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RCS: Task 1/2 – How to Use Online Resources

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Photograph of David Bowie by Brian Duffy in 1973 [1]

Photograph of David Bowie by Brian Duffy in 1973 [1]

I chose this image of David Bowie because it inspired me through the strong use of colour blocking in his signature design on his face. His abundant use of colour and pattern in his makeup and clothing throughout his career works well with my interests due to the same themes that I also like to use in my own work. This is probably why I feel it stuck out to me the most and peaked my interest in searching further and doing more research on this topic. It stimulated thoughts and themes of the 60’s for me, particularly fashion, which is what I chose to look into and research further; mainly the concept of 60’s fashion and trends influencing the modern day trends.

Photograph of Cara Delevingne in the Fay fashion show for SS13 by unknown [2]

Photograph of Cara Delevingne in the Fay fashion show for SS13 by unknown [2]

This is where my research then uncovered the SS13 collection by Fay which also incorporated a bold use of colour blocking as a theme throughout her collection, connecting my thought process back to the Bowie image and the culture of the time it was taken. The Bowie image was more than likely influenced by 60’s trends also, due to the image only being taken in the early 70’s where the ‘Mod’ trend was still very apparent and popular amongst the general public. There is also a very apparent use of 60’s/70’s garment silhouettes and styling also; the use of A-line as well as the big, volumised hair. The V&A museum’s website gave a brief introduction to 60’s fashion and outlined some key influencers and designers of trends and fashion of the time e.g. Mary Quant. It proved somewhat handy to my research as it gave me a look at the original and historic 60’s clothing and trends. However, not many images of the collection were available to view online, limiting my research for now but sparking my interest for a potential visit in the future to expand my understanding of the theme and learn more about the history of the trends. This would then enable me to discuss and evaluate my topic further. My research turned up many other sources and images relevant to my thought process and topic so it provides me with plenty of other potential sources I could use to take this concept further in the future; be this through books, videos, pop culture and other designers work/collections. Through this task, I have discovered many other resources I can use in the future as well as discovering how influential the 60’s/70’s were in trends, fashion and even pop culture then as well as now. I still feel my knowledge is limited in some aspects and would love to visit the 60’s collection at the V&A to learn more in order to aid my research as well as open my mind more to the influences ‘Mod’ and other trends gave to present day.

V&A Museum, 1960’s Fashion in Gallery 40 [3]

V&A Museum, 1960’s Fashion, in Gallery 40 [3]

Bibliography

[1] Marsh G. and Broackes V. (2013), David Bowie Is, London, V&A Publications [Page 74]

[2] FMD (N/A), Fashion Models Directory, available from: http://www.fashionmodeldirectory.com/brands/fay/shows/2013/spring-summer/7272/cara-delevingne-137842/ [accessed 21st October 2017]

[3] V&A (N/A), Victoria & Albert Museum, available from: https://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/1960s-fashion [accessed 21st October 2017]

Task 1 & 2: Vivienne Westwood

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As an individual with a strong passion for sustainable fashion and textiles, Vivienne Westwood’s controversial approach to fashion design hugely inspires me. I was reminded of her influential presence within the ethical and eco fashion industries whilst reading ‘Fashion Made Fair’ and I have been naturally inquisitive to investigate Westwood’s iconic career further. In ‘Fashion Made Fair’ a chapter dedicated to Vivienne Westwood as an advocate of ‘fashion with a message’ offers a broad overview of the designer’s career with a lucid account of her Spring/Summer 2016 ‘Politicians R Criminals’ collection catwalk. From this initial research I gained a deeper insight into Westwood’s prominent presence within British Fashion since the 1970’s as well as some of the complex conceptual and political ideologies behind her work.

Photograph of Vivienne Westwood’s ‘Politicians R Criminals’ Spring/Summer 2016 Collection, Book Chapter ‘Vivienne Westwood, UK’ Photographer unknown K, Ellen and S, Magdalena (2016) Fashion Made Fair, London

Photograph of Vivienne Westwood’s ‘Politicians R Criminals’ Spring/Summer 2016 Collection, Book Chapter ‘Vivienne Westwood, UK’ Photographer unknown
K, Ellen and S, Magdalena (2016) Fashion Made Fair, London

