JOHN GALLIANO-SPRING 2001

The 70’s Punk scene is an era I have relayed in my research as wanting to carry forward within my FMP concept. Researching into John Galliano’s previous collections, I discovered the Spring 2001 runway which signified nods to the deconstructive and DIY styling of the rebellious youth group. I felt it was beneficial for me to explore this further to comprehend how Galliano perceived and has translated their subculture in his own storytelling methodologies. I love how Charles Jeffrey takes significant elements of the punks DNA and additions his own contemporary spin to it, therefore seeking how John Galliano evokes their anarchy will be interesting too!

I have devised a mood board which you can observe to the left culminating many of the looks from the Spring 2001 collection, including the synonymous newspaper dress. I LOVED the renditioned denim co-ord which featured alongside this, with patchwork sewing and cartoony graffiti! The Punks were notorious for their vandalism of clothing, tearing it apart and defacing it with slogans and abuse and I see this as a perfect acknowledgement of their anarchy, yet with a pop cultured spin. I love how the edges of the clothing are frayed- to me, they look like unfinished cuts, something you’ll receive from a haberdashery for example, then wrapped round the body and pinned effortlessly.

They reveal a story. A story of a culture who didn’t have the luxury to purchase new clothes and resourced to making their own to join a voice which reverberated theirs.

The giant zips, fishnet tights and scribbles upon garments accentuated the 70’s era, whilst having a typical Galliano nod of flamboyancy through oversized headdresses and frilled 3D tulle sculptures. An additional sex appeal is distinguishable where Dior’s beauty queens in bathing suits were replaced by their punk cousins (Vogue, 2000) who still flaunted the tiny mid-riffs yet in grungy, provocative style. I appreciate how Galliano’s essence is always noticeable within every collection he produces; it isn’t subjected to the one overriding theme- this is an aspect I would love to take forward if I was to delineate him as a collaborator. I am seeking great fondness for narratives which envelop multiple styles to create a story, I think this is a powerful and difficult skill to master flawlessly but would love to attempt it myself.

John Galliano maintained his infusion of historical components in the Spring 2001 collection too, with an odd, almost religious, edition mingled amongst streetwear and Greek origins. Personally, I found this incredibly bizarre, but it accustomed me to Galliano’s wild ways of thinking! Despite its eccentricity, it augmented the storytelling and shock factor, creating the conversation as it was intended.