There is one type of fashion that pushes the boundaries and lets the designer be as creative and crazy as they like, this is Avant-Garde fashion. This type of fashion is an art that not many people understand, it’s all about the designer expressing their feelings or a problem through fashion. A big thing lately has been expressing the world's problems through Avant-Garde fashion such as war and climate change. These are all subjects which people need to know about and this type of fashion is so unique and different that it catches people attention and makes them talk, whether its good or it's critiquing it still makes people talk about the problems that are going on the world and is being expressed by someone who cares about the problems. This picture is of one of Vivienne Westwood’s designs from 2013, it's a simple t-shirt that says the words “climate change”. This is example isn’t as extreme as other Avant-Garde fashion but it shows how designers have the power to express things that are going on in the world.
Other Avant-Garde designers such as Thierry Mugler have designs that are in your face and tells you something about the designer and his message. Mugler's message in his designs is all about female empowerment, he uses sexy and flattering figures in his designs to show off the model's bodies. His designs can be intense but empowering, the garments that Mugler designs and makes can take up to 12 weeks to make, which shows the amount of dedication and handwork which is put into these Avant-Garde garments. Even though Mugler was most popular in the 80’s / 90’s his designs are still relevant and adored by many today. At the 2019 Grammy Awards, Cardi B wore the 1995 Venus Garment and it got so much attention. I like Thierry Mugler’s designs and garments as they are different, unique and a bit risky. I think a lot of designers should take that into account when designing clothes, it's okay to take a risk and do something different, either way, you are going to get attention and some people might like the creativity of the garment.
Another designer who takes a lot of risks is Iris Van Herpen, I enjoy Herpen's designs because they’re unlike anything that you see in the fashion world. The garments she makes are made from a 3D printer and individually stuck on one by one, it’s more of a construction job yet still really unique. Herpen makes structures into garments that show futuristic and technological designs. This is a big step forward for fashion and I hope that more designers take what Herpen does with her designs and incorporate it into their designs. One of my Favourite Herpen Garments is the water dress, it was made with construction techniques along with heat guns and pliers to get the perfect shape. I like this piece because of the movement of it and how the substances and materials used makes it look like a real splash of water.
Avant-Garde fashion is so different and creative and that’s what I like about it. It’s a form of art and you can’t necessarily wear it but it shows the designer's point of view and they’re making something for themselves, not necessarily what the public want to wear.
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