Editor’s letter Fashion is not only a trend. It is a way of interpreting life. As an editor, my mission is to explore to the fullest every fashion phenomenon and to be inspired by everything that surrounds us. The combination of all these elements creates fashion. EY November 2017 cover shows a collage which illustrates a fusion of a picture of the EY’s zine editor with an image from the Gucci’s campaign 2017. EY November latest edition is primarily focused on the evolution of fashion during 20th and 21st century. Following this theme, the first pages are a reflection of each decade throughout the years. From the S-bend corset, that characterizes better the 1900s until the explosion of the concept luxury brands that are able to communicate overseas and to cooperate with each other. The irresistible question is: Is fashion limitless? “What are the next steps in the world of fashion? The photo session, is a reflection of today’s trends, some of them are also inspired by the Hollywood’s glamour evening dress from the 30s. The backless dress is back in the game. November 2017 edition chose to elaborate an interview with Christopher Bailey, the CEO of Burberry. This iconic English brand has an incredible history of over 160 years. It is our privilege to provide answers related with the key of making incredibly modern collections in all these years. In order to entertain you, you can play our exclusive game, based on choosing your favourite fashion outlook and see to which era you belong. Are you not able to visit the exhibition Balenciaga: Shaping Fashion in V&A? Just take a look at our review of the most memorable collections of Cristóbal Balenciaga. Givenchy’s statement takes our attention to the grandeur of the Spanish designer “I don’t think even the Bible has taught me as much as Balenciaga”. To conclude, we would like to engage you with the radical work of Yves Saint Laurent. His sense of innovation and extraordinary creativity are still present in Saint Laurent’s latest collections.
- Paul Poiret
After the First World War (1914-1918), the
likes of Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington spread the musical message of freedom, including women’s emancipation. The society felt the smell of freedom in all aspects. The rise of consumerism, the big influence of Hollywood, and the introduction of Jazz marked this decade. People became more open-minded, because they started to have access to the TV, developed by John Logie Baird in Great Britain. The TV contributed for the creation of mass culture. In 1926, The Ford Motor Company announces the creation of a 40-hour work week for factory workers. Because of that reduction, people started to occupy their free time, by going to the theatre and to Jazz clubs at night. Their dress code was well-chosen, according to the event. In terms of clothing, there was an outfit for every occasion during the day. One of the most emblematic outwear items was the Chemise dress, which was introduced in 1916 by famous designers such as Jeanne Lanvin , Callot Seours and Coco Chanel. It was characterised as a day and evening wear. The dress hung from shoulder to just below the knee, the waist dropped to the hips. The common colours were beige, grey and white. Gabrielle Bonheur Coco Chanel (19 August 1883 – 10 January 1971) was a French fashion designer. Along with Paul Poiret, Chanel defended the liberation of women from the “corseted silhouette”. Her fashion timeless items expressed highly conservative and elegant outlook. As Chanel once said “luxury must be comfortable, otherwise it is not luxury.” She launched her first perfume, Chanel No. 5, which was the first to feature a designer’s name. Perfume is “the unseen, unforgettable, ultimate accessory of fashion which heralds your arrival and prolongs your departure”- Coco Chanel. She created a revolutionary look, including
collarless jacket and well-fitted skirt. Like she said “Fashion is advancing. It cannot go back. There is no going back”. Karl Lagerfeld announced in one of his interviews “Chanel elegance is an attitude, a spirit, a certain abnegation of feminine frilliness. I am the first to admit that she invented something tremendous: the Chanel suit, the feminine version of the two button suit; and this started a fashion avalanche- there is no other word for it”; “It is timeless, but it is also in style. Her style belongs to another period but it has survived, and adapted itself to the modern world and all the following decades.” Among, all those clothing masterpieces, the little black dress was the top item introduced by the French designer. It expressed all the feminine beauty and elegance. The dress was compared to a Ford car, because both were easy to make. Published in Vogue on October 1st in 1926 and immediately dubbed the ‘Ford Dress’ by Vogues editor – a suggestion that it would become as popular as the Ford car. Coco Chanel endorsed the validity of black. In 1933, she reintroduced the pantsuit. In 1920s, the exposure of women’s legs was one of the fashion modern trends. The “shapelessness” look was achieved with a wrap coat, worn with scarves and fur accessories .The gabardine was women’s favourite fashion item.
