Running Head: VISUAL ARTS AND ITS SISTER FASHION1

Quincy Ibn Carter

Relationship between Fashion and Visual Arts

VISUAL ARTS AND ITS SISTER FASHION

Since the dawn of time visual arts (hand drawing, sketches, painting and sculpting) has

been a prevalent portion of history around the world. From the Stone Age to the current

age of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, visual arts can be found in a plethora of places.

According to the information researched, one of the biggest places for visual arts to be

found is in Fashion and in various design elements of fashion. Although fashion is

considered an art form, its kindred relationship with visual arts is intertwined to create

what designers of fashion consider to be "works of art". In this research we will examine

fashion designers who have turned garments into elaborate works of art. We will also

analyse how fashion designer have used actual pieces of famous artwork by famous artist

and incorporated those pieces into their designs. Finally we will study how designers

have taken famous paintings and re-imaged them with live models to recreate works of

art.

When examining how designers have turned their work into elaborate pieces of

artwork several designers come to mind. To begin with, Alexander McQueen has

transcended the realm of being merely a designer. McQueen is known for his over the

top, decorative, spectacles of designs that have been found on various celebrities and in a

multitude of museums worldwide. Take for example, his "Savage Beauty" collection, in

the words of current Creative Director of the brand Sarah Burton states " Savage beauty

is a celebration of the most imaginative and talented designer of our time. Lee was a

genius and a true visionary who pushed boundaries, challenged and inspired. He believed

in creativity and innovation and his talent was limitless" (Burton, 2015). In looking at

McQueen's Savage Beauty Collection one can be reminded that being an artist is about

pushing boundaries and looking beyond with is merely there. For this particular

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VISUAL ARTS AND ITS SISTER FASHION

collection that has been produced it is beyond just fashion, it is fashion that has inspired

an assembly of individuals from both the world of fashion and that of the world of visual

arts. It can also be said that work of this magnitude can be viewed as taken traditional

artwork and tuning it into 3D artwork that allows for people to see the intricate workings

of what was purely a concept that someone thought to dream up.

In this portion of the research we analyzed how fashion designer have used actual

pieces of famous artwork by famous artist and incorporated those pieces into their

designs. While analyzing this portion of the proposal it is found that the use of works of

art in fashion is very predominant. In this instance the Mosaic from the Monreale

Cathedral, c. 1170 was used as a print Dolce and Gabbana, 2013 collection. Then

Katsushika Hokusai, c. 1830-32 painting appeared in and John Galliano for Christian

Dior, 2007 collection. More importantly on this matter Vase with 12 Sunflowers by

Vincent van Gogh, 1888 was implemented into Rodarte S/S 2013 collection (See Section

7c for reference). Just to name a few designers who have done this it seems to be

something that has been tested by several designers as a way to amplify the collections

that have been produced over the course of some years.

In conjunction with designers using artwork in their actual garments consider

when they recreate the works of art from famed artist. Alexander McQueen took the

famous painting of Queen Elizabeth the First and modernized it as it was used for the

brands 2013 collection. Likewise, Valentino used 17th-century Ruff in 'Two Sisters' by

Cornelis de Vos painting in their A/W 2013 collection. The works of Gustav Klimt who

is "known for the highly decorative style and erotic nature of his works, which were seen

as a rebellion against the traditional academic art of his time. His most famous paintings

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VISUAL ARTS AND ITS SISTER FASHION

are The Kiss and Portrait of Adele Bloch-Bauer" (Blatty, 2016). Klimt work was spotted

in L'Wren Scott 2013 collection. The final artist founded in the recreation of their artwork

into fashion images is Roy Lichtenstein who had his image created into a reality by Mike

Ruiz.

Aside from looking at current pieces of artwork implemented into works of

fashion, the main focus of this research is to develop pieces of fashion that start off in the

realm of art sketches, going to full color and having its entire background be inspired by

painting, sculptures, and things of that nature and then producing the pieces into full

pieces of art work with a follow through from concept to actualization.

Mosaic from the Monreale Cathedral, c. 1170 and Dolce and Gabbana, 2013

Queen Elizabeth, c. 1592 and Alexander McQueen, 2013

17th-century Ruff in 'Two Sisters' by Cornelis de Vos, c.1615 and Valentino, F/W 2013

Katsushika Hokusai, c. 1830-32 and John Galliano for Christian Dior, 2007

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VISUAL ARTS AND ITS SISTER FASHION

Vase with 12 Sunflowers by Vincent van Gogh, 1888 and Rodarte S/S 2013

Gustav Klimt, 1901 and L'Wren Scott, 2013

Man Ray, 1924 and Jean Charles de Castelbajac, 2011 Roy Lichtenstein (1964), Zink magazine by Mike Ruiz

Reference:

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VISUAL ARTS AND ITS SISTER FASHION

Art Infusion in Fashion Product: The influence of Visual Art on Product Evaluation and Purchase Intention of Consumers. (2013). Journal Of Global Fashion Marketing: Bridging Fashion And Marketing, 3(4). Retrieved from http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/20932685.2012.10600848

Biehl-Missal, B. (2013). Art, Fashion, and Anti-consumption. Journal Of Macromarketing, 33(3). Retrieved from http://jmk.sagepub.com/content/33/3/245.abstract

Blatty, D. (2016). Gustav Klimt Biography. Biography.com. Retrieved 19 March 2016, from http://www.biography.com/people/gustav-klimt-9366571

Burton, S. (2015). AMQ Savage Beauty - Collection. Savagebeauty.alexandermcqueen.com. Retrieved 19 March 2016, from http://savagebeauty.alexandermcqueen.com/introduction.html

Fashion Design and Wearable Art | Artsy. (2016). Artsy.net. Retrieved 17 March 2016, from https://www.artsy.net/gene/fashion-design-and-wearable-art/artworks?for_sale=false&include_medium_filter_in_aggregation=true

Gray, S. (2014). Fashion victims? How clothes took over our art galleries. The Conversation. Retrieved 17 March 2016, from http://theconversation.com/fashion-victims-how-clothes-took-over-our-art-galleries-32946

Lees-Maffei, G., & Sandino, L. Dangerous Liaisons: Relationships between Design, Craft and Art. University of Hertfordshire Research Archive. Retrieved 17 March 2016, from https://uhra.herts.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/2299/7775/101325.pdf?sequence=1

Menkes, S. (2011). Is Fashion Really Museum Art?. Nytimes.com. Retrieved 17 March 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/05/fashion/is-fashion-really-museum-art.html?_r=1

When Fashion Meets Fine Art / artrepublic blog | ArtRepublic. (2013). Artrepublic.com. Retrieved 17 March 2016, from http://www.artrepublic.com/articles/417-when-fashion-meets-fine-art.html/

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