Art and Fashion: A Barcelona Fusion

Here's another article I wrote, which may or may not be published, and susbsequently I may or may not get paid for. I really enjoy the process of researching and writing these type of things. I think it feels quite indulgent somehow. Anyway, here's the goods:

Maybe it was the Modernist architects and designers, who began to redesign the city around 1900, that first established an open attitude towards cross pollenisation between creative disciplines here in Barcelona. That movement, which went on to be epitomised in the city by Antoni Gaudi, fused Art with Design, and left the appearance of very few articles and affects of inhabitants lives unconsidered and un-beautified.

Like the Modernists that went before them, today’s Barcelonans are quick to disregard any perceived barriers between creative fields. In particular, contemporary art and fashion; a pair that is evidently thriving hand in hand.

Last week an intriguing display of this marriage occurred at La Otra, a Raval based boutique, which chose to celebrate the arrival of its new Women’s and Men’s collections with a ‘happening’ that included live physical theatre performed by artist Karla Flora. For the pieces she performed, Flora wore a dress and used accessories by Papisa Juana, a label designed by Ruben Ramirez, native Barcelonan and owner of La Otra. For Ramirez, the inclusion of performance was motivated by the desire to not only express an influence behind his designs, but also to create a platform for this alternative contemporary theatre.

Earlier this year, another new collection born in Barcelona was displayed in an art setting. On January 23rd, garments by MYBS (an acronym for Make Your Brain Sexier), a Barcelona based label which aims to create ‘Street Luxury’, were sported by models handing out canapés at the opening of an exhibition of work created by LA artists. Curated by native Californian and former Barcelona resident Tina Ziegler, the art shown at the ‘Nobody Walks in LA’ exhibition may not have been created in Barcelona, but I think that it is testament to the open-minded and experimental attitude here that these, often curious, fusions are welcomed.

However, these fusions with fashion aren’t exclusive to the avant-garde or gallery based art worlds. Holala! Plaza, a large shop which offers an extensive range of vintage clothing, accessories and furniture, has been making links with internationally renowned graffiti artists. January 22nd saw members of the British based Scrawl Collective create a huge and impressive mural in the shop, with a complementary static exhibition of their work in an adjoining gallery space. This event, entitled ‘Case Closed’, happily coincided with the Bread & Butter trade show, and with many people spilling out from the trade show straight to Holala! Plaza, the fashion atmosphere couldn’t have been stronger. This proves that at the more urban end of the spectrum, art and fashion also inspire one another as interlinked elements of a collective, creative lifestyle.

But it is not just at random ‘happenings’ that this union can be witnessed in Barcelona. Montana Shop and Gallery has sold spray paints to graffiti enthusiasts and displayed graffiti inspired art work since 2004. As well as other related products like books and magazines, the presence of a wide range of both Men’s and Women’s streetwear brands, including Supreme Being and Volcom, gives evidence that these elements are complementary parts of the same style of living.

Iguapop Gallery is a contemporary art gallery that has a conjoined clothing store. The high end street wear brands, such as SealKay, Levi’s and Zoo York are displayed like works of art themselves in an impressive stripped down space.

People in general, and especially in Barcelona, don’t want to view clothing confined only to a shop or a catwalk, or art restricted to a gallery. They want to experience them in action, to interact with them. Whether it is a juxtaposition or complementary, they want to feel the energy that is emitted when art and fashion are allowed to meet.

It's curtains for me

Last weekend I made an epic and ultimately unrealistic attempt to create a new garment for myself and three bags which could potentially be sold, in just one day and a half. Well the bags were turning out to be shite, so that part of the mission was aborted, with a large 'Lesson Learnt' stamped onto the proceedings to salvage something positive from the wreckage.

Thankfully, the new-garment-for-me section worked out better:

A super basic A-line skirt using a pattern I developed myself. Red cotton/poly drill, with applied lace sections garnered from some net curtain scraps donated by my mum.

