Eleanor Parry-Hensley

I was drawn to Mhari Tyler’s blog about cotemporary portrait photography due to my own background in fashion photography as well as being interested in how they managed to adapt to the current Covid-19 pandemic. Tyler worked around the restrictions she faced by using her boyfriend as a model through facetime. Tyler touched on the all too relatable feeling of trying to feel close to loved ones by using technology, but that hearing their voice or seeing their face cannot replace being with them in real life. I liked that she included such a personal and vulnerable message in her artwork that many of us will be able to relate too. She emphasised her isolation by using multiple cameras to capture her boyfriend, enforcing the feeling of entrapment. I would have loved to have seen how this was done with attached photos of the final images, as without the photos it is difficult to understand how she would have achieved this. However, the idea is creative and sounds as though it was effective in enhancing her message. 

Tyler successfully reflects on the Better Lives themes of sustainability and social responsibility by bringing attention to how detrimental and wasteful photoshoots can be on resources. This is a topic I discussed in my second blog post and wished Tyler had expanded more on as it is extremely relevant to today’s pandemic as well as the future of the fashion industry. Tyler wrote that due to the pandemic people have had to halt their daily routines and “think about ways they can better themselves and the way they approach creativity” This is accurate and as I wrote in my own blog post 2 that the UK’s lockdown has already seen a huge improvement in air quality. This will hopefully make those who were causing damage to the environment before, such as fashion photography producers, to revaluate their processes and make more sustainable choices. 

Tyler discussed the feedback and peer assessments she did over Black Board collaborate with her classmates. I liked the reflection she made on viewing everyone’s photographs and how it showed such a variety of perspectives on the world. Tyler wrote that this made her feel connected with everyone and their work, I loved this reflection and it is so important in this current climate to remember that we are all connected and are all going through this difficult time together. Photography and art are a powerful way of showing this and I feel Tyler truly understood this. 

Tyler’s blog post was also extremely interesting to read as towards the end she says that the Better Lives unit helped her to realise what she was currently studying was no longer her passion. Photography was now the path she wished to follow and was passionate about learning how to change the future of fashion photography. I am glad Tyler came to this realisation and that Better Lives was what pushed her to study what she wanted, also that she has a passion and interest in making a change in the industry. 

Reflecting on my Navigating Through Clothing Project Outcome and Personal Development

For my final outcome I chose to design a costume for the character of Gretel (Figure 1). I gravitated to her transformation from naïve young girl to the hero of the story and was captivated by her ability to protect her brother no matter the circumstance. I designed Gretel a costume that represented this side of her and found inspiration in powerful girls from pop culture. In particularly Pippi Longstocking, as a child I found Pippi to be a captivating character, her carefree and whimsical life was far from my own and her clothing perfectly echoed this. Pippi’s loose comfortable dresses and scuffed up leather boots allowed her to adventure freely and not be restrained. Gretel reminded me of the Pippi I adored growing up and took on board the idea that the costume should be loose and free-fitting, allowing the audience to be convinced that this is an outfit a young girl could go trekking through the woods in. 

To help stimulate ideas the Navigating Through Clothing class was taken to the British Museum. There I came across the French painter Edouard Vuillard and his bold use of colour and illustration. I felt an instant adoration for his work and my final colour palette was influenced by his 1891 oil painting, The Flowered Dress (Figure 2). I settled on a bright lime green shade paired with a white and yellow striped under shirt. This bold choice of colour allows her to be spotted easily on stage and emphasises her playful side. Vuillard’s use of print and pattern also excited me and led me to create my own pattern for Gretel’s costume. Intrigued by the relationship the two children have with animals throughout the story I played tribute to the ‘little duck’ referenced at the end of the tale by illustrating several ducks and positioning them in a way which created a repeating pattern. This covers Gretel’s dress and adds a childlike component to the outfit. 

When deciding what the costume should be made out of, I referred back to the Better Lives theme of sustainability and knew I wanted the dress to not have detrimental effect on the environment. I settled on cotton for both the dress and under body suit, as cotton is “sustainable, renewable, and biodegradable, making it an excellent choice as an environmentally-friendly fibre throughout its entire product life cycle.”. Also, I felt it was important for the actress who would play Gretel to feel as though she was wearing something comfortable and soft allowing her to immerse herself in the character and truly believe she could go on Gretel’s adventure in this garment. I thoroughly enjoyed this unit and believe it has opened my eyes to a side of the fashion industry I hadn’t previously considered.  

References

Figure 1: Eleanor Parry-Hensley, 2020, Final Design of Gretel

Figure 2: Édouard Vuillard (French, 1868-1940), The Flowered Dress, 1891.Oil on canvas, 38 x 46 cm. São Paulo Museum of Art, Brazil.

• Anon, Cotton Sustainability: Frequently Asked Questions. Cotton and Sustainability Frequently Asked Questions. Available at: https://www.cottoncampus.org/Cotton-Environmentally-Friendly-Sustainability/ [Accessed April 30, 2020].

• Anon, Hansel and Gretel. Grimm 015: Hansel and Gretel. Available at: https://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm015.html [Accessed April 30, 2020].

