Clothing from different parts of the world during the 1800's

    Many people today, don’t relies how much the world changed quickly in the last few years. Today we have internet and media that connects us to the other side of the world in no time. We can see what is happening live in Canada from Egypt through our cell phones. The media is making the world getting smaller and smaller. We are becoming like one big country. Our traditions and cultures have mixed so much that most countries today, have very similar lifestyles. The kind of clothing worn in a particular place is one thing that made countries different from each other during the 1800’s. I will talk about the different garments worn in different place two hundred years ago.

    In Brithian during the early 1800’s a man would most likely wear a waistcoat, tight trousers and close-fitting coats. The top hat and the cane were very fashionable. He would also wear a white cravat around his neck. The woman would wear a high wasted dress in light fabrics like muslin, cotton or silk and a short jacket. Bonnet was fashionable headgear. By the late 1840’s clothes became bulkier and corsets were very popular- woman starting wanting very small waists. Mustaches, sideburns and beards were worn by most men.

Gloves and matching Bonnet made from silk and straw from the 1860’s

The gloves were not worn just to keep the lady warm but they made the woman look very elegant and nice. The bonnet was a fun piece that made them look very feminine. 

Corset from the 1883 made from cotton satin, leather and whalebone

What I like the most about this corset is the colours. It is not a common think to find these two colours- yellow and orange worn together at this time (not even today). We are more likely to find clothes with natural colours than with vibrant colours like this. 

Waistcoat embroidered by Julia Norman for her husband John Montefiore made from silk

It is a typical buttoned up, tight waistcoat with embroidered decoration. During the 1800’s men in Brithian wore waistcoats for their everyday life, today, in Malta I have only seen men in waistcoasts only when they are getting married.

Woolen coat, silk waistcoat and cotton under waistcoat from the 1815-20

This is what a typical man used to wear. These clothes made the men very handsome, elegant and clean. They look very formal to us, today. But these were worn everyday also during the morning.

    Even tough France isn’t far away from England, during the 1800’s, the frech still had their own style of clothing. The french were the first to abandon the ornate, constricting and overbearing fashion of the 1700’s. They now wore flowing dresses inspired mostly from the designs of the Greeks and the Romans. Their clothing was very comfortable and flattering. Men pants were mostly high waisted and not so tight. The woman also wore the bonnet like in England. 

Bodice from 1865 made from Jacquared- woven silk

French clothes were mostly with bright colours like this. I really like the shape and style of this bodice, it must have made the woman look very pretty.

    Other countries, mostly easern, had to wear certain clothes not bacause they were in style but because of their religion. Like other religious minorities in Iran, Zoroastrians were requied to dress to identify their religion. They wore brightly coloured clothing and did not usually veil their faces. His created an obvious contrast with the outdoor clothing worn by Musilim women. A Zoroastrian woman would typically were a tunic (qamis), together with loose trousers (shalvar) gathered at the ankle. These trousers were made from textile remnants becaue there were restrictions on Zoroastrian buying full widths of fabrics. Woman covered their heads with a small fitted cal (lachak), over which they would wrap several shawls around their head and shoulders.

Zoroastrian woman’s tunic, trousers, cap and shawl, Yazd Iran from the 1840-70 made from cotton plain weave with silk embroidery

The colours and the pattern look very vibrant and the clothes look very comfortable.

    During the same time, also in Iran women of the Qajar court would have worn a combination of short jacket, gauzy open- fronted blouse and voluminious skirt. They would have henna- painted hands and feet, and sometimes even painted bodies. Iran was divided in separate parts, and each region had its own traditions.

Jacket, blouse and skirt from the 1800-40 made from woven silk with metal thread, silk embroidery and seed pearls

The pale pastel colours are very beautiful and the clothes look very comfortable unlike the corset that were worn in Brithian. 

    In the 19^th century Iran and Afghanistan, Muslim women were usually fully veiled when they went out in public. They wore an outer layer over their indoor clothing and covered their faces. In Iran, this was often a sheet of dark blue or black textile worn with a white face- veil attached separately. Woman would have worn the burqa with matching loose- fitted trousers, with their skirts tucked inside. This outfit was worn with heeled slippers or boots.

Burqa with footed trousers from the 1850 made from white cotton with silk embroidery and green baize

It is a pity that women coouldn’t show their beautiful faces in public. This tradition is still going on in Iraq and Afgansthan.

