Like all things creative, inspiration can come from music, architecture, your mom — literally anything. Many designers have been using famous art works as a source of inspiration for their designs, color pallet and embellishments.
Rodarte, a brand that's famous for its high fashion gothic (not your Hot Topic gothic) inspired looks, was inspiration by Vincent van Gogh for its ready-to-wear 2012 collection. There were dresses that had literal, and not so literal, ideas pulled from Van Gogh paintings. The prints took color schemes from his famous works, like Starry Night, and plastered them onto the dresses.
(Photo courtesy of Style)
(Photo courtesy of the Museum of Modern Art)
The Row's (a brand started by the famous Olsen twin sisters) recent RTW collection drew inspiration from a more contemporary artist, Nick Cave. Cave is known for creating costumes for sculptures and his "Speak Louder" sculpture inspired some of the textured embellishments on the white and cream silhouettes.
(Photo courtesy of The New York Times Style Magazine)
(Photo courtesy of Style)
As I mentioned briefly in last week's post, Chanel's creative director Karl Lagerfeld drew some of his under the sea looks from Sandro Botticelli's "The Birth of Venus." While the inspiration was more of a modern rework of the famous piece, you can still see the idea, especially with the pearl belts and some of the billowy dresses.
(Photo courtesy of Artchive)
(Photo courtesy of Style)
Lagerfeld also used contemporary abstract artist Blinky Palermo, whose "Mirror Object" piece was a muse for the geometric lines used on the tweed coats.
(Photo courtesy of Style)
(Photo courtesy of Artlog)
Jason Wu, first lady Michelle Obama's favorite designer, stated that his RTW collection's major source of inspiration was from the graffiti and multimedia artist KAWS. One of the pieces used as a muse was "Companion (Passing Through)", a sculpture of one of KAWS's signature Mickey-Mouse-gone-bad-esque skull "figures" in a very somber position. The statue's colors and round headpiece were seen in some of Wu's tops and dresses, which are black with grey circular shapes.
(Photo courtesy of Style)
(Photo courtesy of New York Times Style Magazine)
I always find it interesting to see where designers get their ideas from — especially being in an industry where being "next" is the key to success. They have to be on their toes, and not only create clothes that clients will want to buy, but also design those clothes without losing their aesthetic. That can be the hardest part in the job — to find that balance and create something that's "you," yet also "in."
In the words of Project Runway's Heidi Klum: "[In the fashion world] you're either in or out."
Posts in If the Choo Fits appear on Tuesdays.
