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OWENSWIKI

FW18 SISYPHUS

MEN

CREDITS

  • MAKEUP: MAC COSMETICS AND SAMMY MOURABIT
  • HAIR: DUFFY (STREETERS)
  • PRODUCTION: LA MODE EN IMAGES
  • MUSIC: ‘ENERGIZE’ BY DJ SPEEDLAP (REMIXED BY JEFF JUDD)

NOTES

THIS FALL /WINTER COLLECTION IS TITLED SISYPHUS AFTER THE ARROGANT KING IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY WHO WAS PUNISHED BY ZEUS TO ETERNALLY ROLL A BOULDER UP A HILL ONLY TO HAVE IT ROLL BACK DOWN, OVER AND OVER AGAIN, FOREVER. IT’S DRAINING TO WATCH UNHEALTHY CYCLES REPEAT THEMSELVES, BEHAVIOURALLY AND HISTORICALLY, AND EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE, IT’S HARD TO SUPRESS A HOWL OF RAGE. IF WE HAVEN’T LEARNED BETTER BY NOW, AFTER ALLLLL THIS TIME, DOES THIS MEAN UNHEALTHY CYCLES AND BASE URGES ARE AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE HUMAN CONDITION? AND IF THEY ARE INTEGRAL, DOES THAT MEAN THEY HAVE SOME KIND OF HORRIBLE VALUE? RENDING ONE’S CLOTHES IN ANGER HAS A DRAMATICALLY BIBLICAL SOUND — HERE THESE CLOTHES ARE RENT IN A BIT MORE OF A DELIBERATE AND PERHAPS FATALISTIC WAY. DOUBLE KNIT TUNICS IN MERCERIZED COTTON FACED WITH CASHMERE WE REFER TO AS ‘CASHBOARD’ ARE SLIT AND SLASHED TO HANG AND GAPE AROUND THE BODY… OR CUT IN THIN AND CRISP WRAPPED JACKETS THAT CAN BE USED AS LAYERS UNDER COATS. HAPHAZARD CARGO CHAPS ARE CUT IN CAMEL HAIR FLANNEL TO MATCH HIGH WAISTED PANTS CUT WITH A CUMMERBUND SILHOUETTE… AND RAW DARK DENIM JEANS HAVE BEEN CHOPPED INTO JAGGED SKIRTS. COATS AND SHOES ARE CONSTRUCTED IN A PLASTIC SHEARLING THAT TRAILS LOOSE FILAMENTS IN AN OUT-OF-CONTROL HAZE AND SOME COATS HAVE BEEN HAND-PAINTED IN ROUGH THICK BRUSHSTROKES. CHAINS CAN SUGGEST SUBORDINATION BUT THEY CAN ALSO REPRESENT LINKED STRENGTH. HERE THEY ARE DRAPED AND WRAPPED AROUND THE BODY AS STRAPS ON THE SIMPLEST OF RAW CUT PORTFOLIO ZIPPED BAGS IN SOFT SUEDE OR RIGID COWHIDE. FLAGS CAN BE ABOUT UNITY AND PRIDE BUT ALSO DIVISIVENESS… HERE THEY ARE RENDERED AS CAPED PANELS FLOATING OUTWARDS AT THE BACK OF LONG COATS IN SOMBRE WOOL FELTS AND NYLON DUCHESSE. THE SOUNDTRACK IS A REMIX OF ‘ENERGIZE’ BY DJ SPEEDLAP, THE KIND OF 90S TERROR TECHNO I LISTEN TO EVERY DAY AS A SAFETY VALVE TO RELEASE THE IMPATIENCE AND FRUSTRATION THAT ARE THE PERSONAL CYCLES I CAN’T SEEM TO CONTROL, NO MATTER HOW MUCH I SHOULD HAVE LEARNED BETTER TO BY NOW. IF, AFTER ALL MY EFFORTS, I HAVEN’T FOUND A WAY TO ERASE THEM, DOES THAT MEAN THEY SERVE SOME KIND OF PURPOSE?