Bibliography:

All information and pictures were taken personally from the V&A Museum in London in August 2013

Ettore Sottsass

    Ettore Scottsass was an Austrian designer, but lived in Italy, from the late twentieth century. He was one of the founder of the Memphis Group, and also he designed iconic electronic products, as well as furniture and ornaments. He was one who always carried a camera with him, wherever he went, and photographed anything that interested him. He spent his whole career as a designer trying to change the past designs. He believed that everything should have a function. "When I was young, all we ever heard about was functionalism, functionalism, functionalism," he once said. After he graduated in architecture he was forced to join the army during World War 2. After the war he worked on housing projects with his father before moving to Milan in 1946. Over therehe spent the rest of his career working as and architect, industrial designer, painter and writing for Domus the design magazine. He travelled a lot for inspiration and visited places like India, Egypt and New York.

    Below are pictures of the Acme House in Maui By Ettore Scrottsass. The owners- Adrian and Lesley were involved in the design and cooperated directly with the designer. Before knowing that is a beach house I instantly recognized that this is a house near the see because of its bright and vivid colours. It is a two story building with high roofs built around a big garden filled with beautiful green grass. The outside of the building has five colours- green, red, white and purple. These colours fit in really well together and makes the place very colourful. Since the outside already has a lot going on with the colours, the shape is quite simple and very geometric. It is made out of cubes only, except the roof of one part of the house the is triangle. The railings of the balcony are also very simple- cubic. Since this house is by the sea, I bet it is a summer house. In fact one side of the house has a lot of big glass windows for light to get in and brightens the indoors. 

    The design of the architecture reminded me of the Neo-plasticism paintings. This building could have been inspired from Pierre Clerk painting because they both have only straight lines and bold statement colours only. In the painting there are a lot of abstract cubic shapes and lines. The colours of the painting are the primary colours, black, white and green, which have brighter tones than the one of the building.

    An iconic design of Ettore Sottsass is the Valentine typewriter released for the brand Olivetti on Valentine’s Day in 1969. It is a typewriter made from plastic with a fitted plastic case where you can slide it in easily. The colour for this machine was chosen red to fit the theme of Valentine, symbolises love and sex. This typewriter had a lot of feathers that included the carriage that dropped, tough it was the colour that made it memorable. Mr. Sottsass referred to his typewriter as the “anti-machine machine.” Forty years on it is still in demand among collectors, if not consumers.

Bibliography:

February 2009 Johanna Agerman http://www.iconeye.com/read-previous-issues/icon-068-%7C-february-2009/valentine-typewriter

19^th October 2011 Jamie Derringer http://design-milk.com/the-acme-house-in-maui-by-ettore-sottsass/

1^st January 2008 Robin J.Pogrebin http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/01/arts/01sottsass.html?_r=0&adxnnl=1&adxnnlx=1387627634-2kcXUd8Mkkne7TLusCpHrQ

All searched on the 15th December 2013

House of Balenciaga

    He is known to be the king of cutting, Cristobal Balenciaga who spent his whole life refining from design to another. He is still well known mostly for his front raised hemlines, dolman sleeves, large buttons and the collar that sits on a band and stands away from the throat. His most famous period was in the 60’s after he designed a wedding gown that was phenomenal.

     In 1895 Cristobal Balenciaga was born in a small village in Spain. His mother was a dressmaker, so he was raised in the fashion industry. When he was only twelve he started his first apprenticeship with a tailor in San Sebastian and Madrid. In 1918 he opens his first fashion house in San Sebastian and quickly gains good reputation from Paris. During the Spanish Civil War Balenciaga was forced to shut down his business, and in 1937, he opens his fashion house in Paris where he was a huge success. 

    Above are two magazine covers with Balenciagas’ fashion work from the line of 1941. It was a collection inspired from the Spanish Renaissance dresses that caused a huge sensation. That year, the Spanish reports reported that sales in the three Spain based outlets were as high as ever. The collection was mostly of suites- all very elegant and feminine. The suite on the left is sewn mostly with velvet, very long high- waisted skirt with a balloon hem line to give more volume to the garment. The jacket has a quarter sleeve, with detailed embellishments and embroidery, mostly around the neckline and sleeve. It is very formal. On the other side, the suite on the right is with a shorter skirt. At the time the woman started going to work also in the office, and this garment is very ideal for this kind of work. It is made out of jersey, and the jacket has big staple buttons. The big shoulders makes it very elegant. 

