So I am of course not updating you DIRECTLY from the day of the exhibition...I didn't have time otherwise but I can assure you, dear reader, that I have been busy as a fucking beaver concerning my fashion endeavors.
Firstly, before Designblok occurred I visited the atelier (studio, in CZ) of Helena Fejkova. She has eclectic taste in design and she was also kind of...cold, shall we say? I walked in to meet my teacher and I didn't know if the namesake was in her "fashion gallery" so I asked an attendant, who pointed to the woman and I was given a gruff reply of "I'm busy!"...indeed, she was, I could see that with my own eyes, as she was fitting a plump woman with a jacket of sorts...i just asked a question, lady, I'm not fucking retarded
Anyhoo
My teacher arrived and we looked at the collection...and it's ugly and unwearable, in my opinion. She likes to utilize jester and renaissance themes, as well as ugly fabrics and colors. Her things are also wildly overpriced for the pieces produced. I've seen similar in the JC Penny catalog which I wouldn't even spend my money on if I wanted to.
That was just the beginning of an overall disappointing night of fashion.
I was late getting to Designblok because I was politely waiting for an interview with Queen of Shit Fashion who eventually did not even realize my presence anyway. I missed the opening designer, who I wanted to see the most. I saw some pieces and liked them a lot, but then came JAROSLAVA.
And I was bored out of my creative fashion mind.
It was as though someone had thought of the bright idea to host a fashion show for Old Navy. Henley stripped dresses, school girl plaids and uninspiring, oversized sweaters IN THE SAME FUCKING PATTERNS AND FABRICS OVER AND OVER AGAIN seemed to be the highlight? of her collection. I ended up not taking pictures, it was so unoriginal. And this woman sold her shit for top dollar too! I hope she paid Designblok to be able to show her shit. BOR-ING.
She also used organdy in some sort of brown color. Who the fuck uses organdy anymore? She must be in cahoots with Fejkova.
NAVARILA-DESIGN was next, and I was pleasantly surprised with what was being displayed. I'm sure I felt that way simply because of my disappointment with Jaroslava however. Navarila actually happened to be the friend of my friend Elise's host mother, also a fashion designer. Her concepts were simple and wearable but elegantly stylish and clearly took more brainwork to conceptualize than Jaraslava. There was a desert, Morrocan theme, completed in knits (HOW DOES SHE DO THAT????) with pieces similar to burkas, veils, etc. Her color combinations were excellent and each piece was seamlessly put together. Although i wouldn't consider this to be high fashion, it was certainly more provocative of thought and creativity than some others I had seen before.
So the second night of Designblok not so inspiring and entertaining, but you have to have some contrasts, right?
Monday, October 20, 2008
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
DESIGNBLOK PART 1
It's the most wonderful time of the year, dear readers, that time not being CHRISTMAS but FASHION WEEK, my favorite of holidays
Designblok '08 has begun and i am milking the sweet teet that is known as the "all week pass" (costing me roughly $5.50 I LOVE CZ). It's been fascinating so far. Designblok is inclusive of not only fashion design but design as a whole- industrial, architectural, furniture, ceramics, interior, etc. It shows amongst the settings provided. Everything is so contemporary, so smooth and bold and white- I've seen a lot of white tonight (fuck Labor Day yo). And people who dress very, very trendy.
I started off with a smaller fashion show but it impressed me a lot. Chi-Chi is the name and it is in collaboration with another female artist of Harddecore fashion who put on what I like to call a "performance of fashion". There were no models- dancers were used instead to create fluid movements and tell a story using the fashions placed upon them. There was a neon storybook theme and graphic design was also used to enhance the stage. Most of the fashions resembled loose adaptations of Russian tunics and three-quarter pants, some frock coats in contemporary designs, etc. You could tell the amount of hard work put into the styles and it certainly paid off. The shapes of the dancers were entertaining and it was definitely a unique showcasing of fashion which I know the audience also enjoyed.
