How Russian cultural heritage embodied in modern fashion design?
Abstract
Introduction
In this project I am going to talk about “How Russian cultural heritage embodied in modern fashion design”. I will be looking at the basis of the Russian traditional costume, Russian historical and social background of the late 19th and early 20th centuries and Russian culture. Then I am going to analyze how these three aspects have influenced fashion designers in Russia and around the world starting from the 20th century and what are the outcomes of this influence. I will be referencing to the real fashion designers, some of which have already passed away, but some are still alive and continuing to work until the present time. Together with the designers I will be describing and analyzing their collections to make it clear which particular aspects of Russia had imprinted in each collection. Amongst many famous designers I will talk about the most famed masters such as Paul Poirete, Coco Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent and Karl Lagerfeld.
The reason why I have chosen this topic is because I am Russian and my passion is fashion. I am both interested in my country’s rich history and in the history of fashion design. In fashion I am particularly interested in the sources which are being used by fashion designers to draw inspiration from for the new collections. I also feel that this topic has not yet been widely explored and discussed, so it will be interesting to collect existing historical information to create a new fact file, learn for myself and enlighten others. In addition I am a Year 13 Art student, looking to apply in to Art and Design or Fashion universities this year. Therefore I believe that this project will broaden my horizons, give me an insight into the world of fashion and reveal the unknown of what stands behind the final collections.
Key terms:
Aigrette (from the French for egret) - a tufted crest or head-plumes of the egret, used for adorning a headdress. Aigrettes studded with diamonds and rubies often decorate turbans.
Armyak – a type of over wear warn in winter, long-skirted garment of coarse woolen cloth with a hood, without buttons or zippers, but belted. Resembles a warm woolen bathrobe.
Cossak boots – boots warn by Cossaks - a group of predominantly East Slavic people who became known as members of democratic, semi-military and semi-naval communities, predominantly located in Ukraine and in Southern Russia.
Culottes (trouser-like skirt) - women's flared trousers cut to look like a skirt.
Embroidery - the handicraft of decorating fabric or other materials with needle and thread or yarn.
Fringe - an ornamental textile trim applied to an edge of an item, such as drapery, a flag, epaulettes, or decorative tassel.
Haute couture (French for " high fashion ") - the creation of exclusive custom-fitted clothing.
Kafeshantan – a place for entertainment, a cafe or arestaurant with an open-air stage.
Kichka (Soroka) – a festive headdress of married women. Kind of kika (kichko), a little lower on the forehead and the sides are somewhat higher.
Kika (Kichko) - an old Russian woman's headdress with horns, type of povoynik.
Kokoshnik – an old Russian headdress in the form of the comb around the head, the symbol of Russian traditional costume.
Kosovorotka – a shirt with oblique collar, which has a cut on a side and not in the middle, like a normal shirt.
Matryoshka - a set of wooden dolls with female facial features and floral ornaments painted on them placed one inside the other in decreasing size.
Muff - a fashion accessory for outdoors usually made of a cylinder of fur or fabric with both ends open for keeping the hands warm.
Noblewoman - a woman having a high rank, especially one belonging to the aristocracy.
Peasant - a member of a traditional class of farmers, either laborers or owners of small farms.
Povoynik - an ancient Russian headdress of married women, mostly peasants, often headscarf or a towel, tied under a different headdress or shawl.
Prêt-à-porter (French for “ ready-to-wear ”) - factory-made clothing, sold in finished condition, in standardized sizes, as distinct from made to measure or bespoke clothing tailored to a particular person's frame (haute couture).
Sarafan (Sundress) - a traditional Russian long, trapeze-shaped jumper dress (pinafore) worn as Russian folk costume by women and girls.
Shawl – an item of clothing, loosely worn over the shoulders, upper body and arms, and sometimes also over the head. It is usually a rectangular or square piece of cloth, which is often folded to make a triangle but can also be triangular in shape.
Turban - a kind of headwear based on cloth winding.
Woolen shawl – a knitted shawl made of goat down and fundamentals such as silk.
Research review
№1
Name: «Русские душой» (Russian by soul)
Address: http://www.elle.ru/moda/fashion-blog/Russkie-dushoi/
Author: Vera Popova
Date consulted: 03.01.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: This article was inspirational for my project. I have used it as the base source of primitive information to start my project. Vera Popova talks about how Russian culture has affected European fashion industry. She gives names, however no specific information about people and firms who have created collections in Russian style – Paul Poirete, Coco Chanel, Yves Saint Laurent, Jaun Paul Gautier, Mark Jacobs, Alessandra Rich, Louis Vuitton and Banana Republic.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№2
Name: «Русские сезоны Дягилева и их влияние на моду» (Russian Diaghilev’s seasons and their influence on fashion)
Address: http://www.liveinternet.ru/users/batashn/post93564641
Author: Masyanova Svetlana
Date consulted: 12.06.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article talks about Diaghilev’s season in Paris in early 20th century. Has many pictures, therefore provides not only verbal, but also visual information. The author describes the events and their influence on fashion and interior design amongst aristocracy of Paris.