Oh, did I mention the contrast gingham facing?:

I think the table cloth effect facing, combined with the lacy curtain applications, overall give the skirt a cafe decor feel! Well, I'll just blend in better in my natural habitat.

Yay: I have finally created something that I would find it hard to walk away from if I saw it in a shop. Boo: the delicate lace bits have already started to rip after the first time I wore it yesterday, and I wasn't even drinking. Actually I was, but not much. I will make a note to self to be super careful when wearing it, maybe I best stick to locations with no snagable edges. Like cafes with moulded plastic seats. I like this skirt enough to do that.

Spring(field)/Summer '09

Score! A big fat fabric score, to be more precise. A friend who works for the Springfield clothing label, based here in bcn, was having a clearout at work and belled me up to let me know some fabric pieces were going begging. I was there at her offices with an empty suitcase almost before she had put the phone down. Their leftover bulk fabric samples from their Spring/Summer '09 range is now forming the basis for my own personal S/S '09 garment creation offensive!

Behold the results of the first assailment:

I used this pattern gleened from Burda World of Fashion 07/2008 magazine:
It's come out pretty big, in fact you don't even need to undo the back zip to get it on and off, but I'm pretty happy with the results when worn with tight jeans:

The fabric is feels super-nice, and I love the print. It's got in seam side pockets, for which the BWOF instructions were rubbish, so I turned to this Burdastyle How-To for assistance. I added a front ruffle/bib type affair to accentuate the curved yolk:

The overall style of this top combined with the fabric print reminds me of garments by the Danish clothing brand nümph, of whom I am a big fan. Onwards, to the next assault......

Pattern Crush

I'd like to admit to sometimes having pattern crushes. Once I've seen a wantable creation online, or sometimes multiple creations using the same domestic pattern, then I'm unable to rest until I have it in my possession. In theory I should be able to recreate the pattern myself from scratch, but a combination of distrust of my skills and laziness invariably makes me reach for ebay, rather than the pattern cutting paper and set square. But purchasing the pattern is just the first step to developing the crush. I will then use the pattern a squillion times, varying the fabrics and making style/fit modifications, until I fear that, despite these changes, people will start to notice that my wardrobe effectively consists of only one generic garment.

I wrote here about my Built By Wendy #3835 crush. To date I have made four variations of that pattern. Another long standing pattern crush is with the Simplicity #4589:

The first two interpretations I made were given to friends without documentation. However, I would like to share with you the second two. Both were made from small pieces of fabric aquired for 50p from a bargain bin in a shop on Goldhawk Road, whilst fabric hunting with my gal Michelle and some other random crew from the Sewing Group I used to organise in London. The first version I lengthed to be more of a tunic. I think the simplicity (excuse the pun) of this garment provides a good foundation to show off the beautiful floral print. The back of the garment uses the plain part of this sheer fabric. The whole thing is pretty foxy and a tad revealing:

I was in a rush making this garment, and subsequently must give props to my mum for hand-binding the armholes with self fabric for me:

Then second is a flutter sleeved affair, that has already seen a fair few outings so far despite being only a month old. The fabric is some sort of amazing glazed cotton (?) that feels super-slinky:

This time it was I who got to work hand-binding the armhole, using a blind technique taught to me by Mumma Edwards (she's the last word in hand-binding, it would appear):

These tops were quick to sew, mainly because of the lack of fastenings, and super-wearable, mainly for the pretty loose fit. But I know what you're thinking: all well and good showing us them on some mannequin Zo, but we want to see how these things fly in real life. Well here's my main girl Vic modelling the floral number when she came to visit in February:

Taggery-Pokery

Things seem to be getting a bit viral round here these days. The lovely Christine has seen fit to tag me in a questionsaire thingy. And what's good enough for Christine......

These are the rules:

1. Answer the questions, but replace one question with a question of your own; and also, add a question of your own. (I decided to delete a feww and add two new ones).

2. Tag eight other un-tagged people. (I've reinterpretted this as one).

Add the most recent picture you took to the top of this post.