The next show was by artist Monika Drápalová, who seemed to attract a larger, older crowd. I wondered if this meant she was an established designer, someone relatively well-known, a bit drab, etc. Her designs were not as intricate and exciting as Chi-Chi's but they were definitely worth viewing. She presented her models more traditionally, simply walking down the catwalk without interaction between models. What was interesting about her collection was its versatility- drawstrings and buttons were attached to feather-weight materials and as each model walked, she was changing the form and structure of the clothing. Loosening a top became an evening dress, pulling the buttons off of a tent-like coat became a flouncy skirt. Most impressive was her usage of men's tweed blazers, hanging upside down at the waist and then seemlessly turned upright to show the dynamic nature of the piece.
The second show was shorter than the first and lacked the imaginativeness of the former but both it can be said were against your average fashion show regiment. I am curious to know if this is how they are all done or if this was a special case because the designers may be somewhat up and coming.
I was able to score some calling cards from designers located in their "boutique booths" but I realize now I did not go about it in the proper ways I should have. One woman was apprehensive about an interview but the others were not, so I guess it's not that bad of a deal. I may even ambitiously leave my business cards around the booths in hopes of hearing from someone. Yet i don't want to be redundant- I think I've emailed just about everyone.
I look forward to the fashion activities that lay ahead for me tomorrow. Starting at 1:30 I have an interview with a design teacher, then and interview with the curator of textiles at the Design museum, then a special showcase of Helena Fejkova's collection with my teacher, and then from 6pm on it's back to Superstudio DOX for three or four more fashion shows.
And yes, I am on crack. But who isn't these days?
I am going to have NO FUCKING PROBLEM writing my independent study. None what fucking so ever.
Designblok '08 has begun and i am milking the sweet teet that is known as the "all week pass" (costing me roughly $5.50 I LOVE CZ). It's been fascinating so far. Designblok is inclusive of not only fashion design but design as a whole- industrial, architectural, furniture, ceramics, interior, etc. It shows amongst the settings provided. Everything is so contemporary, so smooth and bold and white- I've seen a lot of white tonight (fuck Labor Day yo). And people who dress very, very trendy.
I started off with a smaller fashion show but it impressed me a lot. Chi-Chi is the name and it is in collaboration with another female artist of Harddecore fashion who put on what I like to call a "performance of fashion". There were no models- dancers were used instead to create fluid movements and tell a story using the fashions placed upon them. There was a neon storybook theme and graphic design was also used to enhance the stage. Most of the fashions resembled loose adaptations of Russian tunics and three-quarter pants, some frock coats in contemporary designs, etc. You could tell the amount of hard work put into the styles and it certainly paid off. The shapes of the dancers were entertaining and it was definitely a unique showcasing of fashion which I know the audience also enjoyed.
The next show was by artist Monika Drápalová, who seemed to attract a larger, older crowd. I wondered if this meant she was an established designer, someone relatively well-known, a bit drab, etc. Her designs were not as intricate and exciting as Chi-Chi's but they were definitely worth viewing. She presented her models more traditionally, simply walking down the catwalk without interaction between models. What was interesting about her collection was its versatility- drawstrings and buttons were attached to feather-weight materials and as each model walked, she was changing the form and structure of the clothing. Loosening a top became an evening dress, pulling the buttons off of a tent-like coat became a flouncy skirt. Most impressive was her usage of men's tweed blazers, hanging upside down at the waist and then seemlessly turned upright to show the dynamic nature of the piece.
The second show was shorter than the first and lacked the imaginativeness of the former but both it can be said were against your average fashion show regiment. I am curious to know if this is how they are all done or if this was a special case because the designers may be somewhat up and coming.
I was able to score some calling cards from designers located in their "boutique booths" but I realize now I did not go about it in the proper ways I should have. One woman was apprehensive about an interview but the others were not, so I guess it's not that bad of a deal. I may even ambitiously leave my business cards around the booths in hopes of hearing from someone. Yet i don't want to be redundant- I think I've emailed just about everyone.