Primary/Secondary source: secondary source – information is taken from Pozharskaya M.N. "Russian Seasons in Paris" and Ermilova D.I. "The history of fashion houses."
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts, supported by many photographs – evidencing the truthfulness of the events described in the article.
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№3
Name: «Русские сезоны в Париже» (Russian Seasons in Paris)
Address: http://fashion-before-war.couturiers.ru/35/215.htm
Date consulted: 25.06.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article talks in brief about Diaghilev’s seasons in Paris in early 20th century. The article just describes main events.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№4
Name: «Мода на Русское» (Fashion for Russian)
Address: http://www.mlsalon.ru/publications/russian-style.html
Author: Irina Djigmund
Date consulted: 05.07.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article talks about the history of Russian traditional cultural influence on Soviet Russia and Europe starting from the late 19th century. Some designers such as Paul Poirete and John Galliano are mentioned in the article. The author provides some dates and names. Visual information is also present.
Primary/Secondary source: original source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts, visually supported
Bias: no bias, however definitely not full information is provided
№5
Name: «7 великих модельеров, вдохновленных Россией» (7 great fashion designers, inspired by Russia)
Address: http://russian7.ru/2013/03/7-velikix-modelerov-vdoxnovlennyx-rossiej/
Author: (НАЙТИ!!!)
Date consulted: 07.07.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article talks about seven famous fashion designers working in 20th and 21st centuries – Paul Poirete, Yves Saint Lauren, Karl Lagerfeld, Oscar de la Renta, John Galliano, Antonio Maras, Joseph Teamster. All seven of them were at least once inspired by Russia and created a “Russian collection”. The article provides with dates and key features for the collections.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts, no opinion
Bias: not bias, no opinion at all.
№6
Name: «Великокняжеский бизнес - Русские дома моды в Париже» (Grand-business - Russian fashion houses in Paris)
Address: http://ricolor.org/europe/frantzia/fr/rus/14/
Author: Feodor Pogodin
Date consulted: 19.07.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article talks about Russian emigration after the revolution and First World War, how they have settled in the biggest location of Russian emigrants – Paris. In particular this article highlights the opening of many fashion houses by aristocratic emigrant women. This article also describes the partnership between Coco Chanel and one of such houses – “Kitmir”.
Primary/Secondary source: Secondary source. Original information is taken from "Russian businessman" journal website.
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts, no opinion.
Bias: not bias, the author talks about a specific circle of people – aristocrats - he does not mention other social classes. He does talk in favor of them, however not pursuing selfish goals.
№7
Name: «Непреходящее волшебство Русских сезонов» (The enduring magic of Russian Seasons)
Address: http://www.diaghilev.perm.ru/rierih/4.htm
Author: Nataliya Metelitca
Date consulted: 14.07.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article talks in much detail about Diaghilev’s seasons in Paris at the beginning of the 20th century. Some visual supportive material is added by the author.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№8
Name: «Жаклин Дюрран и костюмы к фильму "Анна Каренина"» (Jaclyn Duran and costumes for “Anna Karenina” film)
Address: http://modagid.ru/articles/1860
Date consulted: 27.07.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article provides mainly visual information of the dresses by Jaclyn Duran for the Anna Karenina latest Hollywood film. In addition at gives vague background information about the work of Duran and brief introductory to the history behind the costumes from the film.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable facts
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№9
Name: «Они изменили мир: Поль Пуаре» (They changed the world: Paul Poirete)
Address: http://www.sgmg.ru/?p=18656
Date consulted: 28.07.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article is a brief biography of a fashion designer Paul Poirete. Author gives information about Poirete’s whole life. Includes specific dates and names.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№10
Name: «Jan Paul Gaultier – оригинальный стиль несносного ребёнка» (Jan Paul Gaultier - original style of the enfant terrible)
Address: http://www.cityliner2.ru/articles/jean-paul-gaultier/
Date consulted: 29.07.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article is a biography of a fashion designer Jan Paul Gaultier. Author gives information about Gaultier’s whole life. Includes specific dates and names.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts, biography
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№11
Name: « Yves Saint Laurent по-русски» (Yves Saint Laurent in Russian)
Address: http://societeperrier.com/moscow/articles/feature/yves-saint-laurent-%D0%BF%D0%BE-%D1%80%D1%83%D1%81%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8/#.Ug88gtJnRqk
Author: Tatiana Fadeeva
Date consulted: 29.07.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article is a biography of a fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent. Author gives information about Laurent’s whole life. Includes specific dates and names.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts, biography
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№12
Name: «Россия - источник вдохновения» (Russia – source of inspiration)
Address: http://www.spletnik.ru/blogs/moda/14427_rossiya_istochnik_vdoxnoveniya
Date consulted: 17.08.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article provides some information on how Russian culture has inspired which European designers and what collections they have created as a results. Author provides descriptions, dates and some visual materials about the collections.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable facts
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№13
Name: «Крестьянский стиль» (Peasant style)
Address: http://cyrillitsa.ru/galeries/329-krestyanskiy-stil.html
Date consulted: 23.08.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article talks about the origins of Russian influence on the 20th - 21st centuries European fashion. It argues that it comes mostly from what peasants wore in the countryside. The author gives a good account of different outfits both for males and females.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№14
Name: «Костюмы героев в фильме «Анна Каренина» Джо Райта» (Costumes of characters in the film "Anna Karenina" by Joe Wright)
Address: https://movie-pocket.com/node/24
Date consulted: 31.08.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article talks about the history behind the costumes for Anna Karenina film by Joe Wright. The author includes an interview with the costume designer Jacqueline Durran.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable facts
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№15
Name: «Мода вне сезонов» (Fashion beyond seasons)
Address: http://www.vogue.ru/magazine/articles/126165/
Date consulted: 31.08.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article talks about the correlation between Russian ballet and fashion in the 20th century. Famous personas such as Paul Poiret and Yves Saint Laurent are talked about in this article.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№16
Name: «Одежда и ткань» (Clothing and fabrics)
Address: http://design-history.ru/u-istokov-funktsionalizma-modernizm/odezhda-i-tkan.html
Date consulted: 31.08.13
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article talks about Lubov Popova and Barbara Lebedeva. They were two constructivist fashion designers in 1920-s Russia who changed traditional approach to womenswear.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№17
Name: "Красота в изгнании – Русские сезоны в Париже" (Beauty in Exile - Russian Seasons in Paris)
Publisher: Slovo, Moscow
Date published: 2008
Author: Aleksandr Vassiliev
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The article talks about Diaghilev’s seasons in Paris in the early 20th century. Describes different ballets, costumes and the effect they had on public, aristocracy and fashion.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source - book
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts
Bias: no bias
№18
Name: «Александ Васильев рассказывает…» (Aleksandr Vassiliev tells…)
Publisher: Eterna, Moscow
Date published: 2009
Author: Aleksandr Vassiliev
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The base of this book is a live broadcast by Irina Klenskaya – journalist on radio station “Govorit Moskva” 92,0 FM. Many art, theater and fashion aspects are discussed in this book – actresses, costumes, ballets, opera, looks, ideals, personal life etc. Diaghilev’s seasons and a couple of influences from Russian culture are also mentioned in this book.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable facts
Bias: no bias
№19
Name: «Мода и Модельеры: Самые красивые и знаменитые» (Fashion and fashion designers: the most beautiful and the most famous)
Publisher: World of encyclopedias Avanta, Moscow; Astrel, Moscow
Date published: 2009
Author: A. Golosovskaya et al.
Who/What/Where/Why/When: This book includes key events in fashion history, starting from middle ages, talks about key designers of the 20th – 21st centuries. Specifically focuses on Russian recent fashion designers. Explores the influence of art & design, literature, technical arts, politics and ideology on lifestyle, tastes and people’s behavior.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts - encyclopedia
Bias: no bias, no opinion
№20
Name: «Русские сезоны в Париже» (The Russian Seasons in Paris)
Publisher: Isskustvo, Moscow
Date published: 1988
Author: Pozharskaya, M.N.
Who/What/Where/Why/When: The album contains sketches of scenery and costumes for Diaghilev’s productions in Paris for the period from 1908 to 1929.
Primary/Secondary source: primary source
Reliable facts/Subjective opinion: reliable, historical facts – supported by many photographs
Bias: no bias, no opinion
Discussion/Development/Analysis
Foreword
Every now and then you can spot models on a catwalk striding in folk prints, Slavic geometric patterns and other details borrowed from Russian culture. This is not surprising because the eventful history and colorful folk art are a storehouse for ideas for masterpieces of haute couture. For foreign designers, Russia is an exotic country, and their collections often reflect the experience from the publicized tourist clichés: matryoshka, kokoshniki, muffs, shawls. Therefore it could be argued that there is no profound investigation of the basis of authentic Russian culture undertaken for the creation of new collections. However I would like to focus exactly on those fashion houses which looked deeper into the culture and injected the Russian soul into their work.