What is your current obsession? Bicing (the city communal bicycle system)

What are you wearing right now? Faded black skinny jeans, misshapen stripey top and cosy baggy grey cardi, it's a midweek look, nothing worth writing home about.

Do you nap a lot? I live in Spain, it's pretty compulsory here, although I've always been a fan due to my inability to sleep properly most nights.

What's for dinner? We just came back from our language exchange/dinner. We had vegetable soup and amazing chicken and date things on skewers.

What are you listening to right now? Portishead, a live version of Dummy.

What is your favourite weather? Spring weather like today, warm and sunny with clear blue skies, it feels so optimistic after the grey winter. Also conditions that make for great sunsets.

What's on your beside table? Handcream, tissues, alarm clock and book. Exciting times.

Say something to the person/s who tagged you. Hi Christine! I think you should be subsidised so all you have to do all day is make beautiful clothes and photos that provide inspiration for the rest of us.

If you could have a house totally paid for, fully furnished anywhere in the world, where would you want it to be? Here in Barcelona so that me and my boy are secure and won't have to spend so much time worrying about paying the rent!

Favourite vacation spot? Jeez, that's so tricky. I find San Francisco very inspirational, but am hoping to visit NY and Mexico within the next couple of years.

Name the things you can't live without. I've learnt that I'm able to live without an awful lot, but that life is much better when I have certain luxuries around, like my sewing machine and wine. So only really the ability to speak to my friends and family, ideally in the flesh.

What would you like to have in your hands right now? Some new Built By You patterns.

What is the last movie you watched? Waltz With Bashir. Pretty high-brow, but I can't pretend I understood it all.

Name three movies that deeply impressed you and that you still think about. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Zeitgeist: Addendum, and U-Turn.

How do you spend your time on public transport? On the metro I read a book, when using bicing I focus on trying not to get killed.

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go? My folks sofa to be with them and drink wine, chat, and eat Cadbury's Dairy Milk.

What do you wish to accomplish 5 years from now? To be making at least part of my income from sewing, be living in a warehouse that we have converted ourselves, to be growing most of our own fruit and veg, and be shit-hot at speaking Spanish! Oh, and have an extensive wardrobe full of envy-inducing self made clothes!

Put a picture here of your current hometown/city:

I tag Occasional Martha. If you don't fancy it lady, fair enough, no pressure!

'Chain, chain, chain, chain of blogs'

Well I'm feeling pretty spesh right now. This state is particularly pleasant considering the arse couple of weeks that have recently passed. A quick run down: losing a load of work with no warning and reaching new levels of skint that I previously only could imagine I was capable of, plus dealing with the subsequent accompanying fear whilst new work was being procured. THEN getting evicted after less than four weeks in our flat, and losing our subtantial deposit through no fault of our own. Fear not, good times will soon be upon us once the latest escape is complete. Then I can get back to contemplating and creating, and filling this blogs raison d'etre.

So I was super grateful to receive the above award from the lovely Occasional Martha. My interpretation is that it's an award for 'Services to Blogland'. Well, she wrote a summary about this blog that was so nice it made me all warm inside. I have decided to celebrate with something else that makes me warm inside:

I've discovered a pretty tasty red Vermouth (renamed Nan-juice by me, as the flavour reminds me of my nan, which is strange because Gin was her poison) from the 'budget' supermarket chain Dia for a mere €1.75! Skintness is the mother of discovery, but I warn you, the hangovers are particularly vicious. That is the nature of this beast, what you save in cash, you lose in vitality the next day.

Well, the rule of receiving this award is that I must pass on the honour, so here are my ten choices, in no particular order:

1, Michelle, my girl from London, has a beautifully perfect blog called Naughty Little Peacock. Her style and creations are fantastical, magical and eclectically influenced.

2, I've been checking out Cheap Opulence for an eon. The content never fails to amuse or fascinate me and somehow every image she includes I find hugely inspirational.

