~ like ~ Jun Takahashi and his Graces

Jun Takahashi is the talented creative japanese designer behind the cult label undercover.

undercover

was founded back in 1988 (a brand originated with his friend);

later established as a company/fashion house (not until six years later in 1994)

never have i came across to this label, not until the year when i watched one of his earlier collection in class (around the same time when i watch Alice). i have vague memory about which collection it was, nevertheless it was one of those remarkable show i had ever seen.

his approach to designing are very much influenced by music (very much !)

his works is indeed artistic, unique and self expressive.

his version of deconstruction/reconstruction is somehow anarchy - taking his cue from the punk (he was a lead singer from a punk band himself) ;as well as inspired by life's dark side.

but yet they come along well and are still so beautiful, sending message out through his collection.

anyway,

just want to introduce his Graces if you haven't know so.

Graces

Grace is the name he gave to his dolls. 

 

doll-making in process

They are actually stuffed animal made by him and his teams (yes, doll-making is his hobby).

 

playful stuffed animal but yet quite haunting and surrealism - filled with his imagination and creativity.

they are large-scale creatures constructed from multiple cut-out parts of teddy bears, pearls, lace, light bulbs, wires ...

 

as unique or monstrous as they could be - Graces have multiple arms emerging out from body part and light bulbs supplanting onto their head; and 

as romantic or feminine as they could be - wearing vintage lace gowns and pearls.

Graces have indeed become an iconic symbol for him, prominently since his spring/summer 2009 collection.

spring summer 2009

Grace photo exhibiton in Dec 2008

doll-making performance in the Giardino di Boboli

an interview regarding his performance in the Giardino di Boboli

furthermore, he extended his experiment by travelling across japan; performing the doll-making with his team - taking its shape in front of the crowds; together with live soundtrack of electronic loud music or band on the background.

The Sound and The Fury performance across Japan

two limited edition fragrances was released in 2010 called Holygrace and Holygrapie.

perfume (( holygrace and holygrapie ))

here are videos from his doll-making performances

  

 

if you're interested in viewing more, visit his unofficial website

"The Graces spontaneously come out of me, genuinely, while making clothes is something more calculated, an entire process that requires teamwork. But doing both allows me to keep a balance in my creativity. Therefore, it makes sense to me to have everything linked." Jun Takahashi

(images courtesy from Jun Takahashi's blog)

~ like ~ Théâtre de la Mode 1945

random stuffs.

the weekend was actually quite warm here,

and i hope it would stay longer.

going to do some sewing later

so i thought i should write something instead in the morning.

it's gonna be quite a long one today (・ω<)”

i'm going to introduce and talk about this particular event happened back in 1945. 

 

poster for Théâtre de la Mode exhibition in New York, 1946

Théâtre de la Mode 1945 ,

have you heard of it ?

there was a story behind this project with a strong message. 

but i'm just going to briefly talk about it, cause i just wanna show you how magnificent it was !

Théâtre de la Mode was a defined event of postwar couture. 

this project opened its door on 27^th March 1945.

it was intended to mark the freedom and celebrate the survival of French Couture after second world war.

furthermore, the couturiers were attempted to entice back the international market after the war when condition was deprived and under threat. 

la théâtre by christian berrard

it was a display of 237 miniature dolls dressed by fifty three well-known couturiers. 

but why dolls?

presenting fashion in real-life size was considered impractical when fabric were in short supply during war.

however, what would happen if the garments were presented on a division of adult size instead? in limited supply, dolls became practicable to prototype French couture, showing what could be visualized full-size when situation returned to normal.

evening dress by balenciaga

even though they were all in miniature version; the sewing and construction details were all done in perfection and finished meticulously.even their accessories were all made exactly like a real one !




  

one of the dress from la théâtre by christian berrard

 

 

Jean Saint-Martin constructing the structure of the dolls

the structure of the dolls

no harm to point out is the status of the dolls (*´ω｀*)

the figures did not resemble 'dolls' or even figures at all. if you noticed, they were actually constructed in wires.

day dress by molyneux, ensemble by georgette renal

 

day ensemble by lucile manguin,sport suit by dupouy magnin

it is understandable that raw materials were difficult to obtain that time thus metal which once lay all around the city by the Nazis were then used. 

 

  

evening dresses by jean patou

navy wool day dress by marcelle chaumont

How amusing (ノ∀｀)

the metal which once proposed to destroy Paris now became the skeleton and foundation of the dolls.

evening dress by madame gres

nevertheless;

despite well dressed and graceful; the dolls actually invited us an interpretation of the dissipated life after war with the presence of the wire structure as the body.

evening dress by balenciaga

i guess that this event is still remarkable today as the matter of fact that it was born under difficult circumstances and during a period of crisis after post-war.

dinner dress by lucile manguin

indeed, those dolls stand as a hope for future and also an honour for the creativity skills of the couturiers and artists of France; for been able to work together and bringing a symbol of new life and return of hope.