When investigating many collections, it’s hard not to notice that many were inspired by the high-society outfits. Perhaps this is due to their sumptuousness, rich colours, pomp and the luxury of gemstones and expensive overseas fabrics. In addition, much more evidence and descriptions have been preserved about the high society’s clothes rather than the peasants’, as it was customary in those days to order family portraits from famous painters and newspapers wrote solely about the famous (and the wealthy) people. Therefore fashion designers can get new ideas from the artifacts that are left over to now days which a mainly of high society.
On the other hand it is clear that the Russian influence on the current fashion is not limited to pearl kokoshniks warn by noblewoman and princesses dresses. The so-called "Russian peasant style» brings a particular brightness and freshness to fashion, like from the painting by Maljavin and Kustodiev[1].
Looking back into the history, the basis of women's traditional costume was a long shirt. The shirt was decorated with a fringe or embroidery, sometimes embroidered with pearls. Chambermaid’s shirts were made of colorful silk fabric, often red. These shirts had long narrow sleeves with slits for the arms and were called “dolgorukavnii” (long-sleeved). Sleeve length could be up to 8 - 10 cubits. The shirts were collected in folds in the hand and belted by an embroidered belt underneath the breasts. They were worn at home and not in the society. This was the base for every peasant woman’s outfit. On top of which she then wore a sundress in summer or a warm layered dress with a coat on top in winter.
Another distinctive feature of the Russian national costume is a wide variety of women's headdresses: Kichko, soroka, kokoshnik, povoynik. Married women were required to cover their hair so even at home they wore a hairline povoynik and on top of it they tied a kerchief. When leaving the house, women wore an ornate kika or kokoshnik. Maidens wore on their heads a broad embroidered dressing (corolla), with wide ribbons behind. In winter, when leaving the house, women wore fur hats or covered their headwear with a woolen shawl.
Textiles are a major part of the Russian traditional costume. Fabrics used in the creation of new collections were often also adopted from the original costumes. The main fabrics used in Russian folk costumes were: hemp, linen, cloth, silk and velvet. Almost all fabrics were of bright colors: red, blue, green, crimson, lilac, blue, pink, white and variegated.
Influenced by the unique and yet unexplored Russian folk costumes of both high society and peasants, 20th -21st century fashion designers adopted the designs and stylized them in their collections. These adaptations are what I would like to explore in this project. I am going to start with the very first influences at the beginning of 20th century, then follow through a hundred years and finish with the latest collections of 2013 fall-winter.
Diaghilev’s Seasons and Paul Poiret
The passion for Russian theme in Europe has begun in 1906, straight after the first Diaghilev’s season[2]. Russian Art started to show its imprint on lifestyle and fashion of Paris in the early 20th century. At the time, Art Noveu was the leading art movement in the whole of Europe, starting with Paris, in Russia the same movement was called modernism.
In my opinion Russian influence on European fashion became obvious and significant in the first place thanks to the brilliant herald of artistic ideas of the 20th century - Sergei Diaghilev. Paris was first introduced to Diaghilev in 1906 in Autumn Salon, where he opened an exhibition of Russian fine art. France at the time was rapturously experiencing a new period of friendship with Russia[3] and Diaghilev’s beginnings were supported by the high society.
In 1908 Diaghilev showed Boris Godunov Musorskii to Paris. He was preparing for this production for a long time – he wanted to show to Paris the real 16th – 17th century Russ. To get the full impact he visited many parts of the peasant Russia collecting authentic Russian traditional sundresses “Sarafan”, authentic antic Russian pearls and antic Russian embroideries. The artistic influence which this production had on the society and cultural life of Paris has started off a new wave of interest in Russian artists and a passion in fashion for new colours and forms showed off by Russians.
Diaghilev’s next triumph was the “Scheherazade” ballet, staged in 1910, had shown to the refined European spectators the Bakst’s Version of Persian-Ottoman costumes and novel interior designs. Colours and color combinations of costumes and decorations, created by Leon Bakst[4], had a huge influence on the 20th century fashion. He combined what was thought to be incongruous colours on stage: lilac and navy, yellow and red, green and orange. For example the combination of orange and green, suggested by Bakst, was taken in with enthusiasm and instilled for a long time. It became extremely popular in the twenties when it migrated from the stage of Russian Ballet into the world of fashion and interior designs. After the “Scheherazade” low sofas with many pillows appeared in Parisian apartments and their female owners started to wear turbans with egrets and trouser-like skirts. In this performance ballerinas danced in costumes without corsets and with half naked breasts. Soon, in 1910, a see-through material, deep decollates and exposed arms came into fashion under the influence of Scheherazade and other oriental Russian ballets; this movement was later named "Nude Fashion".
