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The Art of Fashion
I truly enjoy the fashion lectures at The Phoenix Art museum. Last week’s lecture on “Art Nouveau in Parisian Fashion” was packed and the presentation of how the Nouveau era translated into fashion and art was thought provoking…
Though I enjoy fashion, art and history, I have really been inspired lately by Dennita Sewell and The Phoenix Art Museum’s combination of the three. To revere fashion as art and to appreciate both its roots in history and how it has been threaded throughout the ages, has spoken to me.
Accessories from the Phoenix Art Museum's Nouveau era collection
In many ways, clothing can be described as a wearable time-capsule, telling a specific account of how people lived their daily lives, important design styles and trends of the time and how worldly sensibilities were communicated in the clothes. True as we explored the Nouveau lecture last week. But think about this, many would argue that the current generation is too fast and too disposable, is this reflected in our closets? For me, this is generally true. I have hangers full of inexpensive, up-to-the-minute pieces that I wouldn’t think twice about tossing just because they’re “so last season.” However, I am lucky enough to own some fabulous shoes and handbags that I consider “wearable art”. So much so, in fact, I rarely take them out of the house!
Yes, this devil wears Prada
As corny as it sounds, I started to appreciate fashion as art before the recent lectures at the art museum with the release of “The Devil Wears Prada.” The monologue delivered by Miranda (Meryl Streep) to the fashion bottom-dwelling Andy (Anne Hathaway) spoke to the then undiscovered fashion-as-art lover in me. The part where she’s reaming Andy in her office for laughing at the belts, when Andy proclaims she is “still learning about all this stuff“. And Miranda goes on to embarrass Andy with the magnitude of the fashion & beauty industry. And then when Nigel (Stanley Tucci) gives Andy his monologue regarding how a seemingly simple, frivolous fashion magazine has actually published some of the greatest artists of our time. Both of these monologues started me thinking of how powerful the fashion & beauty industry is in the global economy, but also in the world of art. I cannot give you a name of a modern painter or sculpture artist, but I can ramble off the names of what fashion designers I would die to see at Paris or New York fashion week.
So, with this new found inspiration, I have been shopping and “investing” in fashion a little differently. Certainly, I will never stop shopping Target or Forever 21, but I am seeking out a more well-rounded collection of clothing, shoes, handbags and accessories – mixing the disposable and the collector’s items that many argue never go out of style. And choosing pieces more carefully, that better reflect me, my style, posterity and because of my appreciation of the design, construction, artistry, investment worth and so on.
My most recent purchase made with my deeper appreciation of fashion-as-art is this Michele handbag from Nordstrom. It’s modern, trendy, the materials are amazing, it’s comfortable to wear, perfectly sized and who knows, in 50 years could be displayed in the Phoenix Art Museum’s design gallery!
Michele Ella Clutch $295 from Nordstrom
4 comments permalink | 10:55 PM | 8.13.2009 |
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Announcing the “Arizona Designers Directory”
Angela Johnson, fashion designer extraordinaire, announces the unveiling of her online Arizona Fashion Designers Directory dedicated solely to clothing and accessory designers doing business in Arizona.
The directory is located within Angela’s clothing website by clicking HERE. The directory provides a comprehensive list of Arizona clothing and accessory designers to make it easier for the public and other industry professionals to locate Arizona fashion designers. The directory not only provides the designer/line names and contact information, but also includes descriptions and photos of their merchandise.
The decision to provide this service was an inherent move by Angela. Angela has been an advocate for Arizona’s emerging fashion industry since 2002. She co-founded AZ Fashion Foundation / LabelHorde Fashion. AFF/LH served as Arizona’s only fashion industry directory for 5 years before closing its doors in 2007. With the demand to find Arizona designers greater than ever, Angela was determined to find an economical way to resume this resourceful service once again and decided to dedicate a portion of her own website to the aforementioned directory.
I’ve always been passionate about the local fashion industry. says Angela Johnson. As a local designer myself, I am faced with the difficulty of trying to sustain a clothing design business in a city without an actual fashion industry amid a questionable economy. By creating this directory, I hope to provide a way for Arizona’s designers to get the word out about their lines at no charge. In return, I’m just hoping that our local industry will mature and eventually be a resourceful and profitable place to operate a clothing line.
From emerging designers to established lines, the directory is a diverse list of lines ranging from conservative to avant garde and everything in between. It is a totally free service with no charge to designers or the public who utilize the directory. Designers who are interested in being listed in the directory should email Angela@AngelaJohnsonDesigns.com.
0 comments permalink | 6:47 AM | 8.12.2009 |
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