 

i think it is worth mentioning too about another project The Gratitude Train that took place a few years later.

this project marked the friendship of the americans and french.

the americans were generous enough to help and rebuild the french people's shattered lives after war by sending over boxcars of necessities in a train back in December 14, 1947.

touched by their kindness, the french decided to return their gratitude to the americans by sending back gifts in a total of fourty nine boxcars called The Gratitude Train two years later in 1949.

designed by maggy rouff

the Syndicate de la Couture de Paris which had designed
the théâtre de la mode dolls was involved in this too. 

designed by callot soeurs

this time, the couturiers dressed forty nine dolls which were constructed from the same wire design as the Théâtre de la Mode in period costumes that portrayed the changes in french fashions from 1715 to 1906.

designed by charles frederick worth

designed by elsa schiaparell

these delicate dolls were donated to the brooklyn museum in new york as a part of their costume collection today. (visit the link i provided if you are interested to look at the other incredible dolls)

and here is a video i found regarding the théâtre de la mode exhibition held in phoenix art museum last year  

take a glimpse !

wished i could have a close up look at these dolls one day (ू˃̣̣̣̣̣̣︿˂̣̣̣̣̣̣ ू)

maybe they would take a tour to australia someday? 

hope you found it interesting too ♡♡


and now it's time to continue my sewing.



(images courtesy from brooklyn museum, théâtre de la mode: fashion dolls: the Survival of haute couture)

~ like ~ Yuken Teruya part II

continuing from my previous post ( ´ ▽ ` )ﾉ 

here is another project done by yuken teruya.

                     

                   the giving tree project 

 

the giving tree book

this project surrounds itself around a children's book - the giving tree by shel silverstein, published in 1964.

giving tree project, the giving tree book, 2007

yuken teruya transplanted his beautiful cut-out trees into the pages from the book; creating a child's memory and desire as well as giving life to the tree in the book.

 

giving tree project, the giving tree book, 2007

i had a search on the story, vague memory that i actually read it before, perhaps ? 

it is beautifully written but very sad, like it's title - giving is the theme, not forgetting to mention love, life, growing up and selfishness.

here is an animated movie narrated by shel silverstein himself if you're interested to watch (i would recommend it) 

oh and his animated website is a must-visit ♪♪

there are actually other animated stories if you wanna watch ♪

enjoy ♥

it's raining crazily here nowadays, windy autumn. cold! (´Д` )

~ like ~ Alice/ Něco z Alenky

i remember growing up reading children's stories and fairy-tales; watching disney and fairy-tales movies ♡♡

my mum has this really huge, super-thick aged story book containing thousands pages and hundreds of fairy-tales that i love to read over and over. it is the most amazing book you wanna read. i think the book is kept hidden somewhere back at home now. and i'm going to unfold the pages again someday soon.

even though i have been reading and watching lots of happily-ever-after which i love to; i'm also fascinated by the peculiar  adaptation of these stories where the sweetness are striped away by giving them a touch of darkness and fear. possibly uncanny too.

these iconic tales have always been an inspiration and references to the artists.

      
and i would like to share one today ♡
an adaptation of Alice's Adventure in Wonderland.

in fact, i have been looking for this particular adaptation and i finally found it ! ( ´∀｀)
how i came across to this film? that was many years ago in uni-days when i watched it during class. i was very impressed with this version of that it keeps lingering in my mind all these years （´-`）



                               'Alice'


 























Alice (original Czech title is Něco z Alenky, which means 'Something from Alice')is a 1988 film directed by Jan Švankmajer, a Czech filmmaker and artist. This is one of the earlier bizarre version of adaptation from Lewis Carroll's infamous story, and to mention the latest adaptation would be Tim Burton's in 2010
(・ω-｀；)

 

have you watched it?

this particular version is an unusual spin where it explored the fears of children's dreams and imaginations.


you could also find Jan Švankmajer's territory throughout the scenes - he is recognized for his unique stop-motion technique and his capability to make the film surreal yet humorous.

living Alice

in this film, Alice's characteristic is slightly more haunting, in which her world is painted into a sinister theme.

varieties of stop-motion animated creatures had been employed throughout the film; even having Alice manifesting as a doll (when she became small)

doll Alice

still from the film

 

still from the film

these animated creatures have already invited us a reading of surreal manner; creating an ambiguous atmosphere between the living and the inanimate.











so if you are a lover of surrealism, this is one of the not-to-miss film, perhaps?










and i found the full length film in youtube (such excitement!)
sadly there is no subtitles but i wouldn't be too bothered,really o(≧▽≦)o

this film has such expressive images and scenes which actually takes you right through the storyline without much dialogues.

so if you are interested to watch it ♥

hope you enjoy it ♥