Fashion: A personally enthralling field of study!

Fashion - a simple expression, comes from a Latin word ‘Facere’ which means ‘to make’. ‘Fashion’ provides an impetus between the craftsmanship & the Laws of Design. But is it as simple as it sounds? Chronologically a lot of people have come up with their own views and definitions about Fashion.
“Fashion is architecture. It is a matter of proportions.”
Coco Chanel
“Fashion anticipates, and elegance is a state of mind ... a mirror of the time in which we live, a translation of the future, and should never be static.”
Oleg Cassini
“Fashion is more usually a gentle progression of revisited ideas.”
Bruce Oldfield
“Fashion is something barbarous, for it produces innovation without reason and imitation without benefit.”
George Santayana
“Fashion is the science of appearances, and it inspires one with the desire to seem rather than to be.”
Edwin Hubbel

Fashion, as I understand is a way of non-garrulous expression of one’s way of life. The term Fashion is a relatively new word, which came into existence not farther than the 11th to 13th century, today is used to describe the frenzy of pure glamour. Fashion or dress (in simpler terms) has always been a key to understanding people’s culture, their way of life, their socioeconomic structure and their cross-cultural influences. Today Fashion as we all know, has become the scientific art of learning to combine colour, form, pattern and texture for the crowning effect that is just right for the time, place and the user. Is this a mere façade of the razzle-dazzle or is it that the reality is far from glamour? Let’s try and probe into some of the reasons to know and understand the bewitching entrée of Fashion in today’s lifestyle.
From the beginning of time man has had several motives behind clothes and aesthetics. So did man term these motives as Fashion? Well, first have a look at the motives behind aesthetics and clothing!

1. Decoration: Among primitive peoples bedecking the body seems to be the chief motive for dress. Some tribes used to and still paint their bodies or tattoo themselves to enhance their own physical attractiveness. Consciously or unconsciously people are first interested in enhancing the attractiveness of their body, and then gradually develop a sense of style or fashion for their own sake. In the words of a psychologist, human beings sublimate or transfer their crude exhibitionistic urges to clothes.
The primitive man used adornment as a tool for both beautification/decoration, and body modification/deformation dates back thousands of years. Although body modification was routinely practiced in the ancient Pre-Columbian and Indus Valley cultures, this type of beautification is still in practice today in Africa, South America, Southeast Asia, and even within sub-cultures in western societies. In many primitive cultures, jewellery, body ornamentation and body modification has been used to exaggerate sexual dimorphism, accentuating the systematic differences between the sexes.

WAS THE TERM FASHION UNDERSTOOD THEN??

To be continued....



Pictures taken from: http://rspas.anu.edu.au/people/personal/dougb_ssgm/

Colour - A form of expression or mere perception?

In the expanse of aesthetics, are general conventions and theories of colour for the artist and the masses on the whole, or is this au courant admiration of colours governed exclusively by subjective opinion? Colour to me, has always been a subject of bedazzlement. It has always intrigued me with its assortment of expressions! Colour – an anomaly in expression and perception is not merely an objective constituent or an attribute of a substance. Colour is an idiosyncrasy of vision. It acts as a stimulus for the eyes in acquiring the interpretive response of the brain to wavelength characteristics of light above a certain brightness level. Colour is a sensation and not a substance! The theory of colour has undergone drastic changes over a period of time and now it’s an accepted fact that colour is in the eyes of the beholder. Different people see and perceive colours differently. For some, magenta is “bishop’s purple” or “an amethyst” or a “heliotrope” or simply "fuchsia" depending on the external factor (light) or how they perceive it. Having said this, colours are also capable of creating illusions and perfect camouflage for various functions. Hence a lot of Fashion stylists and designers tend to manipulate to cover the extras of those charming Mademoiselles out there. Let’s take a sneak peak into how colours can be helpful in slenderising ones figure! We all know that some colours tend to advance and some recede, therefore creating a make-believe delusion of bulky or petite silhouettes. The three attributes of colours – Hue, Value and Intensity are of importance when using colours to slenderise a human silhouette. Hue is the actual name of a colour. Some colours, like red, yellow and orange, seem to project a feeling of warmth. Warm colours are advancing. They tend to make you appear closer and increase your apparent body size. Colours like blue, green and purple, seem to project a cool feeling. They tend to recede and decrease your apparent body size. Value is the lightness or darkness of a colour. Light attracts the eye, therefore, lighter coloured garments will cause the wearer to appear larger than medium to dark shades of a colour. Intensity is the range of colour from bright to dull. When wearing garments of intense colours the wearer will seem to appear larger. To appear smaller choose a cool colour in a medium value and a less intense colour for large areas of your clothing. However, if you want to use warm colours in your wardrobe, select shades of warm hues instead of intense values. (example: Select rust instead of orange; maroon instead of pink.) If you like bright warm colours, use them as accents at the neckline or in your accessories. You might select a scarf or pin or collar which is emphasized because it contrasts with the different value and intensity of your outfit. If Red is your favourite colour, select a red blouse that will be worn under a grey or navy suit. The red around your face will keep the focus on your face rather than your not-so-perfect figure. One-color outfits are generally slimming. When wearing two shades in one outfit, select with care. Use the darker shade in the area you want to de-emphasize. The lighter shade can be used to balance the larger areas.