DRESS SHIRT PROJECT
1830s Fashion, Romanticism, Vichy Pattern, Picnicking, Suburbia Utopia, James Tissot & Joanna Concejo Illustrations
For my Vichy dress is looked at, the picnic as one of cinema & literature's favourite double entendres: the innocent excursion to the countryside that turns into a spontaneous affair. The breeze is treated sentimentally as well as allegorically, an outing as a figurative journey to revelation. This was an especially popular narrative in the 1830s during the romantic era when one wanted an escape from the urban life; a scene portrayed skilfully by painter James Tissot. The design is thereby influenced by this historical period as well as by picnic symbolism reflected in the pattern-making - squared table cloths sleeves, blanket hem stitch & a patchwork quilt skirt. The hanging shirts on the hips are a reference to the clothesline flowing in the wind of the fields. Since the shirt is consistently recognized as a functional sober & formal garment, I wanted to take the romantic approach to it by referencing its classic shapes intuitively and playfully draping them all over the body.
Final Presentation:
Picnic Shirt Dress
Mockup Process:
Editorial Photoshoot:
Research Book:
