The Design Museum Visited by Rosanna Purkiss
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esterday I travelled to London to visit The Design Museum. The exhibitions which were on were Fashion Women Power, Designs of the Year, and Health Tech and You. I’m not really one for exhibitions which might sound ridiculous, as I’m a Fashion Student. However these exhibitions were incredible. Definitely recommend. So I started the Exhibitions off with ‘Fashion Women Power’. Such an insightful display of all the power fashion had to offer women over the years. As dress has always been a signal of wealth, status and power, it was very interesting to see how it all came across over the years. ‘ A number of historical figures, Boudicca as portrayed by 19th century mythmakers in battledress, or Elizabeth I represented as an invincible head of state, have embodied specifically female power.’ In present times, dress has most certainly been used to signify and bring change in the status of women
‘dress has always been a signal of wealth, status and power’
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or many centuries women emulated men’s wardrobes all for one thing. They wanted to dress for power. The battledress of Joan of Arc and then to the highly extreme shoulder pads of the 80’s then through to the trouser suits that were similar to men’s suits to assert authority.
In modern times we see fashion movements not playing safe and women going outside the ‘safe’ area of fashion to express their power. This gives women an identity and a way to express their individuality with style. The clothes women have worn; have reflected how they were positioned in society.
The 20th Century was the time when the hourglass figure was admired and wanted. What helped this? The corset. The corsets thrust the bust forward which helped form a ‘monobosom’ above a tiny waist. However getting dressed and undressed was not so easy and it involved a lot of time doing so. Despite the hourglass figure being admired, society saw high discomfort and physical damage caused by the wear of corsets. It wasn’t just corsets which harmed women’s health. Large skirts were held out from the woman’s body by wooden, steel or cane cages and hoops, making their movement very slow and exceedingly tiring. The wardrobes which women owned contained anything but lightweight, easy to wear fabrics. Wool, tweets, thick velvets and stiff taffetas were what were found in a wardrobe in the Victorian times. Eventually the numbers grew of people who began to realise how harmful the clothes were to women’s health and how it was a symbol of political and economic oppression
‘There can be no doubt that the hand which first encloses the waist of a girl in these cruel contrivances, supplying her with a victitious support, where the hand of God has placed bones and muscles that ought to be brought into vigorous action, Lays the foundation of bitter suffering.’
‘’Style is an expression of individualism mixed with charisma. Fashion is something that comes after style.’’ John Fairchild
Next to visit in the Design Museum was the ‘Designs of The Year’. This was probably my favourite exhibition to see this day. The Designs which were done to help the world were incredible...
‘Riposte’
is a brand new magazine just for Women. In each issue it features just five ideas, four meetings, three features, two essays and only one icon. Instead of focussing on one area, this magazine focuses on a broader range, such as art, design, music, business, innovation, politics, food and travel. This is instead of it being like most other Women magazine that seem to just focus on fashion and celebrities. What is also interesting a fresh about ‘Riposte’, is that it provides interviews with women who achievements are self-evident. The magazine shows a great deal of honesty in its content especially as the pictueres are not airbrushed. The magazines focus is to be real with the public.It’s about what women have to say and who they are, instead of what they look like or what they are wearing. This magazine is the start of a big change to the Fashion Indistry...
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