The work of graphic designers unit Experimental Jetset is often associated with the use of a very limited amount of typefaces, mostly Helvetica. Is it an easy way out, typographically? Or is using Helvetica a tribute to modernism? Now, after using Helvetica intensively for over ten years, Experimental Jetset still finds it an intriguing typeface.
This research started with a very different subject; Lucas Ossendrijver, a Dutch fashion designer who’s currently working for the French high fashion brand Lanvin. What fascinated me was the big difference between his appearance and the clothing he designed! Which raised the question; why does this differ?
To be able to have an answer I started looking somewhere else; the fashion students on the Gerrit Rietveld Academy. I made a list of question I though would get the students to explore what they though would be the main difference in their own work; and I also collected photographs of the specific students and their work. This way creating a sort of almanak or small book about the fashion student and his or her clothing.
It is an ongoing project; which means that I will ask more and more students to answer these questions and collect their pictures. (I will add these to an updated version of the PDF at the bottom of this post) Like this I will create a more complete, more whole view and a more accurate answer to my question;
What’s the link between what the clothing designer wears and makes?
Lucy Sarneel (born 1961 in Maastricht) says; “In my jewellery various materials, as for instance zinc, textile, silver, gold, wood, appear. However the main metal I work in is zinc. Besides of the fact that its blue-grey color reminds me of the Dutch sea and sky it also represents the area between black and white, life and death. It refers to daily-life objects of the past like a washtub (in which my mother used to bath me when I was a toddler), a bucket or (still nowadays) a flower box.. Furthermore it associates with protection because of its use in for instance steel rooftops or rain-pipes to prevent them from rusting.
As a prominent participant in the “Gone With The Wind” exhibition held in the Zuiderzeemuseum (mrt-okt ’09), Lucy Sarneel was invited to speak about her participation in this project and one of the main themes in her work…”folklore“.
Enjoy the series of images in which it becomes apparent how the spirit of form and function can be translated into inspiring contemporary mixed media jewelery.
The picture above was initially made for a contest on photo manipulation, but once it was free on the net, there were immediate claims of it being real (partly supported by some religions that believe human beings were once giants).
Hundreds of hoax images like this circulate the Internet daily and, when they possess one or more elements of credibility and reach a group of people inclined to believe them due to a religious, political or moral standpoint, a certain hype around them will be created and our mailboxes will be invaded by more spam.
This phenomenon is characteristic of our times and is a part of our common knowledge, being thus also a part of our modern folklore.
The work of Dutch artists can often be easily recognized among works of other artist. Dutch labels like Droog Design, Victor&Rolf, Orson+Bodil from Alexander van Slobbe, Inez van Lamswerde and also Wendelien Daan have this “Dutch signature.” According to different sources; photographers, magazines and models, the cause of this difference is the way Dutch artist work. Wendelien Daan fits in this thought about a “Dutch signature”. Her pictures of high fashion for big international magazines consist a lot of darkness, are high in contrast and minimalist. She lights her images as natural as possible. But what is this “Dutch signature” exactly? And how come most of us in the Netherlands seem to work this way? Is it something we’ve learned at school, are we raised this way or is it part of our folklore? We definitely have a different way of working than American artists. We have less taboos. However, the biggest international platform for artist is America. Why?
Icons are images or representations, symbols linked to commands or signs that stand for its object by virtue of a resemblance to it. Classic icons in folklore are for example the tulips that form always an instant link in our minds to the Netherlands. A similar icon is the cross for Christianity or the peace-symbol for the hippies. What are the main icons of today’s folklore? Which symbols will in decades to come remind us of this time? In our day and age the borders between countries are becoming less eminent with globalization and through the Internet communication is becoming ever faster. To deal with this intercultural computer-based community we are all becoming a part of, icons are vital in order to simplify for us these machines and also to express emotion in a typed conversation. Computer icons and emoticons are designed icons with a history, they are very important to our time and they will continue to be the true icons of modern folklore.
Why do people, both men and women, cover their hair or head for religious purposes?
Do they all have the same reason? Why are the rules different for men and women and what does it mean that we all want to cover this part of our body that is in first appearance not the most intimate one?
And finally what do have the differences between religions, but even the differences within one religion, to do this?
The Designer is necessary!
Looking at Alexander van Slobbe and the role of the designer as he sees it, the two most important words seem to be innovation and approach. The innovation of the designer, in the approach to the garments and silhouette’s of the line. It is here, according to van Slobbe, that you find the importance of the designer. “For to long fashion has embraced the ideology that all innovation comes off the street” says van Slobbe and “thin conception would render the designer unnecessary”. So what then does innovation mean in relation to fashion? Trying to contemplate this, using the light blue line of 1994 as a starting point, the answer must be to remember the difference between innovation and invention.
