Zine by Georgia Torr

Issue One

MÃ¸shon

CONTENTS 3 EDITORS LETTER 4-5 12 DECADES OF SPORTSWEAR 6-7 1900S 8-9 1910S 10-11 1920S 12-13 1930S 14-15 1940S 16-17 1950S 18-19 RADICAL DESIGNER 20-21 RADICAL DESIGNER 22-23 1960S 24-25 1970S 26-27 1980S 28-29 1990S 30-31 2000S 32-33 2010S 34-35 EXHIBITION REVIEW 36-37 EXHIBITION REVIEW 38-39 BIBLIOGRAPHY

LETTER FROM the EDITOR Somewhere in this zine you’ll find an advocacy of féminisme. I’m satisfied that over 100 years of fashion, womenswear has been a measure of equality through sportswear design. Practicality is no more an issue for us, not like the 1900s, unquestionably women were restricted when wanting to have fun playing tennis or golf. Forced to wear tight jackets, big hats and heavy skirts that had many layers of fabric. It started with Suzanne Lenglen, whom played at Wimbledon in 1922 shocked the world with her short tennis skirt and a visor. In this time frame, it wasn’t acceptable for women to dress in such a provocative manner. However, people began to see the demand for practicality and comfort for women who play sports. In the modern day, ‘Sport Luxe’ has developed into this huge street style trend, as health and fitness grows more popular year by year. “When you put on clothes that are fighting against something, you can feel your courage grow. Clothing can set you free,” Quoted Rei Kawakubo of Comme Des Garçons. Sportswear is so important in day to day activities and it excites me to show my interpretation of how women rights has developed this fashion over 10 decades.

12 DECADES of SPORTSWEAR In the early 20th Century it was not considered acceptable for women to be able to win at competitive sports. This foreshadows that clothing was not designed to be practical for women, stopping them from having the freedom of movement. For example, whilst playing golf women would wear tailored blouses and full length skirts, which is now very similar to business wear of today. However in 1910, things started to take a different turn when women were allowed to have pleats on their jackets to prevent the fabric tearing when swinging the golf club, although they weren’t allowed to be embellished or decorative. “The sporty silhouette is absolute chic” Jean Patou. Intriguingly, European immigrants brought a range of outdoor activ-

ities and games to western countries, in particular the USA. People would wear more ‘relaxed’ clothes, which were easier for movement, often just wearing baggy shirts and trousers. As were sheer knits in the early 1900s. Lastex was first introduced in the 1930s, this is reflected today only in a more developed fashion and bicycle shorts were developed and worn in the 70s. As the Olympics became more and more popular, active wear such as all in one skiing suits and swimwear for example were more in demand. Clothes were designed to be slender. Colours were white, and bright colours. Over time, lasted yarn was used where stretch was needed in certain areas. Sporting legends such as Wimbledon player Suzanne Lenglen took the world by surprise in 1922, at Wimbledon she wore a short skirt, took off her hat and put her hair

out of the way. This would change womens sportswear forever, as she showed others practicality was more important than being fashionable and covered up. At this time, it was extremely provocative to wear such a short skirt, it wasn’t seen as having modesty or dignity. Muhammad Ali the greatest boxer that ever lived, in 1999 he was declared “Sportsman of the Century” and almost defeated every top heavyweight boxer during his time. Another is, Michael Jordan dominated the 1980s and 1990s playing for the Chicago Bulls. With

America is extremely well known for originating the sportswear trend. Countries like the US looked to Paris for fashion trends and although Paris had beautiful garments, they were most definitely impractical. Fashion designer Claire McCardell is well known for sportswear, she saw a need for more practical garments. Designing the ‘popover dress’ in 1942, it was meant to be perfect for doing chores around the house and nice enough to wear to a party.

14 Olympic gold medals, Michael Phelps broke Mark Spitz’ record at the Beijing games and won the most gold medals compared to any Olympian. In terms of athletics, Us-

Functionality was key in sportswear design and this did not change throughout 100 years of fashion.

ain Bolt has been the one to watch, his record for 100 metre sprint was set at 9.69 seconds. He set three world records in one games, never to be done before… What is incredible is England winning the World Cup in 1966, held at Wembley stadium, this was the last match to be broadcast in black and white.

1900s 6

1910s

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1920s

1930s

Commes Des Garçons Comme des Garçons “I could say that my work is about looking for accidents. Accidents are quite important for me. Something is new because it’s an accident” Rei Kawakubo. She preaches anti-fashion and deconstructionism to defy embellishment in clothing. Initially, Kawakubo was into black and how special the colour was, as it wasn’t so popular in the 1980s. “If I could do a black collection then I would.” Rei Kawakubo, some of her black designs were inspired by crows, known for their strong colour. However, years later black was not too strange to the eye, this lead to disappointment for Kawakubo as the colour wasn’t deemed as special anymore. Turning to bold and bright colours, Kawakubo has clung to vivid red. Particularly, brought on by her interest in anger and intimacy. For example, Blood and Roses SS15 models appeared disturbingly looking gory. Although, what I find intrigu-

ing is Kawakubo does not explain her collections, therefore leaving people with a sense of mystery, because of this she names her collections in a smart manner by giving some insight into the inspiration behind the clothing, such as: 2 Dimensions, Bad Taste and Infinity of Tailoring. Between 1989 and 1991 Six Magazine was launched, exploring a sixth sense, featuring the work of Peter Lindbergh. Following this became theatrics, Rei Kawakubo knows how to put on a show, Her most recent collections are considered moving sculptures, her garments are so unwearable she would prefer them to be in an exhibition, instead of the runway. Although, it’s only been the past seven collections that have interested her because she had no desire in creating pieces that just looked like clothes. Creating catwalks in slow motion, opera. For example, Ceremony Of Separation AW15. In terms of sports fashion, Comme Des Garçons has collaborated with big name brands such as, Nike and Converse Chuck Taylor bringing Commes Des Garçons to a new market. Additionally, I find Rei Kawakubo’s designs very abstract and it intrigues me to find out her inspiration.