“Fashion is advancing. It cannot go back. There is no going back” - Coco Chanel
“Most of my memories of the Sixties are ones of optimism, high spirits and confidence.� Mary Quant
The 80’s marked the start of the computer age. A new technology was evolving and become what we now know as the Internet invented by English physicist Tim Berners and the beginnings of the World Wide Web. As a result, fashion trends spread quickly. MTV (Music Television) was launched. It had a huge impact on teens, who tried to imitate the style of their celebrity idols.
of business, and the required look was much more strong in terms of silhouette and also elegant. Pencil skirts and 40s shoulder-padded blouses were worn by confident ladies.
Early 1980s fashion was very similar to the late 1970s. Velour and velvet were the popular fabrics. Sports brands such as Nike and Reebok produced big quantities of sneakers worn by everyone, who wanted to be freshly fashionable.
The sportswear phenomenon introduced new items, such as leggings, oversized sweatshirts and legwarmers. Those became everyday streetwear in the 80.
The hippies clothing was no longer a trend. Women were introduced in the world
The nostalgia for the 50s was noticeable. Levi’s 501 jeans was the physical revival of that decade. Leather jackets, cotton dresses, pastel colours and full skirts worn with ankle socks showed the the 50s influence.
90s trends are still appearing everywhere, because of the enormous rebellious hip-hop influence over the youth generation, that started to develop in the last decade of the 20th century and it is rising until now. Hip hop artists were recognised by evone. The common hip-hop look was full of sporty loose oversized clothing elements. Other music genres like Pop had their iconic celebrities such as Madonna, Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani. These stars became fashion style gurus for millions of teenagers, who wanted to copy their lifestyle. Britney promoted the “school girl” look. Spice Girls were associated with platform trainers, authentic at the time. Minimalism, anti-glamour and fashion detox describe better the trendy outlooks in the 90s. Flared jeans, combined with crop tops are one of the examples of those casual aestetic looks. An edgy accessory added to the outfits, were usually the chokers. Another big statement was hoop rings, the bigger they were, more chic they looked. Denim jumpsuits, known also as overalls, were considered a comfortable way to keep up with fashion. Doc Martens boots and Birkenstocks shoes were pared with every clothing item. The grunge style was described as anti-fashion. Those
famous ripped jeans and the layered slip dress didn’t privilege the women silhouette at all. The Parisian designer Isabel Marant established her own brand in 1994 launched the perfect street chic outfit–ankle boot, grey skinny jeans and T-shirt. The Italian brothers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana founded their brand in Houston, U.S.A. in 1985. They tried to express the beauty of the Italian girls. Their main inspiration came from Sicily and Cincinnati films. The macho man and la mamma have the main roles in the brand. The leopard prints, lace and Baroque details are their signature. Donna Karan, Alexander McQueen (who became in 1985 Givenchy’s designer), Tom Ford who revamped the house of Gucci from 1994 to 2004, John Galliano, Marc Jacobs, Michael Kors, Miu Miu and Roberto Cavalli are still among the best leaders in the world of fashion.
The November 2017 edition of EY zine incorporates an interview with Christopher Bailey who was appointed Burberry Chief Creative and Chief Executive Officer in May 2014. The iconic world famous brand has an incredible history of over 160s years. Let’s read about the key of making incredibly modern collections in all these years.
“Since joining Burberry, Christopher Bailey has received three honorary docrorates; one from Sheffield Hallma University in 2011, one from University of Westminster and, most recently, one from the Royal College ofArt in 2013.” (Telegraph,co.uk., 15 October 2013) What is that experience as CEO like? What did you learn? I had always known that I wanted to do this for a period of time. There were lots of reasons why I decided to take that position when our board asked me to do it. I knew that it wasn’t going to be a forever thing. I didn’t know how much I would need to let go of the
things I love to focus on the other things, and so I learned through that process, the things that I really love, I really do love them. I want to spend as much time as I possibly can on the creative side. (PAPER,18/09/2017) Do you have a strategy in terms of brand governance? “I think the role of any leader is to take themselves out of the situation and to say what is right for the company going forward. And that is what I have always done, throughout my career, not just at Burberry, and to know to identify what my skills are, where I add the most value and where my strengths are not and where we need to add those strengths,” he continued. (BoF, JULY 11, 2016 19:55) What has been your favorite collection and campaign so far with Burberry? BAILEY: Always the last one. It’s weird. As a designer, the campaign that just launches is always your favorite. I think it’s kind of a natural part of the evolution. (HUNTINGTON-WHITELEY,Interview magazine,July
Interview with Christopher Bailey, chief creative officer and the president of Burberry “I love tradition, I love ceremony, but I also like putting myself outside my comfort zone and exploring and testing and trying and researching and playing, and challenging the norms.� Christopher Bailey
HUNTINGTON-WHITELEY: I’ve always marveled at how designers have to turn out collections season after season. Do you ever hit a wall and go, “Oh, my god, I have writer’s block. I can’t think what to do”? BAILEY: I live with my eyes open. I never try to force myself to be inspired. I’m not someone who feels that they have to go to a foreign country or another culture to look for inspiration. Without sounding like a ponce, I think life is such a journey that you’re kind of discovering things the whole time. When you’re conscious of that and you don’t take it for granted, and when you meet new people and see beautiful things and get to travel the way we do in this industry, you can be constantly inspired. The trick is to recognize that and keep a little bank of impressions in your head.