Lace, does it need a presentation?
The history or origin… it is antique but not really clear where it came from, used in many culture, with conotation, with meaning, with symbolism.
The different types… Needle Lace, Cutwork, Bobbin Lace, Tape Lace, Knotted Lace, Crocheted Lace or Machine Lace.
The intention… manually made visual decoration.
Many things can be said about it’s past but is it really that important?
Let’s focus on the influence of lace in our future.
Lace, as every one knows it, is used for clothing and accessories, in folklore or modern fashion design but that is not the only place where the lace is used. In present time its presents can be found in art, architecture or even in contemporary design.
The “Lace Fence”, developed by the Dutch design house Demakersvan, is one of the works that was influenced by classic lace. This fusion between the industrial metal fence and lace embroidery modifies and cultivates a different look to our environment. What it achieves is, hostility versus kindness, industrial versus craft.
The dictionary of cultural & cultural theory (Michael Payne, ’96) does not mention folklore but it does describe Folk culture. According to this dictionary folk culture is the culture of preindustrial (premarket, precommodity) communities. It was therefore taken to be organized around a number of characteristics: the oral transmission of songs, tales and history: aesthetic authorization by tradition, the integration of nature and culture, body and mind, expression through ritual in the collective deployment of symbols.
Folk is not an antropological term. It is an ideological construct; it necessarity includes a critique of ‘modern’ societies. As an aspect of nationalist ideology, folk culture is taken to be expressive of the true spirit of the nation, of it’s underlying beliefs and values, as articulated in specific forms of dress, speech, music, story telling, cookery and design.
The Idea of folk culture was taken up by Marxists, in the construction of working class consciousness (folk=serfs+peasants). Folk culture could be presented as the ‘pure’ form of working class culture untouched by the seductions of commerce.
A lot of comtemporary designers are inspired by this so called ‘pure’ form of working class culture. Remarkable designers worldwide (from Iceland to Denmark to Holland and Afghanistan) are interested in folklore, local crafts and methods. You will find this in the designs by ao Viktor & Rolf, Alexander van Slobbe and Claudy Jongstra, see a short documentary ‘Felt fabric and furniture’ where she shows the traditional techniques she’s working with: http://www.dutchprofiles.com/video/. This site also shows a film ‘African Beauty in Dutch design’ on the textile manufacturer Vlisco.
The most common idea of folk culture today is as a tourist attraction, a way of signaling what makes a country or locale different. But it’s definitely more then that. Folk culture is more then a kind of domesticated exotica, artificially preserved by the state. It seems to have noteworthy relations with design, its concepts, meaning and ideals.
The Netherlands is well known for its liberal thoughts and its sense of the ability of living a free life. I would like to go back to a period in time where I believe that this feeling of freedom started. Well, at least for me it started in this period. And after having seen in the Zuiderzeemuseum some memories came back to me.
In the beginning of the 90s a new form of dancing and partying was developing worldwide: ‘The House scene’. The Netherlands, and especially Amsterdam, was an important spill in this scene. Clubs like ‘The Roxy’ and ‘The It’ were internationally well known and formed the basis of experimenting within all boundaries of partying. In these clubs it felt as if all things were possible and all different types of people were accepted. This also attracted many homosexuals from all over the world to come to Amsterdam. Which led to an extravagant gay scene that gave these dance parties a free and exceptional character.
(house scene back in the early 90’s filmed in The Roxy)
Until today many people try to redevelop the feeling we experienced back in the 90s by organising the same types of parties. Dressing up, drugs, gays, extravagant shows, and all other sorts of things are organised in order to recreate that great sense of freedom. In my opinion: ‘Dutch folklore that developed into a worldwide dance scene’.
I saw an ingenious orange dress based on traditional dutch clothing. It was made of a deep orange heavy fabric and the hood was shaped like the head of a mouse. The dress was interesting and it made me think of the colour orange.
I have a tendency to avoid everything that is orange.
Van Oranje (orange) Nassau is the name of the Royal family and that made orange the national colour of the Netherlands. There is an anual tradition called Koninginnedag (queensday) which takes place on the birthday of a former queen: April 30th. The colour in which Amsterdam is covered that day of the year is, of course, orange. Repulsive objects such as blown up plastic hands, orange cowhats, clogs that one can float in on the canals. Drunk man and woman from the countryside walk around in orange t-shirts, skirts and pants with orange hats, boa’s, gloves, necklaces and wigs on. You name it, they wear it in orange. On this day orange donuts, cupcakes and pastries are eaten and faces have orange flags painted on them.