    In 1950 Balenciaga shows his first collarless pieces, including raincoats and blouses as well as balloon dresses. Above are two pictures from this collection. On the left is a coat, which is a very modernist design and is very different from the one from the 1941. Contrary to the designs from before it looks more comfortable and not stiff at all. It is an easy to put on garment unlike the dress on the left, from the same year. The dress has a style, going back to the late 1800 with stiff corsets and bulky skirts.

     In 1960, Balenciaga travels to Madrid to make Queen Fabiola of Belgium’s bridal gown. This is the period of his career where he was known as one of the best designers of the world, with designs that are most refined. Queen Fabiola looked stunning in Baleciagas’ dress. It was a very simple dress but very elegant and well tailored. It had no details at all, unlike wedding gowns from today where the more detail they have the better they look. Balenciaga was very a very religious person and most of his work, including this bridal gown was inspired from the nuns and priests clothing.

     Below are two wedding gowns from 2013, the left of Paolo Sebastian and the other of Vera Wang. They are both very different from the one of the 1960. The have a lot of small detailing, beads lace and a lot of layers. Balenciagas’ gown is made all from satin while the ones from 2013 have a mixture of satin, sheer and lace. They all look very elegant, formal and feminine. 

    In 1968 Cristobal Balenciaga creates his last collection and in 1972 he dies. The business was handed to his nephews and in 1992 designer Josephus Thimister replaces them. The brand is still very famous and launches its collections twice a year, every year.

Bibliography:

2011 http://onthisdayinfashion.com/?p=8752

HPRINTS 2013 http://hprints.com/Cristobal_Balenciaga_1941_Evening_Gown-35318.html

The On-Line MA & RI Wedding Guides 2013 http://www.pinterest.com/maweddingguide/trends-for-2013-bridal-gowns/

 All searched on the 13th of December 2013

Memphis Group

    The Memphis Group was founded in 1981 in Milan, Italy by a group of designers and architects who believed that their designs should consist of different textures, colours, patterns and shapes. Memphis was a reaction against the slick, smart, warm, black humorless design of the 1970's. They wanted to give their designs more personality. The bright colours they used were a huge contrast against the big bold brown furniture of the early 1900’s. They found inspiration from the previous movements Pop Design and Art Deco. The name of the group was invented after the Bob Dylan song ''Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again''.

    Below is one of the iconic designs of the Memphis Group. It is the Super Lamp by Martine Bedin which was exhibit in the first exhibition of the group in 1881. It is made of metal, which has been painted and lacquered. It is a half circle on wheels with six bulbs on it. At the time cars started to become very popular and slowly it become a common thing for families to have one- Bedin must have got the inspiration from there. Each bulb holder has a different bright colour, while the base is in a darker tone of blue. The idea of lights on wheels is very original and futuristic, you could move it very quickly and very practical to put on a desk. This design looks very fun and childish, it actually looks like a kids’ toy. 

    Right below the Super Lamp there is the Scoop which was designed recently, thirty years later. Australian designer Stephanie Ng has created these pendant light made from wood and metal that was inspired by the shape of an ice cream cone. The bulbs wrap around the globe tightly as possible to look like an ice cream cone. The top part of the pendent is light brown, like the colour of the cone and the bulb is white- like the ice cream. The cord from which is hug is grey and has the texture very similar to a cone. The product looks like it is of very good quality and like the Super Lamp it is made from minimal lines. Both lamps have a fun character but this one is more smart and elegant.

    Another famous design from this time is the above Carlton Bookcase by Ettore Sottsass. It looks wooden but is made of cheap plastic laminates rather than fine material. Like the Super Lamp and all designs from the Memphis this set of shelves are very colourful with bright colours. It would defiantly light up a living room or an office. The designe is inspired from cactus, as we can see it has a very similar shape of this plant. When it was invented this was considered as a very luxurious object. The vivid colous and the abstraction of the shape looks like a painting! 

    Below is a set of table and chair from the early nineteen hundreds of Hector Guimard from Art Nuovoue. Look how a few years time can change design completely! This design has no connections at all from the previous ones we have seen. It is made out of wood with its natural colour- neutral brown. The design is very smart and stiff. It has a lot of details for decoration, while the other designs have no decoration at all. I personally prefer the Pop Design than this era, because I prefer more bright colours and fun designs.