Westwood’s identity as a designer, in my opinion, is clearly reflected in the photograph I have selected of her ‘Politicians R Criminals’ collection. The way it is modelled as if it were a political protest: full of energy, enthusiasm and community strongly juxtaposes with stereotypical contemporary fashion shows, highlighting her controversial presence within the fashion industry. I was particularly fascinated by this collection and chose to conduct further research on the official Vivienne Westwood website which I found noted in ‘Fashion Made Fair’ (evidencing its reliability as a source). Simply reading the opening description for the Red Label Spring/Summer 2016 Collection introduced me to Westwood’s radical approach to fashion as a tool to encourage society to question the current paradigm. I have been specifically influenced by this extract from the collection description:

 

“The most important philosophical question ever asked is “what is a good life?” A good life is one which mirrors the world. That means that you understand the world through art and culture. You understand the genius of the human race and you understand yourself in relation to it. You’re like a little tiny shard of mirror glass that’s exactly a copy of the whole world. You’re very beautiful because you understand the beauty of the world and you understand the human race and you want to do your best.”

 

I was then particularly interested to learn about Westwood’s collaboration with the Ethical Fashion Initiative (EFI) in ‘Fashion Made Fair’. The Africa Bag Collection fuses ethically and environmentally sustainable craftsmanship to create products that reflect her all-encompassing motto of “quality rather than quantity”. After further research I found a reliable online article from ‘the Guardian’ website titled ‘From King’s Road to Kenya: Vivienne Westwood’s new fashion journey’ by Clar Ni Chonghaile which briefly mentions the use of recycled materials in Westwood’s Africa Bag Collection including second-hand clothing, brass from old taps and recycled safari tents.

Photograph of Vivienne Westwood’s 2015 Limited Edition ‘Squiggle Leopard Runner Holdall’ in Kenya, Africa, Photographer unknown Accessed at http://www.viviennewestwood.com/en-gb/blog/celebrating-five-years-made-africa-bags

Photograph of Vivienne Westwood’s 2015 Limited Edition ‘Squiggle Leopard Runner Holdall’ in Kenya, Africa, Photographer unknown
Accessed at http://www.viviennewestwood.com/en-gb/blog/celebrating-five-years-made-africa-bags

Given my particular interest in recycling I chose to investigate this further through visiting the page on ‘Artisan Fashion’ on the official Vivienne Westwood website. I explored this source through watching an inspirational documentary and reading further articles with a more detailed account of the collaboration in Kenya, Africa. I have been hugely inspired by Westwood’s genuine enthusiasm to bring about greater change in the world. Rather than just to appeal to a consumer market with ethical and moral values, I noticed and felt touched by her genuine humanitarian philosophy. Here I have selected a photograph of a bag produced within this initiative in the context of its location of manufacture, demonstrating a global example of how Westwood’s work has a positive social and environmental impact.

 

Finally I directed my research towards prominent museum websites, primarily focussing on the Victoria & Albert Museum which offered a range of reliable and informative resources on this iconic designer. The section titled ‘Vivienne Westwood’ on the V&A website provides an extensive catalogue of her work including an invaluable visual guide to Westwood’s career, depicting prominent pieces from her collections. This offered me a more comprehensive understanding of Westwood’s aesthetic identity as a designer in context with her role as an activist. To conclude I have chosen to end with a quotation I found on the V&A website from Vivienne Westwood:

“I’ve constantly tried to provoke people into thinking afresh and for themselves, to escape their inhibitions and programming.”

Victoria and Albert Museum Vivienne Westwood 1

Screenshots from ‘Vivienne Westwood’ on the V&A Museum official website Accessed at https://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/vivienne-westwood

Screenshots from ‘Vivienne Westwood’ on the V&A Museum Official Website
Accessed at https://www.vam.ac.uk/collections/vivienne-westwood

 

Bibliography:

http://www.viviennewestwood.com/en-gb/collections/red-label/spring-summer

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/nov/24/kings-road-kenya-vivienne-westwood

http://www.viviennewestwood.com/en-gb/blog/celebrating-five-years-made-africa-bags

http://www.viviennewestwood.com/en-gb/content/the-history

http://www.viviennewestwood.com/en-gb/content/materials

https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/vivienne-westwood-punk-new-romantic-and-beyond

Task 1/2

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Photograph of Colo-cola Bottling plant, Robert V. Derrah 1937, Photographer Ave Pildas. Art Deco, Los Angeles.

Photograph of Colo-cola Bottling plant, Robert V. Derrah 1937, Photographer Ave Pildas.
Art Deco, Los Angeles.

