REMAKE: CRAIG GREEN SS20
DEATH
LIFE, DEATH, MARIE KONDO
FRAGILITY, REBIRTH
Green’s Spring/Summer 2020 collection addressed subjects such as anatomy, rebirth, masculinity, and the fine membranes that link humans together across cultures. For seven of the experimental garments in the collection, Green drew inspiration from papel picado - a mexican practice patterns and iconography are cut into layers of tissue paper. Traditionally these flags are displayed around Christmas and Easter as symbols of life, death, rebirth, and celebration. The fragility of the cut outs in contrast with the strength of the fabric could be representative of these battles within masculinity, as well as the translucency of human skin; a thread running throughout the collection.
A portion of the SS20 collection comprised of gingham gowns printed with folding instructions from a Marie Kondo video Green found on youtube. The geometry and regularity aligns with his affinity for uniform, bringing in ideas of structure and order on top of a silhouette that appears loose and floaty. The gingham checks could be associated with youth and life, especially in bright colours reminiscent of springtime, however Green has mentioned that he sees the prints almost as flatpack instructions for humans, delving into themes surrounding what happens to the body after death, and the protective coverings used to encase it. Although it has not been formally stated, the cut of the gingham dresses appears hospital gownlike, with big open portions and fabric ties holding it together, supporting the circle of life, death, and human fragility that emanates from this collection.
REMAKE: CRAIG GREEN SS20
ANATOMY, NERVES, SKIN
In the piping structures, nods to religious iconography including resurrection and the crucifix can be found, probing the nature of spirituality within different cultures. These symbols are carried through into hazy dreamlike digital prints of the male body on top of glassy raincoats and quilted jacket and trouser sets, presenting questions about the relationship between masculinity and the naked male body.
MASCULINITY, NAKEDNESS, RESURRECTION
With sculptural encasings in the form of painted metal pipes strung together around the torso, Green continues his exploration into human protection, citing egyptian embalming rituals as a source of inspiration. In ancient egypt, you were at your most protected after you’d died, which seems counter intuitive but shows great respect to spirituality and the notion that life can exist outside of the physical body. The construction of the piping is also reminiscent of the skeletal structure within humans which acts as a protective barrier for our internal organs. Green probes deeper into human anatomy with ribbing and quilting representing ‘tendons and sinew’ whilst leather and translucent nylon act as the skin. Zoroastrian drawings are referenced in the embroidery on three padded satin ‘dream suits’ transitioning the anatomical investigation into nerve endings, as they are highlighted much more than in traditional drawings of anatomy. This combined with embroidery shapes highlighting muscle placement makes the suits appear fleshy and tactile.
Marc Brunet - male anatomy model
Zoroastrian anatomical drawing
QUILTED PANEL SHELL JACKET
The quilted panel shell jacket in mint appears 16th in Green’s SS20 runway show amongst the satin ‘dream suits’, demonstrating an exploration into protection, male anatomy, muscles, and how stitching can be used to create texture. This particular garment is a variation of the staple that exists as the centre point of all Green’s collections - the worker jacket. With feather-light quilting in vertical lines down the panels, the texture mirrors the linear nature of some zoroastrian drawings, whilst the placement of the panels symbolises muscle mass on the mail body. Due to the whole jacket being made from a waterproof nylon, the shell of the jacket is translucent meaning you can see the wearer’s body underneath, and the thin layers appear skin-like.
UTILITY WEAR SQUARE EXTERNAL POCKETS FLATNESS AND GEOMETRY RELIGIOUS UNDERTONES
CRAIG GREEN: ETHOS / TRADEMARKS
ETHOS: The Graig Green ethos is centrered around innovation and pushing boundaries whilst maintaing the same conceptual threads that run throughout his work. The garments evolve through the seasons rather than each collection existing as a seperate entity from the last. Since the establishment of his namesake label in 2012 Green has grown the brand on the belief that the most significant fashion labels have a staple garment that they becom known for and is developed in each collection, for example the burberry trench coat. For Craig Green this is the worker jacket. It embodies his appreciation for and fascination with uniform and utility clothing. This style of garment became the foundation upon which the DNA of the label is built and is the starting point for each collection. Although some see uniform as a constraint, Green sees it as an equaliser within which there is beauty to be found. Conceptually, he explores pertinent subjects to the current age: labour; the fluid yet tribal nature of cultural identity; masculinity, religion and its place in our society. More literally, his designs examine the uniforms men wear when they go to fight, pray, dance, or work, isolating and extending details which help to form a deeply personal design language. He leads a small independent studio, and likes to “keep things as a family�. Working with a close knit team allows them the freedom to explore whatever they want to and make decisions as they see fit.