Bibliography:

2009 Memphis http://www.design-technology.org/memphis1.htm 

2008 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Hector_Guimard_(Mus%C3%A9e_des_BeauxArts_de_Lyon)_(5469543414).jpg

Hector 2013 http://www.contemporist.com/3

All searched on the 14th of December 2013

Frank O Gehry

    Frank Owen Gehry was born in Toronto in 1929 and studied architecture at the University of California. A number of his works became tourist attraction buildings. His works are known to be one of the best from Contempory design. He was a very modernist designer and his style was mostly of deconstructivism. Famous designers aren’t good in just one field, and Gehry was also was famous for his furniture designs. The series of which the Wiggle Chair is part of is a collection of furnishings made out of corrugated cardboard.

    Above is an icon of modern design, the’ Wiggle Chair’ designed in 1972. It is a very famous design because it is very unique, both from the design of the shape and also from the material chosen. This chair is mostly famous because it is made out of cardboard. Strips in the form of the chair are cut and simply glued together to form the width of the chair. In the 1960s a trend for cost-efficient and lightweight materials led to experiments with using cardboard in furniture design.   The shape of the chair is just one simple continuous curved line. Experiments show that cardboard is very strong and this chair is very stable. The only disadvantage is that it cannot get wet, otherwise is starts to corrode. I think Gehry did a good job leaving the cardboard in its origin neutral colour- brown,because the shape itself is already very eye-catching. Ergonomic-wise it looks very comfortable because the seating shape is a bit curved. The design of the chair is very fun and would be a great stable piece in Contempory designed room. This is defiantly one of my personal favourite furniture pieces ever designed. 

    Another Frank Gehrys’ collection of furniture which is still being produced, is the Colour Cubes. They are a series of seating, benches and coffee tables made of UV-protected rotational-molded polyethylene. They are very cubic furniture with strong bright colours, red, yellow, green, blue, magenta. Just like the Wiggle Chair they look very fun, with the bright colours, they look like a bunch of flowers in a garden. I think they are a perfect set of furniture for outdoors and also for the indoors. They would make the garden very beautiful and colourful and the inside very bright and cool. Frank Gehry saturates his powerful forms with the magical energy of color. This idea of the design is very different from the Wiggle Chair, but still have similar elements like – original shape and fun Contempory style.

    I found this chair above, on the internet. It is a Contampory chair, designed this year (2013) by Michele Franzina. It is a reading chair, and as you can see it has a small stand were you can rest your book while reading. This idea is very helpful and useful. Just like the wiggle chair the chair is made out of just one continuous line. The makes the design very modernist and simple. The top of this chair is a lime green and like the Colour Cubes this will bright up a room. The cover of the chair is felt and is a bit flexibale which makes it comfortable to sit one. It is also lightweight which makes it easier to move around. 

    From all these three furniture pieces, the wiggle chair is still my favourite because I think it has the most unique idea, both from design ad material.

Bibliography:

Dave January 3013 http://www.contemporist.com/2013/01/21/aleaf-by-michele-franzina-and-venezia-homedesign/#more-64592

Stardust 2013 http://www.stardust.com/WIGGLECHAIR.html 

searched on the 13th December 2013

The House of Givenchy

    Heubert de Givenchy, associated mostly with Audrey Hepburn,  dressing her through most of her career, was a designer with purity in style! He is well known for his suits, flirty dresses and LBD’s (little black dress). He brought an elegance and sophistication to the 50’s and 60’s that cannot be underestimated.

    In 1927, Count Heubert de Givenchy was born in Beauvais, in northern France. He started studying law when he was eighteen, but it only took him a few months to change to an art school in Paris. He worked alongside Balmain and Dior, and also Schaparelli, until 1951 where he opened his own couture house. His first collection was not made out of fine fabrics due to few financial problems, but The Bettina Blouse- named after the model Bettina was a big hit. It was made from a type of cotton that was usually used only for fittings. It had a wide neck and fitted waist, and a dramatic sleeve. Those layered sleeves personally remind me of flamenco costumes. 

   

    Unlike Chanel, whose style was mostly the typical skirt and blazer suit, Givenchy had very fun and flirty design. On the right is a Chanels’ suit from 1950 (only a year difference). Both designs are elegant and formal but yet with a complete different style. I imagine better Givenchys’ blouse worn on a younger lady, while the other would be more appropriate for someone over twenty five. The fabric Chanel used makes the garment look feminine and more stiff, tough The Bettina Blouse looks more playful and relaxed. The colours from Chanel – pink and gold are also more ladylike and elegant than the black and white from Givenchy’s. Both stlyes are not seen anymore, today in the market, but sixty years ago, these were both iconic garments.