3, I came by Sweet Sassafras through Wardrobe Refashion, when she posted about her self made vintage inspired wedding dress. Her creations and blog are a window to beautiful pre-WW2 stylings. Her new sewing patterns project is a very exciting development that I'm following with baited breath.

4, For some time Christine was a mythical creature who existed on Burdastyle displaying her amazingly perfect garment creations through amazingly perfect photography. Well, guess what? She's real, lives in London, and knows my mate Michelle in one of those 'it's a small world' type ways!

5, I have to include Wardrobe Refashion, because my discovery and involvement in this blog/pledge has genuinely changed my life and way of thinking about fashion, and consumption in general for that matter.

6, For Me, For You provides me with a regular reminder that there's more out there in the world from which to draw inspiration than merely clothes alone. The author acts as a filter for beautiful and interesting things that saves the rest of us a lot of time!

7, In a similar vein to Wardrobe Refashion, Sew Retro is a community blog, rather than a single author affair. I'm not actually a member, but have been visiting the site for doses of vintage pattern/fabric/garment pornography for a number of years.

8, I know this is a Sisterhood award, but I need to make an exception. I also must admit to a sizable obession with the comedian and writer Dave Gorman. I have been lucky enough to see him in the flesh a couple of times (at radio/TV recordings and book readings, if I'm a stalker, then I'm a legit one!), I even spotted him wandering around the east London market where I used to have a stall once. Anyway, his blog is interesting and witty, and at times laugh-out-loud-til-you're-crying funny.

9, A Dress A Day has kept me entertained whilst I blatantly should have been working on more occassions than I care to admit. I love the way Erin fully indulges and celebrates her dress sewing obsession. Her posts are so diverse and perfectly crafted, I am amazed she has any free time left for sewing at all. Plus, she is side-splittingly funny.

10, I have no recollection of how I discovered Yard Sale Bloodbath. However, it indulges my predisposition to nose into other peoples unwanted belongings, which goes some way to patching up the massive charity-shop-and-bootsale-shaped gap left in my life after moving away from the UK. It's a bit like looking into a parallel universe, as I'm sure I'd spend my weekends in a very similar fashion if I lived in the USA.

Thanks again Martha!

Creation House-Keeping

Time for a little house-keeping. Seeing as my sewing equipment has arrived and I have already been sewing up a storm, I thought I'd get up to date by presenting for your viewing pleasure some garms that I made earlier.

First up, the above pictures are of a blouse I made last year from the JJ Burdastyle pattern. I have loved pretty much EVERY version of this pattern I have seen on Burdastyle, and produced my own from a tablecloth bought from a charity shop in Leigh for a mere £1! My mum helped fit the blouse better, and I'm lazy so I 'reinterpreted' the sleeve band/button fastening into a less time consuming cheeky elastic casing affair. The buttons are super-cute little flowers. As I recall, it was my ex who suggested stitching them on with yellow thread to look like the centre of the flowers. I remember laughing my arse off that he had conjured up an opinion about sewing. After I finished laughing I realised it was a very good idea and quietly got on with it. Anyway, it's a pretty spring-like creation so I'm sure it'll be getting a lot more wear in the coming months.

Next up are two dresses that were whipped up from the same pattern from the November Burda World of Fashion magazine (AKA: BWOF, FYI!). These were created whilst I was back in UK for christmas. I had been so starved of sewing that I was virtually panting whilst making them.

The 'day' version is made from a dark grey wool blend, and the 'evening' version from a stretch dark blue/grey satin. These creations serve to remind me how different the results of patterns can look simply by altering the fabric. Which is why I've learnt not to judge the illustrations on manaufactured patterns, or the photographs in BWOF, and to go straight to the technical drawing so as not to cloud any potential that may be hidden under hideous fabric choices!

Anyways, the satin version got it's debut on NYE. The only photographic evidence is from the end of the evening, I'm clearly exhausted from all dress-based compliments I'd received. Really.

Ok, that's a bit of backlog dealt with, new garms are coming, watch this space......(well, the space directly above this post).