“I don’t think even the Bible has taught me as much as Balenciaga” Givenchy The following quote of the Spanish designer describes the importance of his dresses “A women has no need to be perfect or even beautiful to wear my dresses. The dress will do all that for her.” Visiting the brilliant fashion exhibition called Balenciaga: Shaping Fashion in the Victoria and Albert museum was a fantastic and creative way to explore the innovative work of Cristóbal Balenciaga (1895-1972). For me, as a current student and visitor, it served as a great inspiration for my future projects. Balenciaga, also known as The Master, introduced a new technique, in order to create his designs. His clothes are authentic sculptural masterpieces. The revolutionary shapes and textures are the signature of the couturier. The exhibition is situated in two floors, which collect the most emblematic fashion items of Balenciaga. In the first department we can see some points of his personal journey and also some career achievements. Then, in the first vitrine are placed dresses, some of them inspired by the Spanish bullfighting spectacles, such as a silk velvet evening dress, a regional Spanish costume made for his friend Francine Weisweiller and a flamenco gown.
On a white board, Christian Dior quotes ”Haute couturiers is like an orchestra whose conductor is Balenciaga. We other couturiers are the musicians and we follow the direction he gives.” If we continue our walk, we can see a selection of evening dresses. “The Amphora Line” gown looks like a Greek vase, due to its curved shape.
The other distinctive dresses are the “Baby doll dress” introduced in 1958, the “Unsexy sack”, the “Semifit dress” and the “Balloon Hem”. All of these are very divergent in terms of shapes, but they are all black. The purpose of the Spanish designer was to make us focus just on the women's silhouette using the darkest colour. We also may observe the fabric for shapely sleeves, such as the flared lantern sleeves. These were presented in Balenciaga’s Spring/Summer collection in 1968. The lace fabric was usually used from the designer. He once said “It is the fabric that de-
cides." A looser fitting style was an alternative to create more modern silhouette. The suit provided a clean line that fitted to every body shape.
Balenciaga had given an importance of shoulders in his clothes. This was an advice from Emanuel Ungaro, who worked and trained Balenciaga from 1958 to 1964. The exhibition also includes the T-shaped kimono cut. Vogue described it as having the “sculptured, direct beauty of a Roman toga.”
Balenciaga was Catholic, that is why he gained ecclesiastical inspiration to make a mozzaretta cape, worn by the Hollywood actress Ava Gardner.
Other iconic look that we are able to see is an evening dress and cape. A film related with it shows us flat pattern-cutting. The one-seam coat was designed in 1961. It was made of one piece of fabric. He also was inspired from India, creating the Indian saris – a single long piece of fabric wrapped around the body. On the other hand, Balenciaga had deep-rooted interest for the 19th century garments. He created similar silk dresses from that epoch. Other gowns were made to be dressed in everyday bases. All these fashion creations helped him to have international clientele. Glamour is one of the words that should describe better the following dress.
All the visitors of the exhibition have the chance to visualize a black-and-white film, which shows the fitting process for Marquesa de LIanzol in Balenciaga’s studio in 1960s. Givenchy’s statement takes our attention to the grandeur of the Spanish designer “I don’t think even the Bible has taught me as much as Balenciaga”. One the second floor are placed the most iconic garments, which are a product of an extraordinary imagination and avant-garde sense of beauty. As the Balenciaga model Nicole Parent said “They didn’t even need a body to be able to speak”, because of their unusual shapes and volume. He simply “dares to do what he wants “according to the Italian fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli.
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