Coco- Cola Bottling plant, April 29th, 2008. Photographer unknown. http://bigorangelandmarks.blogspot.co.uk/2008/04/no-138-coca-cola-building.html

Coco- Cola Bottling plant, April 29th, 2008. Photographer unknown.
http://bigorangelandmarks.blogspot.co.uk/2008/04/no-138-coca-cola-building.html

High museum of art, The Coco-cola bottle: An American Icon at 100 https://www.high.org/exhibition/the-coca-cola-bottle/

High museum of art, The Coco-cola bottle: An American Icon at 100
https://www.high.org/exhibition/the-coca-cola-bottle/

This task has helped me gain a clearer understanding of how to research. I have done a lot of research during my time in education however researching the same thing in different areas is not something I often do. It has opened my eyes up to how different areas of information give you different research.

To ensure that my research studies related to my portfolio work, I chose to look into Art Deco architecture. Using WebCat I searched art deco books in the library. I discovered a book of Art Deco architecture in Los Angeles, I thought that this book would have some great imagery relating to my project. My favourite image from the book was of an old coco-cola factory photographed by Ave Pildas. From that image I looked online at the same factory which gave me lots more information and images.

As my research was architecture based I found looking for an exhibition that relates very hard. After searching for art deco exhibitions and Los Angeles architecture photography exhibitions I then searched into Coco-Cola exhibitions and discovered the High museum of Art Coco-Cola 100 years exhibition. Although this exhibition does not completely relate to my original research of art deco architecture, it has shown me how much your research can expand and change simply through looking in different areas of information.

If I were to now expand on my research I would look at the shapes and styles of the cola bottles and compare them to the styles of art deco architecture. This may help me to come up with links to the shapes which are found in that era. Referencing my images in Harvard style is something very new to me. I understand how Harvard referencing helps you to identify your images and lets you find the book again in the future. I have not done this before however therefor I struggle to get the format correct. I am hoping that this is something which I shall learn over time.

Overall I think that this task has been incredibly helpful for my future research. It has opened my mind up to new research methods and taught me how to reference correctly. One thing I would love to improve on is my knowledge of getting the most out of the library. I struggle to find the books I am looking for even when I use the online library service. Finding information in books that relate to my research is also another thing I would love to improve. I hope that throughout this module I will learn more about research from the library.

Research & Communication Skills Task 1&2

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1a 20171012_115442

1b Capture2

1c Capture

I began my research by selecting a secondary source, a book from the library, which caught my attention. The book ‘Victorian Lace’ was written by Patricia Wardle and published in 1968 as part of a collector series. I was immediately inspired by the delicate floral lace patterns on the cover, so opened the book to select an image of a Victorian wedding dress which was trimmed with machine made lace made in 1884 (image 1a). To find a related object of a primary source I searched online for ‘Victorian lace’, however this gave me website pages for purchasing this style of lace and no details on the original production methods or characteristics of this material. Instead, I decided to change my search to ‘Victorian wedding dresses’ however this did not give me much information on the dresses themselves but more to do with the history of Victorian wedding ceremonies. Finally my search on ‘Victorian lace machine’ successfully linked me to an informative textiles website (http://www.dressandtextilespecialists.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Lace-Booklet.pdf) which held details of how to identify handmade and machine laces and also had some interesting pictures of textiles including a machine made lace sample from 1870-1880 (image 1b), the type which would have been used in the wedding dress I had found in the book, and provided some details on this. This website source was produced for The Museum of Costume and Textiles in Nottingham in collaboration with the V&A.

To find an archive to broaden my understanding of the dress and lace, I read further into the original book and noted where the dress was kept, then visited the website for Manchester Art Gallery (http://manchesterartgallery.org/collections/search/collection/?id=1947.4163) and found the dress listed on their site. The website gave me further information on measurements and construction methods of the wedding dress and also had some historical context and a higher resolution image which allowed me to see the details more clearly (image 1c).

Overall, I found the internet to be the most suitable place to find more detailed information; not only because using the internet is the most familiar way of researching for me, but also because by searching through such a broad area of information I could easily access what I needed to know and tailor my searches by specifying my search criteria. I did however find that the books in the library were more suitable for finding original inspiration and easily accessing details of interesting objects and artifacts together with information. I felt more involved and satisfied in this physical process of searching for inspiration in the yellowing pages of worn books than sat behind a computer screen with no inspiration around me to begin any creative process.