Bakst’s costume sketches were immediately bought by the Parisian Museum of Decorative Arts, what acted as an influence for Bakst to go into fashion for women and to start sketching for a famous Parisian fashion house “Paken”. Unfortunately his sketches turned out to be too complex to be turned into everyday outfits. However his ideas were used by famous tailors at the time, mainly by Paul Poiret, which is how they appeared in haute couture and prêt-à-porter.
French fashion designer Paul Poiret was fascinated by the splendor of Diaghilev’s Seasons in Paris and soon the motifs of Russian folk clothes have appeared in his new collections, presented to public in 1910 – 1914 in Paris. After his trip to Russia in 1911 he started off the fashion for the Ukrainian embroideries and Cossack boots. He was the first fashion designer in the world to create a Russian collection which he called “Kazan”. To even further extent, he dressed his children in blouses-kosovorotkas and tailored for his wife a costume resembling an armyak.
Paul Poiret was a reformer of the fashion world, seer, who has created a new ideal of feminine beauty - slender thin woman, which standard remains until now days. In 1911 he was the first to free women from corsets moving the waist of the dress under the breasts[5]. Poiret also distinguished himself in his achievements in fashion merchandising. He was the first to use life models for demonstrating his collections and to print albums with dresses from Paul Poiret. In addition he was the first amongst all fashion designers to create his own perfume also in 2011.
After the First Russian revolution in 1905[6], with inflow of white émigrés[7], the love for all Russian evolved into a mass psychosis. Restaurants, tea-rooms, gypsies, samovars, kosovorotkas and more other “Russian” things came into the European mode of life. The twenties-style in womenswear with its strict line and rhythmic arrangement of the ornament was the perfect base for the creation of costumes in Slavic style. An element of Russian folk costume, now inseparable from fashion of Art Deco period, is a head dress, resembling Northern kokoshnik. The head dress fell in the hearts of Russian ladies of the court since the mid-nineteenth century after the comeback of stylized folk dress into a courtier costume. This was the time of “Russian Renaissance” when the widespread fashion has appeared for the masquerade balls in Russian style and already after the revolution, many aristocratic women, leaving for exile, took with them the masquerade costumes in memory of the motherland and left past beautiful days. Abroad, they have renewed the Russian balls, and that is when the headdress «à la kokoshnik» came into fashion. Also in the twenties, became popular dresses painted with aniline dyes in the style of Russian folk, echoing the costumes created by Natalia Goncharova and Mikhail Larionov[8] for Diaghilev’s ballets. Additionally stand-up collars, so-called «boyar collars» became very popular and the craze for Gypsy-Russian shawls, came from kafeshantans.
Coco Chanel
In 1921, already existing with a solid reputation and many customers, Chanel House, which was headed by Coco Chanel[9] herself, was also captivated by Diaghilev’s Ballets. It was known for a long time before that Coco herself was experiencing a weakness for Russian culture. Exactly during these years Chanel, while under the spell of Diaghilev, so strongly believed in the importance of his artistic global enterprise, that she contributed a lot of money not only to support, but also for the revival and expansion of the "Russian Ballet".
At the same time Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna Romanova[10] in search of livelihood decided to try her luck at Coco’s fashion House. Having come to her studio she found Coco when she was trading to the embroideress about the price of a blouse, who required for the work 600 francs. Maria Pavlovna offered 150 francs less. Coco Chanel agreed. Shortly after the deal Marie finished tailoring courses and set up her own fashion house in the heart of Paris which she named “Kitmir”. Soon Chanel started to get ready for the traditional spring fashion show and begun to create a new collection. She gave the opportunity for Marie Pavlovna to design and sketch the ornaments of embroideries and to choose the materials and threads herself. The ideas and sketches were then discussed together with Coco. The first order, which Kitmir House received from Chanel House, was for a batch of blouses, tunics and coats. Marie Pavlovna embroidered personally most of the items, doing embroideries in grey tones with red patches. These models were the key in Chanel’s collection. After the three hour show, clients rushed to order embroidered items. Kitmir House got the status of an exclusive supplier for the Chanel House and Russian folk art got the status of the latest trend amongst 20th century French fashionistas.
Marie Pavlovna cautiously followed all the trends in the fashion world, so when she felt the weakening for authentic historical Russian style, she started to add to her new embroideries Persian ceramics ornaments, Coptic fabrics and China porcelain. This marked the end for the first big Russian wave in the fashion world.
