AND CONNECTION TO REAL LIFE, I NOT ONLY INCLUDED FAMILY MEMBERS WITHIN THE PROJECT. BUT ALSO SET OUT AN ACTION PLAN, A BASE TO BOUNCE IDEAS FROM MYSELF AND TAKE INSPIRATION FROM DIFFERENT ARTISTS AND DESIGNERS. INCLUDING PHOTOGRAPHER ZOE GHERTNER AND STYLIST ALASTAIR MCKIMM, SOUTH AFRICAN PHOTOGRAPHER PIETER HUGO AND ARTIST MARINA ABRAMOVIĆ.

AS WELL AS LOOKING AT PRADA DIRECTLY, FOCUSING ON RELATING TO PREVIOUS COLLECTIONS ORIGINALLY THE PLAN DEPICTED 4 SHOOTS, THE FOURTH BEING A FOCUS ON LOVE. THAT WOULD FEATURE A SAME SEX COUPLE IN AN INDUSTRIAL BUT SMALL-TOWN LOCATION. BRINGING A FORMAL OPTION OF A BLAZER AND SLIP DRESS TO THIS CAMPAIGN. HOWEVER DUE TO TIME CONSTRAINTS AND CONFLICTING SCHEDULE I WAS NOT ABLE TO EXECUTE THE FINAL SHOOT. ALONGSIDE ALL 3 SHOOTS I ALSO PRODUCED A CREATIVE FILM FOR THE CAMPAIGN. AS WELL AS FILMING INDIVIDUAL SHORT FILMS FOR EACH SHOOT. HIGHLIGHTING THE SHOOT LOCATION AND ATMOSPHERE TO MAKE THE VIEWER TAKE A MOMENT. EACH FILM AND SHOOT HAVING THEIR OWN FEEL AND FOCUS OF THEIR OWN INDEPENDENT NARRATIVE, YET HARMONISING WHEN JOINED TOGETHER.

DRAWING ATTENTION TO DIFFERENT MOMENTS WITHIN LIFE, FROM THE UNCOMFORTABLE SENSATION OF SAND IN BETWEEN THE TOES AND THE FEELING OF THE COLD BEACH WIND. TO THE REALITY OF WHAT LIFE LOOKS LIKE FOR SO MANY, REAL WORLD PLACES. RUNNING AFTER CHILDREN, HIGHLIGHTING PRACTICALITY AND THOSE HEAVIER DUTY ASPECTS OF LIFE, SHOWN THROUGH THE THIRD SHOOT WITH MODEL 3.

I KNEW THAT I WANTED TO EXPERIMENT WITH VIDEOGRAPHY WITH THIS PROJECT, AS PRADA USES FILM WITHIN THEIR CAMPAIGNS. FROM EMMA WATSON’S, PRADA PARADOX FILM. A CREATIVE INSTALMENT OF INDIVIDUALITY, EMPOWERMENT, AND FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION, PRODUCED AND DIRECTED BY EMMA HERSELF. THAT WE TOUCHED UPON IN A LECTURE ON SEMIOTICS WITH DR EMMA DAMON. I WAS ALSO HEAVILY INSPIRED BY PRADA’S SHORT FILM CREATED FOR THE PRADA SPRING SUMMER 2023 WOMEN’S RUNWAY SHOW, “TOUCH OF CRUDE” FILM, BY NICOLAS WINDING REFN. (PRADA, 2023) I LOVED THAT THE FILM NOT ONLY CONCENTRATED ON THE PROMOTION OF THE ITEMS BUT THE TELLING OF A STORY OF MYSTERY. NOT OVER GLAMOURISING PRODUCTS OR SHOTS AND SHOWING THE DARKER AREAS, DESCRIBED BY PRADA AS, “A GLIMPSE OF AN UNSEEN NARRATIVE”. (PRADA, 2023) THE FILM ALMOST HAVING AN UNEASINESS AND UGLINESS TO IT. SHIFTING THE FOCUS FROM JUST SELLING TO MAKING THE VIEWERS THINK AND FEEL. DRAWING IN THE VIEWER, INVITING THEM TO BE COMPLETELY ENGROSSES YOU WITHIN THE FILM AS YOU QUESTION EVERY LITTLE THING, TRYING TO DETECT WHAT WAS GOING ON.

THE RELATION

VIEW THE RELATION TO REAL LIFE

EXPOSURE

TAKING PRADADOWN OFF ITS UNATTAINABLE, OUT OF REACH PEDESTAL. THIS CAMPAIGN WILL NOT ONLY BE PRESENTED IN BIG CITIES BUT IN LOWER KEY, LOW STATUS AREAS AND METHODS AS WELL. FOR EXAMPLE, THE CAMPAIGN COULD BE PROMOTED ON BUS STOPS AND STREET SIGNS. BELOW I HAVE MOCKED UP THIS PROPOSAL, MAKING THE CAMPAIGN MORE ACCESSIBLE AND LESS GLAMOROUS BUT STILL HOLDING TO ITS QUALITY AND STATUS, JUST MAKING IT MORE CASUAL FOR THE EVERYDAY, REAL LIFE.