I look forward to the fashion activities that lay ahead for me tomorrow. Starting at 1:30 I have an interview with a design teacher, then and interview with the curator of textiles at the Design museum, then a special showcase of Helena Fejkova's collection with my teacher, and then from 6pm on it's back to Superstudio DOX for three or four more fashion shows.
And yes, I am on crack. But who isn't these days?
I am going to have NO FUCKING PROBLEM writing my independent study. None what fucking so ever.
Sunday, October 5, 2008
MALL MADNESS ZOMG!!!
Holy balls, readers, I found out where all they keep the trendy people in the Czech Republic!
They live at the mall. They probably sleep and eat there too and are probably the mannequins as well. Everyone who is extremely stylish and knows their Western Wear can be found at the mall.
You know why? Because they can afford to shop there.
Not that the people of the Czech Republic are poor...if anything, this is so my kind of place because everyone bargain hunts, and is spend-thrift and frugal. They just know how to conserve and spend their money. But when I am talking, the mall is off limits, I'm talking how H&M is one of the top designer retail shops- their clothing states the same amount of dollars it would be in America, but it's in EUROS...so a shirt that should cost you like, $5, $10 tops ends up being about $30
this is why you don't shop in Europe unless it's something absolutely unique you can bring a story back about
It was one of the first times I felt similarly dressed to most of the patrons however. Mind you, the malls in CZ are really no different than those in America- old ladies with too much time on their hands, teens and tweens playing with overpriced makeup, boots tucked into jeans and ROCO puff jackets with fur trimmed hoods were among the more popular getups. If one were deaf to the sounds of the Czech language, one might have felt right at home on Long Island.
There are also no real mainstream Western brands representative other than H&M, but there is a knock-off Victoria's Secret, and even a shitty version of Hot Topic (I know right) dubbed "New Yorker". Of course, being such a namesake, I had to go in and discover what trash could possibly be produced in such a place. I turned quickly and exited before the hot pink plaids and pleather jackets could overtake my soul.
Nevertheless, the Novy Smichov mall is a wonderful place to sit and meditate on the influence of capitalism on a world with a fresh Democracy
Also, Heavy Mental Robot Disco, located in the 49 kc bargain bin at Tesco, is probably my most favorite of purchases yet. "A colorful collection of Musical bon bons" is its tagline, so you know it's good.
They live at the mall. They probably sleep and eat there too and are probably the mannequins as well. Everyone who is extremely stylish and knows their Western Wear can be found at the mall.
You know why? Because they can afford to shop there.
Not that the people of the Czech Republic are poor...if anything, this is so my kind of place because everyone bargain hunts, and is spend-thrift and frugal. They just know how to conserve and spend their money. But when I am talking, the mall is off limits, I'm talking how H&M is one of the top designer retail shops- their clothing states the same amount of dollars it would be in America, but it's in EUROS...so a shirt that should cost you like, $5, $10 tops ends up being about $30
this is why you don't shop in Europe unless it's something absolutely unique you can bring a story back about
It was one of the first times I felt similarly dressed to most of the patrons however. Mind you, the malls in CZ are really no different than those in America- old ladies with too much time on their hands, teens and tweens playing with overpriced makeup, boots tucked into jeans and ROCO puff jackets with fur trimmed hoods were among the more popular getups. If one were deaf to the sounds of the Czech language, one might have felt right at home on Long Island.
There are also no real mainstream Western brands representative other than H&M, but there is a knock-off Victoria's Secret, and even a shitty version of Hot Topic (I know right) dubbed "New Yorker". Of course, being such a namesake, I had to go in and discover what trash could possibly be produced in such a place. I turned quickly and exited before the hot pink plaids and pleather jackets could overtake my soul.
Nevertheless, the Novy Smichov mall is a wonderful place to sit and meditate on the influence of capitalism on a world with a fresh Democracy
Also, Heavy Mental Robot Disco, located in the 49 kc bargain bin at Tesco, is probably my most favorite of purchases yet. "A colorful collection of Musical bon bons" is its tagline, so you know it's good.
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