Laurent, Gautier, Galliano
Next, in Europe the love for Russian costume came from Yves Saint Laurent[11]. In 1957 after the death of Christian Dior[12], the new-born fashion designer was made the head of the famous Dior house and it was him who dared to bring the first Dior collection to the Soviet Moscow in 1959. Perhaps that was the beginning of his “romance” with Russia. Later, in 1976 inspired by the trip to Russia he included in his “Russian Collection” broad sleeves, golden embroidery, braids, fur hats, boots, layered skirts and embroidered blouses. It was a collection of unmatched fantasy and luxury. However it was only Slavic in the eastern excess, the richness of textures and finishes. Compared with moderation of the Art Deco and 1930s fashion, this collection amazes by the explosion of color and by the multi-layer-ness. Unfortunately for Laurent this collection marks a pause in his fashion carrier. His personal autobiographer Lawrence Beanie then said that «it was the beginning of infernal cycle: alcohol – cocaine – depression – drop counter – new collection». Despite this devastating lifestyle and accompanying personal problems, Yves Saint Laurent did not let go and perfected the collection. Sadly, straight after the overwhelmingly successful fashion show he had to come back to the clinic, where he was receiving treatment for drug addiction.
In 1986 Jean Paul Gaultier[13], who was known as “the new Yves Saint Laurent”, created a collection with prints in Russian Cyrillic alphabet. The sources of his inspiration were sketches of overalls from Barbara Stepanova and Lubov Popova[14].
In 1993, another flamboyant fashion designer and a fan of the "Russian Theme", John Galliano[15], created a new fantasy-collection, which told a story about some princess Lucretia, who fled from Bolshevik Russia into Scotland. The princess fled, as Galliano has intended, wearing a crinoline with electric wires instead of the classical crinoline cage. In his fashion show Kate Moss[16] literally ran on the catwalk, wearing this dress. Another dress, also from the wardrobe of Princess Lucretia, looks similar to Anna Karenina’s dress from homonymous film with Sophie Marceau in the title role.
2009 Boom
The next wave for everything Russian took place in 2009 after the celebration of 100th anniversary of Diaghilev’s Seasons. Karl Lagerfeld[17] – the creative director of Chanel, Fendi and Karl Lagerfeld fashion houses was always amazed by the beauty of Russian women and drew his inspiration from Imperial Russia[18] and Russian folk art. His feeling for Russia could often be seen in is collections. Especially his collection in 2009 called “Paris-Moscow”, which became a real triumph of "Royal sumptuousness": gold, precious stones, kokoshniki with pearl threads, furs, muffs, badges with Soviet symbols and clutches in the form of Easter eggs with enamel in the spirit of Karl Faberge[19] and Russian Dolls “Matreshka”. Perhaps Lagerfeld wanted to remind the world of the old friendship between Coco and Russian emigration in 1910-1920. In this collection strikes the grotesque, redundancy and theatricality. Even if not to take notice of the show - entourage: kokoshniki, beads, couplings, then the actual textures of fabrics, fragmentation of ornaments and decorative finishes show that the source of inspiration were Byzantine[20] tsar vestments from the Kremlin Museum.
Also in 2009, famous American fashion designer - Oscar de la Renta created a collection called “Russian fairytale”. The interesting aspect about this collection is that the source of Oscar’s inspiration was not the tsar chick and sumptuousness of the imperial house, like for many of his colleagues, but the Russian folk crafts: Zhostovo trays[21], khokhloma painting[22] and patchwork[23].
An Italian fashion designer working for Kenzo fashion house - Antonio Marras in 2009 Fall collection was also inspired by the Russian national motives, he was especially interested in Pavloposadsk shawls and hats with earflaps, and also in long broad woolen skirts, very similar to those in folk dresses. After the creation of the “Russian line” Marras said that he designed the collection from the motifs of Russian 19th century clothes, costumes from Diaghilev’s “Russian Ballet” and films with Russian theme, such as “Doctor Zhivago”. The dominating parts in the collection are dark-green chintz and stripes rhythmically interfering with Russian lace skirts and sundresses. From all of this he created a beautiful collage, which with all of its variegation, looks interesting and very Russian.
Lastly in 2009 John Galliano got once again inspired by Russian national costume and created a collection entirely devoted to Balkan folklore.
Anna Karenina by Joe Wright
The costume designer in the latest Hollywood “Anna Karenina”[24] film was Jacqueline Durran. This was by far not her first work with the director Joe Wright and actress Keira Knightley. Jacqueline has also been the costume designer for the films such as “Pride and Prejudice” and “Atonement”. Durran has sewed 16 outfits for Keira and she spent 40 hours on each in total. Jacqueline said in one of the interviews that when she was designing the dresses for the film “Anna Karenina” she tried to combine the classical silhouette of Christian Dior dresses from the fifties and Russian aristocracy style of the mid-19th century, because both of these styles have similar features. The costumes in the film are of course made very similar to the outfits of those days, however some innovations are also present. For example many of Anna’s dresses have a very open back, yet in the 19th century this was not the usual, fashionable women preferred deep cleavage, highlighting the beauty of breasts. As a result many of the dresses had a bodice sewn in the fashion of 20th century, and a skirt in 19th. Jacqueline Durran admitted that she has purposely abandoned the frills and laces that were inherent in the fashion of the late XIX century in order to keep only the very essence of the suit.