Met Gala, the most watched event of the year, celebrities gather in numbers to celebrate the Costume Institute, designers flaunting their creativity. Manus x Machina… This year, Rihanna worked the red carpet in Comme Des Garçons Autumn Winter 2016, wearing a beautiful floral, sculptural garment. Inspired by 18th Century

“punks.”

The avant-garde style of this exhibition I loved, and with Comme des Garçons being on of my favourite designers, I was really excited to see who was going to wear what. Kim Kardashian was particularly low key as she wore a plain and simple Vivienne Westwood white floor length body-con. Compared to Zendaya who ‘slayed’ in a beautiful Dolce and Gabbana alta moda dress covered in parrots with reds, yellows, blues.

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Diana: Her Fashion Story “There are loads of movie stars and celebrities but there will only be one Diana” Elizabeth Ema-

nuel, Fashion Designer. Diana’s media presence has always intrigued me, I admired her patience with the paparazzi as she was the most watched woman in the world. Visiting the Kensington Palace exhibition Diana: Her Fashion Story was very heart warming. As we all know the princess was the nations sweetheart, everything she wore was plastered in magazines and newspapers. I felt the exhibition showed her graciousness and how much she did for charity, she loved helping others and was so caring, her clothes reflected this as she would wear accessories children could play with, she called 34

these her “caring” clothes. Diana was the peoples princess. You could feel the love for her in the room, fascination unveiled peoples faces. She was known for being a working woman, attending around 130 royal engagements a year. Therefore, each outfit was different and had a diplomatic meaning. During the 1980s Diana’s style was very much ‘Dynasty Di’ taking this from the hit US TV show, wearing big shoulder pads and embellished, glamorous garments. Furthermore, the exhibition captured Diana’s elegance and beauty, focusing on her achievements, I felt empowered as a woman, the way she influenced fashion how calm and collected she was, as being in the public eye would put an enormous amount of pressure on her. As she was so calm and collected, the press gave her the nickname ‘Shy Di,’ her playful side charmed many designers and they soon became loyal friends of hers.

DIANA

“She was a symbol of what one meant when one spoke of icons. She took a role and created it with style and grace” Donna Karan. She was very much a modern princess and she knew the rules of what a traditional Royal would wear, however she broke this and made fashion choices that were risky and dramatic. A Royal protocol was that she must wear gloves and refusing to do so, she felt making direct contact when shaking hands was more important, to not come across as though she was above everyone else, Diana was down to earth. In addition to this, the princess was the first Royal woman to be photographed wearing trousers and also black. This was only ever seen when the Royal family was in mourning. Intriguingly, her many different inspirations also included ballet and opera, she was passionate about the arts and her most luxurious gowns were worn

to evening galas and events. Although, initially the princess was shy to the world of designer fashion. Before her engagement to Prince Charles, her wardrobe consisted of a dress, a pair of shoes and a shirt, other garments she would borrow from friends. In this exhibition, it showed how her style developed over the years. This began when she became engaged to HRH The Prince of Wales when designers would start to work with her wardrobe. I felt the layout of the rooms were beautiful, it was light and feminine, walls were filled with quotes from designers and Diana herself, reminding people of today that she was the greatest princess that ever lived. “Diana always knew what she liked, and she loved anything with frills and ruffles” quoted a former beauty editor of Vogue. ‘The Design Studio’ instantly captured my eye, beautiful drawings filled a blank canvas with pops of colour. Diana’s close relationship with fashion 35

designers helped shape her public image. As each public engagement had its own clothing requirements. She often commissioned designers to create bespoke pieces. After a briefing they would show her designs and she would review them and both Diana and the designer would finalise the look. Diana would write on them to suggest changes and to show details she liked best. Additionally, the princess had a vast collection of jewels, which she wore for formal engagements. Experimenting with costume jewellery, she would pair a black dress with large fake pearls, she wore this on an official visit to Germany in 1987. Beautifully, shown in the exhibition were dozens of outfits she wore to formal engagements throughout her life as Diana The Princess of Wales. December 1992, The Prince of Wales announced he and Diana were going to separate. A year after this, Diana stated she would be reducing her public appearances to live a more private life with her two sons William and Harry. Still 36

remaining very popular with the press, her interest in resisting the profile of humanitarian causes. She wanted to be known as a ‘workhorse’ rather than a ‘clotheshorse’. Diana began to simplify her daytime look, consisting of suits and shift dresses. The Prince and Princess of Wales officially divorced in August 1996. Overall, Diana: Her Fashion Story showed me the importance of how her public presence influenced fashion and the fact everyone wanted to be and dress like her. She influenced trends of her time and will have shaped fashion trends of today. Also, the exhibition makes me feel proud to be British and lucky to have such an influential Royal Family, that cares about not just the British people but the world.

DIANA

HER FASHION STORY

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