A recent blog post I
wrote on future vintage got me thinking a lot about the craft/ practice of
fashion design as a whole and the fact that now it seems that anyone believes
they can design a fashion collection, despite no formal training. One of my
favourite comments on the topic came from a twitter follower geckocomms who
stated: “it's interesting no one would expect
to just design a house / a plane / a - well anything, except fashion.”
So first off where did this trend begin?
Well it seems the trend for celebrities designing
their own collections kicked in back in 1998 with Sean Combs/ Puff Daddy/ P
Diddy’s sportswear range, which in 2010 had an annual turnover of 500million.
On into the noughties we marched forward with more celebrities introducing
their own fashion brands, Jenifer Lopez started her J-Lo collection in 2001
which at the time was pretty popular in the states. I have particular issues
with her attitude towards her more recent (2011) collaboration with Kohl’s,
suggesting that designs for the collection were based on those from her closet.
THAT ISN’T
DESIGN…THAT’S COPYING
Although, these examples I’ve mentioned so far are US
based, I think it was 2007 when the trend really kicked in, in the UK with the
Lily Allen Loves collection for New Look, Kate Moss for Topshop and Madonna for
H and M.
I mentioned Kate Moss in my previous blog post which I
think was one of the most successful fashion collaborations and really saw this
trend increase, unfortunately this seemed to have the effect of suggesting that
design can just mean ripping off pieces from your own wardrobe. Not cool, not
cool at all.
A few key examples of the “wardrobe copy” (from the Daily Fail I'm afraid) - The
original hacked Bus Stop dress also sends shivers down my spine, and I wrote
about it extensively in my dissertation.
You can also read more about the Bus stop copy on Liz Eggleston's blog
In the UK at least I think this all came off the back
of a huge surge of what I call high/low collaborations. Popularised I feel by
the Karl Lagerfeld collection for H and M in 2004.
The thing is the effect seems to have snowballed to
insane levels now. I can see the design merit of Victoria Beckham’s collections
but examples from the past year alone are seeing the trend getting out of hand
with the likes of:
Rihanna for Emporio Armani
Agyness Deyn for Dr Martens
Rosie Huntington-Whiteley for Marks & Spencer
Kelly Brook for New Look
So why do I think this
is such a bad idea? There are a few reasons (and I will say I have no problem
with high/ low collaborations. I appreciate that this a chance for a little bit
of infiltration of high end designers down)
My main problem is it
devalues the work of a real fashion designer. As a former fashion student I
will tell you that fashion is HARD. Doing
a degree in fashion design was the toughest thing I have ever done, I
had to work my socks off to even get a mediocre grade. Not only do you have to
be able to draw clothes, but you need to be able to research effectively and
ideally pattern cut and actually make clothes (saying that some of the best
know designers of all time ahem Dior
couldn’t pattern cut, but his desing skills negated the need for this skill).
Studying fashion
properly teaches you the importance of RESEARCH. Research is not copying, yes the greatest designers
often take inspiration from designs of the past (John Galliano and Vivienne
Westwood are perfect examples of this) but they didn’t copy. By UNDERSTANDING
THE CRAFT of design they were able to draw inspiration from other pieces but make
them their own.
And finally my problem
that the celebrity collection seems to suggest the acceptability of copying to
all.
I’ll also draw on an
interesting comment recently made on Facebook by incredibly talented handbag
designer Karina Hesketh (you can see her bags here) She stated.
Well put Karina
The problem is that I
think the celebrity effect has caused this idea that anyone can be a designer,
and, I’m sorry but this just isn’t the case. This almost gripes me as much as
the misuse of the term curator… but again I’ll save that for another post.
So overall I’ll finish
on this. To the celebrities out there who think they are designers, in a good
90% of cases you’re not, rather you are just a very well paid canny marketing
ploy : )
When the Kate Moss for Top Shop came out there was an article in US Vogue about her, and her "design process." Seems like she showed up at the Top Shop office and the designers brought in vintage things for her to look at. Her involvement in the process was to point to the one she wanted to be copied.
ReplyDeleteI don't remember who said this first, but it's worth repeating: Just because you wear clothes does not mean you know how to design them.
Hear hear!
ReplyDeleteDidn't Gloria Swanson put her name to a line of clothes? I recall it being some time around the 1930s/1940s. She was always noted for being very stylish, so perhaps someone at a dress company decided to take advantage of that.
ReplyDeleteI do simple handknitting designs. Turning a piece of string into a 3D object takes time and skill. One friend did says to me, "We should design together - I'll have ideas and draw them out and you can do the maths." Um, no. If I'm spending that much time working out construction, i'll be doing it for my own ideas!
Dear Liz, thank you for following my wee little blog. I browsed through your blog a little bit and found you're a really interesting and so beautiful person. It's stunning that you own 40 Horrockses dresses. I read all the text above and find your thoughts most convincing. I wish you a wonderful, sunny Sunday afternoon. Hugs from Miss Maple
ReplyDeleteVery interesting article Liz; I agree that big celebrity names are more than likely telling actual in house designs/cutters/pattern-understanding people the type of clothes they themselves like, or in the case of Kate Moss, actually wear. I have absolutely no problem with this if that is what they called themselves 'a range by Kelly Brook of the type of clothes she likes and would wear' as opposed to her name being in the place of actual designer.
ReplyDeleteI'm guessing the combination of celebrity and High Street store works both ways as both parties benefit financially and just as the recent barrage of blog posts on other vintage blogs suggest, there is a sub-culture of women wanting to look like and imitate the style of their celebrity girl-crushes, just as there is a vintage sub-culture of wanting to look like a silver screen siren.
It's usually always about communication and in this case the concept is fine but applying the term 'designer' is not.
xXx
Fashion is only as good as it looks on you. If you wear a style that doesn't look good on you, you do not look stylish. If you're like most women, your wardrobe is probably a mixture of styles,
ReplyDelete