Ruth Huoh - Fashion Design: Clothing as Art

Published in 2018 by
Lucent Press, an Imprint of Greenhaven Publishing, LLC
353 3rd Avenue
Suite 255
New York, NY 10010

Copyright 2018 Lucent Press, an Imprint of Greenhaven Publishing, LLC.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer.

Designer: Seth Hughes
Editor: Vanessa Oswald

Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Huoh, Ruth.

Title: Fashion design: clothing as art / Ruth Huoh.

Description: New York: Lucent Press, 2018. | Series: Eye on art | Includes index.

Identifiers: ISBN 9781534561045 (library bound) | ISBN 9781534561052 (ebook)

Subjects: LCSH: Fashion design--Juvenile literature. | Fashion--Juvenile literature.

Classification: LCC TT507.H86 2018 | DDC 746.92 --dc23

Printed in the United States of America

CPSIA compliance information: Batch #BS17KL: For further information contact Greenhaven Publishing LLC, New York, New York at 1-844-317-7404.

Please visit our website, www.greenhavenpublishing.com. For a free color catalog of all our high-quality books, call toll free 1-844-317-7404 or fax 1-844-317-7405.

Contents

Foreword

Introduction

The Evolution of Fashion

Chapter One

History of Fashion Design

Chapter Two

Fashion Is Art

Chapter Three

Careers in Fashion Design

Chapter Four

Fashion Industry Issues

Chapter Five

Whats Next? The Future of Fashion

Notes

For More Information

Index

Picture Credits

About the Author

Foreword

W hen many people think of art, the first things that come to mind may be paintings, drawings, sculptures, or even pictures created entirely with a computer. However, people have been applying artistic elements to almost every aspect of life for thousands of years. Human beings love beautiful things, and they seek beauty in unlikely places. Buildings, clothes, furniture, and many other things we use every day can all have an artistic aspect to them.

Attempts to define art have frequently fallen short. Merriam-Webster defines art as something that is created with imagination and skill and that is beautiful or that expresses important ideas or feelings. However, almost no one refers to the dictionary definition when attempting to decide whether or not something can be considered art. They rely on their intuition, which leaves much room for debate between competing opinions. What one person views as beautiful, another may see as ugly. An idea that an artist feels it is important to express may hit home with some people and be dismissed by others. Some people believe that art should always be beautiful, while others feel that art should be unsettling enough to pull people out of their comfort zone. With all of these contradictory views, it is no wonder that the question of what is art is so often disputed.

This series aims to introduce readers to some of the more unconventional and controversial art forms, such as anime, fashion design, and graffiti. Debate on these topics has often been heated, with some people firmly declaring that they are art and others declaring just as firmly that they are not. Each book in the series discusses the history of a particular art form, the ways it is created, and the reasons why it is considered artistic. Learning more about these topics helps young adults recognize the art that is all around them as well as form their own opinions about this complex subject.

Quotes by experts in various art fields enhance the engaging text. All quotes are cited so readers can trace them back to their original source, giving them a starting point for further research. A list of recommended books and websites also allows young adults to delve deeper into related subjects. Full-color photographs give vivid examples of the artistic works being described in the books so readers can visualize the terms they are learning.

Through this series, young adults gain a better understanding of a variety of popular art forms. They also develop a deeper appreciation for the artistry that is inherent in the things they see and use every day.

INTRODUCTION

The Evolution of Fashion

F ashion has been an integral part of society since prehistoric times. Cave paintings and remnants of clothing from that era have intricate beading, showing that even during a period of hunting and gathering, the time-consuming task of sewing beads into clothing was still considered important. No one has determined the exact reason why people began to wear clothes, but reasons vary from modesty, to protection from weather, to a way to display wealth.

Early humans wore pelts from animals they had killed. Cloth was not used as a clothing material until society began to settle down. People needed to plant cotton and herd sheep to get the materials for cloth. Cloth also required people to settle in a place long enough to create a structure to house a loom. The Industrial Revolution dramatically reduced the time needed to create clothing, and now the fashion industry moves at a tremendously fast pace, with new clothing entering some stores daily.

Fashion designs have often been puzzling to many. A person may wonder if there is truly any art to designing clothing, and this question is explored through the history of fashion design and different fashion techniques.

Types of Fashion

There are three main categories of fashion design: haute couture, prt--porter, and mass market. Haute couture, which means high sewing in French, indicates handcrafted and custom-made creations made out of the highest quality fabrics. In 1945, the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture in Paris created specific rules that a fashion label, or house, must follow to call itself a haute couture house. For a designer to be considered haute couture, it must meet all of these criteria and be invited by the Chambre Syndicale. These rules were updated in 1992:

This model is showing off the fashion design style known as haute couture, which must follow very specific rules.

At least 35 pieces of day and evening wear must be presented twice a year during the spring and summer season in January, and during the autumn and winter season in August.

These fashion designs must be custom-made for private clients, and include multiple model fittings. These designs can take anywhere from 100 to 1,000 hours to complete, and typically include luxury details such as St. Gallen lace and hand-sewn pearls.

Finally, the designer must have a physical studio in Paris that employs a minimum of 15 full-time workers.

Haute couture pieces generally cost thousands of dollars to create and are exquisite works of art. However, the need for customized clothing has shrunk now, and haute couture has gradually been replaced in popularity with prt--porter.

Ready-to-wear, or prt--porter in French, refers to collections that are shown seasonally but use standardized sizes instead of customized fittings. These designs still use quality fabrics, construction, and close attention to detail, but they are more cost-effective to manufacture because they do not require customized fittings. Ready-to-wear collections now generate more profit than haute couture collections because of the time and cost associated with haute couture. Many haute couture designers also have prt--porter lines.