How Better Lives Will Impact My Work in The Future as An Image Maker

As a fashion illustrator in 2020 our role as image makers is becoming more and more impactful when it comes to sustainability. Vogue Italia’s January 2020 issue marked a bold step towards change in the fashion industry. The magazine replaced all their usual photographs with fashion illustrations in the name of sustainability. The publication was “created without travelling, shipping entire wardrobes of clothes or polluting in any way” (Farneti, 2020). I believe in the future, many magazines will follow in Vogue Italia’s footsteps and become more conscious of the way their publication can negatively impact the environment. This is heightened by living in a world plagued by Covid-19 where “In the UK, the shutdown has already seen a huge leap in air quality with measurements of toxic small particulate matter down by as much as 50 per cent in some major cities.”(Cockburn, 2020). This will hopefully bring attention to the climate crisis and help world leaders to see how change once thought of as impossible is now happening. 

As an Illustrator I have the skills to promote this change through my artistic voice. I feel a sense of responsibility to create artwork that can make a change (such as the Vogue Italia publication) by being a more sustainable alternative to photography. However, I also have the choice to use my illustrations as a way of spreading the message of sustainability. As someone who regularly uploads artwork to Instagram, I have now become aware of the opportunity I have to use my artistic voice to spread a sustainable message. One way I have done this is by showing my support for the organisation ‘Fashion Revolution’ by illustrating women wearing their slogan and sharing their promotional material. Fashion Revolution believes the global fashion industry needs “systemic change in order to tackle poverty, economic inequality, gender inequality, climate change and environmental degradation.”. After the better lives project I am going to take more responsibility as an individual and image maker and continue to consider sustainability more in my artwork and future as an illustrator. 

References

• Anon, 2018. Fashion Revolution written evidence to the ‘Sustainability of the fashion industry’ inquiry, U.K. Environmental Audit Committee. Fashion Revolution. Available at: https://www.fashionrevolution.org/fashion-revolution-written-evidence-to-the-sustainability-of-the-fashion-industry-inquiry-u-k-environmental-audit-committee/ [Accessed April 30, 2020].

• Cockburn, H., 2020. Greener, more equal economy must emerge after impact of coronavirus, experts say. The Independent. Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/coronavirus-economy-green-equality-climate-change-covid-19-a9430616.html [Accessed April 30, 2020].

• Farneti, E, Vogue Italia’s Instagram photo: “*NO PHOTOSHOOT PRODUCTION WAS REQUIRED IN THE MAKING OF THIS ISSUE A preview of the January 2020 Vogue Italia Special Issue on newsstands…”. Instagram. Available at: https://www.instagram.com/p/B602AOPK0LH/?utm_source=ig_embed [Accessed April 30, 2020].

I approached the Better Lives lectures as a sceptic, I was unaware of the magnitude of change which still needs to be done by the fashion industry. I was most moved and inspired by the lectures Wellbeing given by Jekaterina Rogaten and Representation by Teleica Kirkland. We live in a monocultural and Eurocentric society, where thin, white, abled people are predominantly used in consumerism to sell to the masses. Kirkland commented in her lecture that “what this does to the social consciousness of everyone is to believe only one type of person can be and should be seen in everyday media. This then has repercussions on the people who don’t look like that.” 

For Better Lives I am taking part in the Navigating Through Clothing project, in which we are exploring costume design for performance and re-interpreting characters from a given text. Approaching this project after listening to the lectures has given me a new outlook on how the costume design industry can make changes to help create better lives. 

Rogaten in her lecture discussed how the lack of diversity in fashion consumption has led to eating disorders becoming common among models and that the “teen age group have the most apparent development of eating disorders”. This sadly is not shocking, the influence of this can also be felt in the theatre and performance world. In ballet “there is popularly believed to be an ideal ”Balanchine” body type for women, with the jobs going to tall, slender women with long necks, long legs and short torsos.” (Dunning, 1997). In my costume design project, I want to re-interpret characters which do not add to this problematic ideology and make a point of questioning the damage done by those in the industry. 

Outside of the better lives project I am studying BA Fashion Imaging and Illustration, as a fashion illustrator and image maker it is important to also take accountability in ensuring the images made are inclusive and challenge the monocultural norms. Image makers such as Florence Given are using their platforms to make social change with their images. Given commented in an interview with Independent magazine that “we (women) are viewed as existing for male consumption in the media, which in turn reflects in how men treat women’s bodies in real life.” (Petter, 2019). This ideology reflects on those who cast women for modelling jobs or ballet performances, that only one type of body can be seen as beautiful or sexual. 

References

Dunning, J., 2020. Eating Disorders Haunt Ballerinas. [online] Nytimes.com. Available at: <https://www.nytimes.com/1997/07/16/arts/eating-disorders-haunt-ballerinas.html> [Accessed 27 March 2020].

Kirkland, T 2020, Representation, lecture notes, Better Lives Unit FU001708, London College of Fashion, delivered 19 February 2020.

Petter, O., 2020. Meet The Illustrator Who Wants You To Dump Your Boyfriend. [online] The Independent. Available at: <https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/florence-given-interview-instagram-influencer-dump-him-illustrations-a9002236.html> [Accessed 27 March 2020].

Rogaten, J 2020, Wellbeing, lecture notes, Better Lives Unit FU001708, London College of Fashion, delivered 17 February 2020.