Tradition, Innovation and Translation

Future Beauty: 30 years of Japanese Fashion

The fashion of tomorrow has always seemed more lovely than the fashion of today to the “king of fashion”, Paul Poiret  in the 30s. Poiret would find the upcoming show in Barbican endeavoring to convey the same type of loveliness. The oxymoronically titled exhibit—Future Beauty: 30 Years of Japanese Fashion—opens in London this week featuring designers including Issey Miyake, Rei Kawakubo, Yohji Yamamoto and Junya Watanabe, etc.

The galleries are arranged into four sections: In Praise of Shadows; Flatness; Tradition and Innovation and Cool Japan.

Do not expect a delivery of Japanese tradition as interpreted in Paul Poiret or Alexander McQueen or Quentin Tarantino who employed the language of orientalism. The non-Japanese designers inspired by the kimono create theatrical possibilities of visual effects, but the translation seems, insistently, a bit word-for-word. Rei Kawakubo’s monochromatic black may not indicate much Japanese revitalization. In her ingenious world however, Kawakubo is holding a Hattori Hanzō sword of creation and fighting the battles she wants to fight.

Reference: interviewmagazine

 Paul Poiret's kimono inspired dress, and kimono coat

 

Björk in McQueen's kimono

Photo credit: xolondon

 Quentin Tarantino in tuxedo-kimono

Irving Penn's queen Amidala in kimono

Psycho Clowns

What style elements can you think of putting on to make a clown costume? We’ve seen, every November of the year, argyle, polka dots, and colors—lots of colors. And where does the fear of clowns come from, btw? What is scary could not possibly be the pleated collar of Bozo, or the bulbous nose of Weary Willie, or the black and red mask of Harlequin. It might not be just about how bizarre and grotesque the characters are, but the exaggeration and idiocy you may effortlessly identify through the white face.

The expansion of clown elements, imperceptibly, is not short of diversity, and sure won’t have much complaint for a cotton candy-like wig.

I wonder what Bozo would think looking at such an assortment of costumes in Comme des Garçons’s Spring 2010 Ready-to-Wear. After the chiffon veils seen at the latest Fall 2009, here comes the cotton candy wig, much less creepy and much more silly.

No matter what the costumes mean to be—entertaining, or frightening, the best part of it—they are not afraid of the likelihood of being related to foolishness.


References:
refinery29
joonbug
style.com