Wearing the Building or Building the Dress

One of the areas of design which I have a fascination with but no knowledge of is architecture, having met and befriended MANY architect students.  It's an area of design that we all confront day in, day out yet my real understanding of it is every so slight.  Perhaps, relating it to fashion might be an easier way for me to grasp the subject.  This is exactly what the exhibition called 'Skin and Bones' and the MOCA (Museum of Contemporary Art) in Los Angeles aims to do.  Curator of the exhibition, Brooke Hodge points out and quite rightly in my opinion:

"Both clothing and building are based on the body, provide shelter, and are means of projecting identity.  Because both fashion designers and architects begin with a flat material, they realized that each could look to the other for ways to construct more complex forms."

The designers featured are people who take the thinking processes of an architect and in turn becomes architects of fabric.  Designers like Hussein Chalayan, Viktor & Rolf and Martin Margiela constantly take concepts of building and construction and work them into their designs.  Conversely, 'starchitects' like Future Systems, Shigeru Ban and Herzog & de Meuron compensate funcionality for a more impact-making whimsical approach to the design of a building, as in fashion. 

Too bad I'm not going to be in LA to better educate myself.  The exhibition is on from this November until March 2007. 

Curtain Wall House (Tokyo, 1995), Shigeru Ban Architects // Viktor & Rolf Multilayered Blouse, Jacket and Pants from One Woman Show (F/W, 2003)

Yoshiki Hishinuma Inside Out 2Way Dress (S/S 2004) // Prada Store Aoyama (Tokyo, 2000-1), Herzog & de Meuron

Selfridges Department Store (Birmingham, 1999), Future Systems // Junya Watanabe Dress (A/W 2000-1)

Comments

[Sam]

That seems like an interesting show.. Kind of like what Narciso Rodriguez does by fusing both architecture and fashion into his clothes. Btw Susie, did you get my 'lovies of my style'? I sent it to your email but wasn't sure if you got it.

[susie_bubble]

Yes I did...thanks Sammi! I'm waiting to receive the lovies of another reader - then I will do a massive post of all of the wonderful collages!