The screaming orange is everywhere. When there is a national soccer game the country turns orange again. On those days the average dutch person does nothing but jumping around, shouting and drinking beer. A lot of beer, and more jumping.
I always associate orange with this obnoxious folklore.
This is why wearing orange or having orange around is ruined for me.
It is why I like lemons more than oranges.
In de stad waar ik vandaan kom (Oosterhout) heb je veel oude kloosters en kerken, die veel historie hebben. Om deze oude gebouwen en vroegere verhalen niet verloren te laten gaan is er het culturele programma ‘schatten van Brabant’. Schatten van Brabant verbindt cultureel erfgoed samen met kunst. Ze proberen zo een heel nieuw cultureel aanbod te creëren. Het erfgoed zorgt voor de verhalen, en de inspiratie voor de mensen. Zo zijn er allerlei exposities in oude kloosters van mensen die geïnspireerd zijn door de oude verhalen en door de gebouwen.
Dit deed me denken aan de expositie in het Zuiderzee museum, hier laten ze je ook kennis maken met het oude verleden. Ze willen niet dat alle oude tradities verloren gaat, en door deze klederdracht zijn er hier ook heel veel nieuwe designers door geïnspireerd.
De oude klederdracht in het Zuiderzee museum heeft veel te maken met de oude klederdracht in Oosterhout.
De jurken van de vrouwen en de klederdracht van de mannen heb ik vaak terug gezien op schilderijen en oude ansichtkaarten. De exposities die tegenwoordig in de kloosters worden gegeven, laten ook veel van de oude rituelen en oude klederdracht terug zien in hun werken.
Toen ik in het Zuiderzee museum liep deed mij de expositie veel aan vroegere rituelen denken van Oosterhout.
Deze foto is voor een klooster in oosterhout gemaakt,
Geen overbodige lekkerbekkerij, maar inhouden tot speciale aangelegenheden, één hand voor jezelf en de ander voor de boot, beter één vogel in de hand dan tien in de lucht, verbeelde uitspraken die ik in Enkhuizen herkende uit mijn eigen folklore-vocabulaire.
De flexibiliteit die gebruikt werd tijdens het maken van de werken sloot aan op wat de omgeving te bieden had. Het naar je eigen omgeving kijken om daar vervolgens mee te werken is een belangrijk deel van de Nederlandse nuchterheid en inventiviteit. Ook de doorgedraaide versie is te vinden in de huidige cultuur namelijk de kunst van het bedwingen/aanpassen van je omgeving. De Nederlandse dubbelheid tussen het openstaan voor je omgeving om het daarna weer eigen te maken en omgedraaid is eigenschap waarom Nederlandse ontwerpen en het eigenzinnige karakter bekent staan. Door dingen te laten zijn voor wat ze zijn, maar door ze op een andere wijze te benaderen of hergebruiken kan zowel worden behouden als verrijkt.
De Arafat-sjaal wordt sinds 2001 gedragen door vele modebewuste burgers in Nederland, Raf Simons kwam hiermee voor de dag op de catwalk.
Deze sjaal vind zijn folklore in Palestina waar boeren zich met deze sjaal beschermden tegen zand en zon en zich zo ook onderscheiden van de hogere klasse.
Deze sjaal staat nu vooral bekend als de Arafat sjaal en als symbool voor de Palestijnse vrijheid strijders die in conflict zijn met de joden. Een drager van deze sjaal laat dan ook vaak onbewust zijn solidariteit uit naar de Palestijnse vrijheidsstrijders.
Zo is er van een eeuwenoude traditionele sjaal met een duidelijke pro Palestijnse boodschap een modieus westers kledingstuk gemaakt.
De meeste dragers van deze sjaal weten vaak ook niet waar deze voor staat, en dragen hem omdat ze hem mooi en lekker warm vinden.
Zo loop je als modepop met je mooie sjaal zonder dat je het door hebt als pro Palestijnse vrijheidstrijder.
You shall not think that you are of the same standing as us
You shall not think that you are wiser than us
Don’t fancy yourself as being better than us
You shall not think that you know more than us
You shall not think that you are more (important) than us
You shall not think that you are good at anything
You shall not laugh at us
You shall not think that anyone cares about you
You shall not think that you can teach us anything
This concept was created by the Danish author Aksel Sandemose, in a novel from 1933. In this novel he is describing the mentality of the Danish people as he observes it, and the core of this mentality is described in the law of Jante. There are Ten Commandments which makes a reference to the authority of the Ten Commandments of the bible. “The Law of Jante” is part of the ironical self-concept of the Danish people and is an expression for the collective pressure on, and limitation of the individual. In spite of the fact that “The Law of Jant” has become a big part of the Danish mentality, culture and folklore, most Danish people hate this concept.
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