au moment

lately;

feeling inspired by billowing chiffon and looming shadows. Trenchant forms and the beauty of simplicity. I read a quote from Dries van Noten a few days ago that said something to the effect that fashion should never cross the line into too dark, or too depressing, or too heavy - - that it's mean to be light and fun. At first the idea really struck me, and I thought for the rest of the day about re-evaluating my approach to design.

 

With the clear head of a new day, though, I have to disagree. Granted everyone has a different aesthetic and blah blah, I do not agree that fashion needs to always maintain those qualities that Dries describes. The point of fashion, after all, is that it's transformative. Like poetry by Poe or the doomed characters of Shakespear, there's a poignancy to the darkness. 

Right well here's the quote:

"Fashion today is all about the product. With all the pre-collections and the shows that are just marketing exercises, it has turned into a system. For an old romantic like me, this is hurting a little bit. That’s why I try to do things my way. I like to have happy people around me, and it’s for these people that I create my collections. Fashion should never be too dark or too gloomy: it should evoke feelings of joy. I believe in clothes as tools for self-expression. The biggest compliment is if I see someone on the street wearing something I have created in a way I would never have imagined. Clothes should always tell something of the person that wears them – and very little of the designer who made them." - Dries Van Noten

He is one of my favorite designers of all time, and I truly respect his words. But as a romantic, you have to have an appreciation for the vitriolic bitterness of a tragic hero, and ipso facto, those same qualities translated into fashion. I think fashion should evoke strong feelings, but as to the form and function of them, it should be left open to the discretion of the viewer and the artist.