One of the most intriguing questions for me, as a designer, is how clothes will change in the future. Will the never-ending wheel of fashion continue to feed us a kaleidoscope of styles? Or…
Will what we call fashion become obsolete?
Predictions are difficult. Just look at this video to see what designers in the 1930’s believed clothes would look like in the year 2000. It’s hilarious and so far from present day fashion. It actually looks more like clothes in the 1930’s.
I found another video from 2008, where designers at Lacoste visualize how tennis clothes would look in the year 2083. They too seem closer to their own time.
Is it possible to predict how clothes will look in the future?
Clothing styles from every culture, and every time period, express its collective values and attitudes - the spirit of that time. This is a fact. So the first thing is to figure out how our culture is changing.
A designer’s job involves trying to grasp the bigger perspective of collective change, as well as awareness of shifting contemporary values. Only when we can see where we are headed, can we begin to find an expression through garments and clothing styles. So, where are we at?
We are faced with corruption and dirty secrets almost on a daily basis. There’s an acute climate crises. Our consumption patterns have spiraled out of control and we seem addicted to constant change. Unless we begin to address what’s at the core of these patterns, we might not have a future.
Our culture is in the midst of a deep transformation.
In order for transformation to occur, everything previously hidden must rise to the surface. To be looked at, understood and integrated. To form a ground for honest change. At the same time we are witnessing exciting new inventions.
But are we moving towards a culture where sustainability and a holistic perspective is the norm? Or towards a technical era of robots and AI? In the world of clothes these two would translate into a very different clothing language.
I embrace the first and continue to experiment with a clothing style that can match those values. If we can figure out the new clothing codes, wearing these garments can help us bridge the gap between the old world and the new…
What are your thoughts on this subject?
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