Junya Wantanabe: Radical Fashion Exhibition at the V&A (2001)

I thought it would be a good idea to post some of the influences that have impacted on me, my work and visual preoccupations so far.

The Radical Fashion Exhibition at The Victoria and Albert Museum back in 2001 was the start of this particular journey. As always with the V&A Fashion work; the exhibition was brilliantly curated and displayed. Packed with stunning ideas and extraordinary fabric manipulation.
An evening dress made from sweatshirt fabric constructed using a single continuous seam by Vivienne Westwood. Tightly fitting architectural precision in silk jersey and black silk faille by Azzedine Alaia, and a cheeky subversion of materials from Jean Paul Gaultier in both his evening dress fashioned out of Cable knitted grey wool and a beautifully tailored denim coat encrusted with thousands of jet beads. These were all highlights for me.

However, I was really captivated by the Junya Wantanabe installation. Glowing fabric forms engineered out of layers of semi-transparent organza stitched together at strategic points to create these sculptural dresses that enveloped the body of the wearer. Like giant Christmas decorations, each had apparently emerged from a flat box. I can imagine the forms and structures gradually being revealed as gravity did its work, and spent a long time in the exhibition trying to figure out the mechanics of how these garments had been made.
Reminiscent of floating jelly fish, the absence of colour gave these pieces a ghostly, ethereal quality.

The idea of transition/transformation from 2D to 3D explored by Wantanabe in these garments has continued to inform my work. I have used stitching, construction and piercing techniques, exploring possibilities of shape, structure and transparency to create both free standing and hanging forms, some of which are featured above.

I am still in love with the simplicity/purity of the white on white aesthetic; it allows the complexities and textures of the fabric structures to be seen clearly. I also enjoy the way that directional light can be used to explore the visual possibilities of my fabric sculptures.

In short, the impact of seeing these pieces from Junya Wantanabe's Autumn/Winter 2000/2001 collection for Comme des Garcons was very significant and still continues to resonate in my work.
I know that I will want to revisit their structural and material qualities again and again in the future!