"I've always wanted to create something that would not disappear with me, but would outlive me for fifty or maybe hundred years" -Huber de Givenchy

    In 1954 Audrey Hepburn is seen in the movie Sabrina wearing a wardrobe of Givenchy classics, many with the bateau neckline, which is widely copied. Through worldwide distribution of the film, the designer becomes a household name. Below is a dress that was worn in Sabrina, which became a huge classic. It is a  very beautiful white gown with black floral detailing embroidered all around. It is a very modernistic design. It is very elegant and not everyone could pull it off, but it looks great on Audrey Hepburn.  He would later go on to also create costumes for Funny Face and Charade. Givenchy also becomes the first major couturier to produce a ready- to- wear line. 

    Givenchy’s gown looks very similar to something that is worn today, in fact I found a Versace dress from the twenty first century that has a very similar design. They are both strapless and corseted with a big bulky skirt. They are very elegant and flirty, though since Versaces is black it looks much more smart and sophisticated. For decoration, Versaces has a shiny fabric for the bustier and a bit on the side of the skirt. It looks very classy. I imagine the white dress worn on a more fun and energetic lady at a day event, while, the black one would be more appropriate at night.

    Audrey Hepburn continued to work with Givenchy her whole career and she wore his clothes on and off the set, in honour of their ongoing relationship. She also becomes the face of his fragrance the L’Interdit. In 1988 Givenchy sells his brand to LVMH, the fashion corporation tht also own Louis Vuitton and in 1995 he retires from designing. Riccardo Tisci is designing for this brand now and is still making a huge success.

Bibliography:

Lisa January 19^th 2011 http://www.coletterie.com/fashion-history/hubert-de-givenchy-couturier-confidant

Septemeber 20^th 2011 http://bpardue.blogspot.com/2011/09/1950s-chanel.html

August 11 2010 Closet http://closetmelbourne.blogspot.com/2010/08/iconic-dress-audrey-hepburn-in-sabrina.html

All searched on the 9th of December 2013

The Vase

    Decorating the indoors with vases was always a tradition, even before history was written! All kinds of vases are found from each era of history. This might be, because having a vase is an easy way to decorate and also, unlike a big statue, it can be travelled from one place to another very easy.

    Going back 570 years before Christ the Aryballos vase was made, which is now found at the Metropolitan Museum. This is from the Egyptian times and the shape is still very similar to the ones we find today. Aryballos is made from clay and the technique used isn’t very different than the one we use today. Just like most clay items from this era this is red and black.

    Most sizeable pots like this one were split into different parts before sticking together. Once these were dried up and hard, more clay was used to glue the joints together, and lastly the handles were glued. Black figure drawings and ornamental designs were attached with a slip that when moved in the fire, it turned black and the background stayed the same.

     These kind of vases were very common at the time. Aryballos is a very round vase with a continuous round ornamental pattern. The colours are very neutral and the figures give the vase some action and life to it. The different levels at the top give it an interesting and flowy shape. It actually looks very similar to something we have in our homes today.

    Above is a vase from the late 1800, thousands of years after the Aryballos. It is a vase from Rene Lalique, a famous designer from Art Nouveau . It is a vase made form white glass with a very small tint of blue. Just like Aryballos it has a very round shape, it is a long wide cylinder with moving figures engraved on it that give it a very flowing effect. Ten women undressed figures are surrounding the vase. They look very sensual and elegant- this was a very common style at the time. Both vases we see above have moving figures surrounding it. The difference is that the ones of Aryballos look very tribal, with no details and unproportional bodies, while the ones from Lalique are very detailed and feminine. The one of Lalique has a lot of different texture while the other one is very smooth. 

    Moving on to another two hundred years further, vases are still being produced, this time during the era of Pop Design. Above is the Aalto vase - an icon of Pop Design. It is a perfect example of Alvato’s Aalto free- flowing imagination. Just like Laliques’ the vase is made out of glass. This is made by first melting the glass into the mold, than they take it out and give it the right smooth texture with a piece of cardboard. Finally, it is put into an annealing kiln where a slow cooling process eliminating the internal stress from the glass. Like the other vases we have seen, it is also has a round shape, but this time very different. It looks like a bunch of cylinders connected together. The vase has no details at all, the shape itself is the detail.

Bibliography:

May 2012 http://www.moorcroft.com/Site/Studio/Designer.asp?id=36

2013 http://www.lalique.com/en_GB

Bebbo Line 2013 http://www.aalto.com/aalto-vases.html

All searched on the 10th of December 2013