WOMEN

CREDITS

  • MAKEUP MAC COSMETICS AND SAMMY MOURABIT
  • HAIR DUFFY (STREETERS)
  • PRODUCTION LA MODE EN IMAGES
  • MUSIC ‘BAUBLES, BANGLES AND BEADS’ BY MARLENE DIETRICH, LIZA MINNELLI, PEGGY LEE, AND EYDIE GORMÉ (REMIXED BY JEFF JUDD)

NOTES

THIS WOMEN’S FALL/WINTER COLLECTION FOLLOWS THE MEN’S FALL/WINTER COLLECTION IN BEING TITLED SISYPHUS AFTER THE ARROGANT KING IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY WHO WAS PUNISHED BY ZEUS TO REPEATEDLY ROLL A BOULDER UP A HILL ONLY TO HAVE IT ROLL BACK DOWN AGAIN. ETERNALLY.

WE MIGHT INTERPRET THIS AS A STORY ABOUT FUTILITY, OR AS A STORY OF PATTERNS MONOTONOUSLY REPEATING THEMSELVES WITHOUT PROGRESSION.

FOR THE MEN’S SHOW I WAS FOCUSED ON CYCLES OF CULTURAL BACKPEDALING AND DISAPPOINTING SOCIAL SHIFTS BUT FOR THE WOMEN’S SHOW THE FOCUS IS ON SEDUCTION. CLOTHES ARE COMMUNICATION AND THE MESSAGE IS OFTEN ONE OF SEDUCTION. BUT TOWARDS WHAT RESULTS?

IN THE PAST THERE HAVE BEEN MOMENTS OF ALMOST GROTESQUE PHYSICAL DISTORTION IN THE NAME OF SEDUCTION — PANNIERS, BUSTLES… IT’S BEEN A WHILE SINCE THIS KIND OF DELIBERATELY SLY EXAGGERATION WAS EMBRACED.

ALTHOUGH THE BULBOUS BAGS AND BACKPACKS IN MY RECENT COLLECTIONS CAN EASILY READ ‘REFUGEE’, I HAVE PRINCIPALLY DEPLOYED THEM AS EXCUSES TO CREATE CREDIBLE VOLUMES ON THE BODY. PADDING HERE ISN’T NECESSARILY ABOUT PROTECTION, BUT ABOUT VOLUPTUOUSNESS AND A CRUDE SUMPTUOUSNESS.

TUNICS IN CAMEL HAIR AND LINEN FELT ARE PACKED WITH GOOSE DOWN TO SWADDLE AND ENVELOP THE BODY IN UNEVEN INDENTATIONS AND EXTENSIONS TO ABSTRACT THE FIGURE. COLORS ARE MUTED AND BLEAK. COATS, MANTLES, AND MEGAPARKAS ARE WORN OVER CASHMERE RUNNING SHORTS PAIRED WITH GENERIC LOOKING TRACK SHOES

OVERSIZED WORK SHIRTS, CARGOCHAPS, AND SHOES ARE CONSTRUCTED IN A SYNTHETIC SHEARLING THAT TRAILS LOOSE FILAMENTS OF RECYCLED POLYESTER YARN IN AN OUT-OF-CONTROL HAZE AND SOME COATS AND T-SHIRTS HAVE BEEN HAND-PAINTED IN ROUGH, THICK RESIN BRUSHSTROKES.

COATS ARE PIECED AND PATCHED TOGETHER IN COMPOSITIONS RIPPING OFF BAUHAUS ARCHITECTURE, WITH DEEP NUTRIA-LINED PATCH POCKETS.

THE ARTE POVERA SEDUCTION PROPOSED HERE IS A RAW AND INDIRECT ONE. SOME MAY CALL IT ANTI- SEDUCTION. BUT WHAT ARE THE SEDUCTION RULES AND WHOSE AUTHORITY DO I ACCEPT IN DEFINING THEM?

THE MUSIC ACCOMPANYING THIS SHOW IS SEVERAL VERSIONS OF A 1950S SHOW TUNE ‘BAUBLES, BANGLES AND BEADS’, A SONG ABOUT DRESSING, SEDUCTION, AND EXPECTATIONS. THE WISTFUL, YEARNING LYRICS CAN STRIKE A CHORD BECAUSE WE CAN ALL IDENTIFY, WHILE WE ALSO SMILE RUEFULLY AT ITS SIMPLISTIC MESSAGE IN THESE COMPLICATED TIMES (I HAVE ALWAYS DEFINED CAMP AS A CYNICS EXCUSE TO EMBRACE SENTIMENTALITY).