It could be argued that the celebration of the 100th anniversary of Diaghilev’s seasons in 2009 has not only caused a boom in the fashion world, but also was an influence for filming the latest Anna Karenina movie. Nonetheless the film itself has had a massive impact on fashion. In anticipation of the triumph of Anna Karenina costumes, fashion designers have started to create their own.
In 2011, before the film was even out, Josephus Thimister[25] created a very interesting couture collection inspired by the fall of Tsar Russia and gory events of the First World War[26]. The central place of the collection is taken by the image of shot Tsarevich Alexei[27]. Red, “bloody” stains on white robes, blazers in Tsar Nikolay’s[28] style, fur coats like on the soldiers of Budyonny’s[29] army and as an extra – jumpsuits of the Soviet factory workers.
The next person to fall for Russian 19th century atmospheric gowns was Marc Jacobs[30]. His fall-winter Louis Vuitton show in 2012 could have been interpreted as an alternative ending to the novel Anna Karenina by Tolstoy L.N. The train station, the platform, the steaming locomotive can all be experienced in the collection, but no tragedy, no feelings of guilt and no bitterness of repentance.
Then the American retailer Banana Republic has dedicated to the new film adaptation of Anna Karenina, the whole capsule collection. In it - fur scarves that can be worn as a hat, warm capes and straight coats, dresses made of brocade and from more modest silk, but all outfits, as one, are made from rich, dramatic colors.
Besides, Anna Karenina could be guessed in the collection by Temperley London, but similar to the beginning of the novel, Elis Temperley has mixed everything up - graceful "a la Karenina" silhouettes decorated with floral embroidery, rich stones and abundant lace. These dresses are for the young tsarinas who want everything at once.
The Tsar Russia has also inspired Salvatore Ferragamo and Balmain. The ornaments on their collections’ dresses and accessories look almost identical to those on Faberge eggs. And in light of the recent revival of this jewelry house flowery patterns on the clothes do not look like boring historicism.
Lastly, Briton Alessandra Rich has dedicated her spring collection to two Russian gymnasts Olga and Irina - fictional heroines, but the clothes in the collection really look like performance costumes - zigzags, beaded ornaments, sheer panels and colored lace. Alessandra even made two silk dressing gowns embroidered with the names of the girls in red. So the royal magnificence and luxury of the time are not the only Russian theme that has touched fashion designers.
This latest 2012 boom in the fashion world for all Russian has so far been the last major rebirth of the Russian influence on worldwide fashion. Since then there is no mass psychosis for the Russian theme and only from time to time one or another fashion designer will throw something “a la Russ” into their collection. For example, Ralph Laurent in his latest 2013 fall-winter collection has designed a dress named Josetta which tells a story about romantic revolutionist female, wife of the Decembrist. The wayward Russian aristocratic women of imperial times are heroines of Laurent’s most recent collection.
Conclusion/Evaluation
I would now like to summaries what I have learned about “How Russian cultural heritage embodied in modern fashion design?”. First of all it has all started off with Sergei Pavlovich Diaghilev, who in the early 20th century has introduced Paris – the capital of fashion – to Russian art and Russian cultural heritage. His ballet productions of outstanding beauty have been an influence for Paul Poirete, who was the first fashion designer to create a “Russian collection”. At the same time Russia was experiencing first waves of revolution and many aristocrats rushed away from their mother land to live in Paris. This inflow of Russian emigrants, fueled by the new era of Russo-Franco friendship after the end of Franco-Prussian War in 1870-1871, has acted as a major influence for a mad interest in everything Russian, including folk costumes. Next fashion designer to create a collection “A la Russ” was Coco Chanel. She cooperated with an emigrated Russian heiress to the throne Maria Pavlovna Romanova and launched a clothing line with Russian embroidery. After the overwhelming success, love for Russia began to decline and Europe started to be fascinated by other yet unexplored cultures. Only after about forty years, in 1959, when Yves Saint Laurent has visited Russia for the first time and fell in love with Russian soul and country’s centuries-old traditions, the fashion world got once again inspired. A series of fashion designers - Yves Saint Laurent, Jean Paul Gaultier and John Galliano have created collections with Russian elements in them, however each in a different genre, starting with Soviet Union factory workers and ending with Russian folk fairytales. It has then got silent for sixteen years until the 100th Anniversary of Diaghilev’s Seasons has not renewed the craze. Almost all famous fashion designers have released collections to celebrate the event, amongst them were Karl Lagerfeld, Oscar de la Renta and Antonio Marras. Shortly after, Joe Wright, a Hollywood film director, began to film “Anna Karenina”, a novel written by a Russian honorable author - Leo Tolstoy. The costume designer for this film, Jacqueline Durran, has created almost authentic costumes of 19th century noblewomen, which inspired the fashion world yet again. Josephus Thimister, Marc Jacobs, Banana Republic, Temperley London, Salvatore Ferragamo and Balmain have all showed the redundancy of luxury and opulence of court dresses through their haute couture and prêt-a-porter collections. That was the last mass wave of interest in Russia amongst fashion designers, however from time to time one or another individual will throw in something Russian into their collection after being inspired by the country’s cultural heritage and who knows maybe this will mark the beginning of a new shared aspiration for everything Russian.
