Seven

THIS WEEK HAS proven to be less inspiring than previous weeks, partly because other projects have taken up more time than expected. I have taken the initial steps towards realising my final surface textures, mainly through pencil studies and referring to the decorative motifs and pattern prints that I had previously found at the Met.

ON A SEPARATE NOTE, this project has raised a secondary concern - the distinction between staying true to a source of inspiration and pastiche - that was partially answered in another class. I had decided to make a kimono jacket in my patternmaking class and discovered that adapting the kimono jacket to Western sensibilities is a highly complicated process. This is because the kimono jacket emphasizes what Harold Koda calls the "layering" sensibility as opposed to Western notions of contouring the body - the contemporary kimono jacket then represents a sort of sartorial synthesis.

GOING FORWARD, I think it would be interesting to see how such a synthesis may happen on a surface design, the repetitive nature of a stripe combined with the abstract natural motifs found in Japanese textiles perhaps.



Fin.