QUILTING
TIES / TABS / TUBES SCULPTURAL
MATCHING TOP AND TROUSERS
CUSTOMER PROFILE / COMEPTITORS
CUSTOMER PROFILE Age: 18-40 Location: Major cities London, New York, Berlin Lifestyle: • Job in a creative industry • Economic ability to invest in clothing • Pursuers of comfort and freedom as well as fashion • Celebrity consumers Interests • Global travel • Art / culture - film, theatre, music, books • Strong interest in avant garde / conceptual fashion • Less commerical takes on streetwear
Colour details: • •
Main shell constructed from a translucent nylon Quilt panels constructed from main shell fabric but with a white nylon backing, making them appear lighter in colour
TECHNICAL SAMPLES
Front and back tabs attatched under quilt panels (shoelace string runs through it on the runway outfit but is removed from the garment available for purchase
Nylon tube running over the external french side seam (encloses cotton tape / belt)
Upper and lower arm quilt patches - bound edges, 2.5cm quilt lines
Tube that runs parallel to the edge of the front quilt panel and near to the armhole seam (used to enclose shoelace string is sewn into the shoulder seam)
RESEARCH / DESIGN DEVELOPMENT
Bottega Venata - Prefall 20
MANMADE STRUCTURES
Craig Green - SS19 campaign
Loic Vendrame - Future Dust, Future Rust
MICHEL FRANÇOIS Piéce détachée, 2011
Inspired by Green’s affinity with workwear and themes of fragility in his SS20 collection, my research explores both literal and symbolic representations of structure and their fragile natures.
RESEARCH / DESIGN DEVELOPMENT
Although Green sees workwear and uniform as an equaliser, I am interested in it as a visual representation of the social structures we have built. If workwear is seen as a symbol of the capitalist ideal that our lives should centre around going to work, then the current climate is a demonstration of how fragile this structure is and how easily it can be disrupted. Many people, especially manual labourers, are currently out of work, and therefore for this period in time, the structure is broken.
Sean Ahlquist Projects - California College of Arts
Craig Green - staple worker jacket
SOCIAL STRUCTURES
Bottega Veneta - AW20 menswear
Craig Green - AW19 campaign
Craig Green - AW20
Cabinet of structural engineering - prelimiarly models
RESEARCH / DESIGN DEVELOPMENT
FRAGILE STRUCTURES
EVALUATION
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Craig Green’s SS20 collection was an analysis of humanity, masculinity, death and rebirth. The remake project has allowed me to delve into this world and explore conceptual themes that are new to my work, as well as stretch the boundaries of comfortability that I had found within my practice and develop a new way of working tailored to the current climate. I chose a garment from Craig Green for this task because I knew structurally it would be a challenge to recreate. Developing my pattern cutting and construction skills is something I’m always looking to do as I believe well-made clothing is vital to help slow the pace of garment consumption, and I knew understanding how this garment was made would aid with my learning in that area. Although I have always been attracted to the ethos of the brand and Green’s attitude towards the fashion industry, his specific design style is very different from my own. Where my work previously has been tailored towards exploring textile techniques and embellishment within silhouette, Green’s is a lot more focused on detail and structure. Developing my appreciation for details specific to different garment types – tabs, ties, fastenings and pockets – is something I know my work needs in order to progress, and I enjoyed this as an opportunity to analyse garments with such a recognisable design style and high attention to detail. More recently, I have been exploring unisex and menswear design within my work, as I feel it reflects my personal style much more than traditional womenswear. Challenging preconceived notions of masculinity and femininity within garment design seems to be a foundation amongst the designers I am drawn to, and I see menswear as an exciting avenue for exploration of this. Having a chance to spend time analysing a menswear label has solidified my affinity for it and I now know this is something I want to carry forward in my work. Additionally, the restraints on this project in terms of resources and access to equipment provided me with an opportunity to further my CAD skills and knowledge of the adobe creative suite. Prior to this I was not very confident on InDesign and this module has helped me to overcome initial fears of the software and appreciate how useful it is. The nature of the garment I chose also required a much more complicated technical drawing than I have done before, so I utilised the time I had to explore the features of illustrator and advance my understanding. However, this module wasn’t without its challenges. I undertook research into fabrics in order to try and find something representative of the nylon which the garment was made out of, but due to the lack of access to normal resources I struggled to find anything remotely similar on online fabric stores. Working all day on my laptop is also an element of the project that I found really challenging. I struggle to focus when sat in one place for an extended period of time and I noticed I was at my most productive when making technical samples. Alongside research into the concept of the collection and the development of my own response to it, this was an element of the project that I enjoyed the most. Going forward in my work I would like to be more experimental with colour. This project highlighted to me how I consistently use colours I am comfortable with in both my research and designing, so in future I will make more of an effort to be conscious of colour throughout the research process so that it translates into my designs. I would also like to do more research into page layout for computerised documents. Presenting work clearly and considerately is vital in translating ideas effectively and is something I intend to work on. Lastly, if I were to complete the project again, I would ensure I measured the garment well on the first viewing, as my inaccuracy provided me with issues when making technical samples.
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