a
visual
trend
journal
by
yasamin
rahmanparast
fasm 440
TABLEof CONTENTS
INTERACTIVE // p.3 NEON // p.5 NATURE // p.7 VINE // p.9 MARBLE // p.11 PAINT // p.13 CRYSTAL // p.15 HEADS // p.17
I N T E R A C T I V E W I N D O W S Innovation with with a dash of humanity. This is 2015. Fashion is of the times; it is a direct reflection of today’s zeitgeist. And today, there is nothing more prevalent in the world in front of us than the presence of technology. Luckily for the extensive world of Visual Communications, Silicon Valley is generous. The first photo to the right illustrates Topshop’s virtual reality window display for Autumn Fashion Week 2014. The virtual glasses, fitted by technology agency Inition, give shoppers a front row fashion show experience while inside their retail space. BMW also created one of the most innovative and awe-strucking displays of visual communication to promote their i Concept clean energy vehicles. A large display on the wall of a busy New York City street combined digital projection and motion projection to transform the thousands of passing cars into reflections of the i Concept, in real time. Vitrine’s display tickled its passerbys as pedestrians passed a screen of motion media designs. While walking across the screen, whimsical designs followed each person’s movements, like an echo. While some of these futuristic applications were not necessarily fashion apparel applications in display, the technologies involved can easily be applicable.
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N E O N D I S P L AY S What says ‘future’ more than piping-hot chemicals in skinny glass tubes? Absolutely nothing. We see them everywhere. Food service. Airport terminals. Questionable roadside establishments. We’ve become immune to neon signage. And now, it’s permeated fashion. Recently, both the luxury sector and high street have utilized neon components to attract passing shoppers into their storefronts. A subtrend of this neon megatrend is extending the signage from simply geometric to actual words or phrases. The large photo to the left comes from Lanvin’s past holiday season. The red signage applied Christmas red and its glow to its window in a modern, sleek style. To the top right, Nike’s Fuel Station used the neon for utilitarian lighting purposes to highlight their high-tech garments, while also creating a warped-speed optical illusion. Neon lights are here to stay. 6
NA A TT U U RR EE N W II N ND DO OW W SS W
Even though we are creatures of the metropolitan 21st century, a megatrend of returning back to nature permeates the entire world of design. According to top trend sources WindowsWearPro, WGSN, and Wallpaper Magazine, the artisanal-nature trend is one of the most popular, and will continue to hold weight in the coming seasons as well. I believe this trend is so popular because fashion wants to push against the saturation of technology. In a way, these windows focus on how 21st century society at large engages with the natural landscape. The incorporation of nature into the windows not only reflects the zeitgeist, but creates a sense of drama in contrast to the sleek, metal world of luxury retail. The photos to the right illustrate this trend in both womenswear and fine jewelry. The unkempt swamp in the largest photo creates a sense that the viewer is transported to an untouched bayou, creating a juxtaposition to the decorated cocktail attire of the mannequin. To the right, Barney’s pairs modern business-wear with the wild wooden details behind it, also creating an unorthodox pairing that highlights the sole look.
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V C
I O
N M
E M
At SCADStyle 2015, Meagan Cignoli spoke on a panel highlighting nontraditional marketing through social media channels. Vine, her most creative channel, has become the newest and most innovative portal for brands to showcase their identities in fun six second videos. Non-fashion brands are also using this channel brilliantly. GE uses 90’s science superstar Bill Nye to attract a younger audience to their new gadgets and developments. Lowe’s’ famous “6 Second Tips” makes use of stop-motion animation to illustrate their quick home-improvement suggestions in a completely unique way. Concluding the social media panel, Cignoli said, “The videos don’t even need to show the brand’s log. You simply need to create interesting content to generate buzz, for success.”
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M A R B L E SURFACE
Marble. There’s something mysterious and sexy about it. Its curvilinear patterns evoke the wrinkle in time in which this natural stone was born, yet its hard and almost impenetrable surface feels cold and distant. This material is utilized extensively in Hedi Slimane’s new Saint Laurent stores most notably in the world of fashion. He has planned to remodel every former Yves Saint Laurent store to fit the sophisticated and hard style he has defined for the 21st century. Celine is also using it as a storefront panel, and Alexander Wang’s Balenciaga has crafted deep green and black marble in the staircases of their stores. This material is also reinterpreted into patterns on unconventional materials, such as designer phone cases and tee shirts. Ultimately, this material transforms any space or surface delivering a look into a sophisticated and modern perspective.
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P A I N T S T R O K E
A painter holds the handle of his dipped brush and applies just as much pressure to his affected surface as he wishes to evoke. He can evoke grace or he can evoke anger. The flick of his wrist can deliver a sense of fun and excitement a la Polluck. This technique is also emplowed in fashion. Rick Owens painted his models in gold leaf foil for his previous AW Men’s show, creating a sense of fantasy to his neutral palette. Stuart Weismann utilized colorful paint splatters in his displays for his bags to create a sense of whimsicality to his designs. This fun detail of visual communication is also incorporated into fashion show invitations and wall displays. Looking lovely.
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C R Y S TA L L I N E P A R A D I S E When looking forward into what is modern and new, key imagery comes to mind: sharp metals of sci-fi skyscrapers and floating gardens on space crafts. Space age. The future, however, is today, and the material that will define the future of elaboration will come from faceted glass: crystals. Crystalline embellishments have categorically defined royalty and opulence since 16th century Europe, yet the crystal structures of today take on a much more geometric form. One of Tom Ford’s flagship stores is even designed like a maginified crystal, as its walls span 15, 20, and 40 degrees across its foundation, jutting into the blue sky above it. Fixtures such as the ones from the photos to the right suggest a new shape to the traditional chandelier. These new structures warp into three-dimensional curvilinear shapes, and even repeat in placement to create a new sense of drama.
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A V A N T H E A D S
In psychology, there is a term that is known as the “Uncanny Valley.” This theory states that there is a fine line where humans can accept another object with human-like looks and capabilities. A children’s dress-up doll is recognizably human-inspired, but cartoonish enough to not unsettle nerves. These unorthodox mannequin heads play with the notion of this Uncanny Valley. Bottega Veneta dabbles twice. First in an extreme “bobble-head” mannequin, and then in a makeshift “ragdoll” mannequin. To the left, a mannequin is modeled directly from a human, yet the marble pattern of its composition deters it from attaining a completely human-like quality. It’s time to re-shape the face of fashion.
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WORKS CITED
http://thebwd.com/interactive/ http://www.windowswear.com/press/bergdorf-goodman-2014-holiday-windows-exclusive-sneak-peak-with-head-window-designer-david-hoey WGSN WindowsWear h t t p : / / w w w. w a l l p a p e r. c o m / d e s i g n / d e s i g n - o r a c l e s - t h e - e x h i b i t i o n - re w r i ting-the-past-present-and-future-stories-of-objects/8668