From this project I have learnt how to carry out my own research by using books, journals and internet. I had to not only find the material, but also evaluate it, to see how reliable and judgmental the content is. This project has taught me how to create footnotes and compose a bibliography, which is useful when writing a big piece of work such as dissertation. The actual topic of my work - “How Russian cultural heritage embodied in modern fashion design?”, has been an excellent source of new and interesting information for me. To my surprise I have not only learnt in depth about the fashion timeline, but also about important historical events such as the overthrow of the tsar, Russian revolution and Russian emigration to France. All of this information has broadened my knowledge of the world around me and made me more aware of the fashion timeline and where the inspiration is taken from for the creation of new collections. I will be able to use this information in future, when studying in a Fashion University.
Bibliography
Web
Vera Popova (2013) Russian by Soul [online]. Available from: http://www.elle.ru/moda/fashion-blog/Russkie-dushoi/ [03.01.13]
Masyanova Svetlana (2009) Russian Diaghilev’s seasons and their influence on fashion [online]. Available from: http://www.liveinternet.ru/users/batashn/post93564641 [12.06.13]
Couturiers Magazine (2009) Russian Seasons in Paris [online]. Available from: http://fashion-before-war.couturiers.ru/35/215.htm[25.06.13]
Irina Djigmund (2001-2013) Fashion for Russian [online]. Available from: http://www.mlsalon.ru/publications/russian-style.html [05.07.13]
Nadejda Timohova (2013) 7 great fashion designers, inspired by Russia [online]. Available from: http://russian7.ru/2013/03/7-velikix-modelerov-vdoxnovlennyx-rossiej/ [07.07.13]
Feodor Pogodin (2004-2012) Grand-business - Russian fashion houses in Paris [online]. Available from: http://ricolor.org/europe/frantzia/fr/rus/14/ [19.07.13]
Nataliya Metelitca (2001) The enduring magic of Russian Seasons [online]. Available from: http://www.diaghilev.perm.ru/rierih/4.htm [21.07.13]
ModaGid.ru (2013) Jaclyn Duran and costumes for “Anna Karenina” film [online]. Available from: http://modagid.ru/articles/1860 [27.07.13]
SGMG.ru (2012) They changed the world: Paul Poirete [online]. Available from: http://www.sgmg.ru/?p=18656 [28.07.13]
Cityliner.ru (2008-2009) Jan Paul Gaultier - original style of the enfant terrible [online]. Available from: http://www.cityliner2.ru/articles/jean-paul-gaultier/ [29.07.13]
Tatiana Fadeeva (2013) Yves Saint Laurent in Russian [online]. Available from: http://societeperrier.com/moscow/articles/feature/yves-saint-laurent-%D0%BF%D0%BE-%D1%80%D1%83%D1%81%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B8/#.Ug88gtJnRqk [29.07.13]
Spletnik.ru (2010) Russia – source of inspiration [online]. Available from: http://www.spletnik.ru/blogs/moda/14427_rossiya_istochnik_vdoxnoveniya [17.08.13]
Cyrillic.ru (2012) Peasant style [online]. Available from: http://cyrillitsa.ru/galeries/329-krestyanskiy-stil.html [23.08.13]
Movie-pocket.com (2013) Costumes of characters in the film "Anna Karenina" by Joe Wright [online]. Avalible from: https://movie-pocket.com/node/24 [31.08.13]
Vogue.ru (2013) Fashion beyond seasons [online]. Avalible from: http://www.vogue.ru/magazine/articles/126165/ [31.08.13]
Design-History.ru (2009) Clothing and fabrics [online]. Available from: http://design-history.ru/u-istokov-funktsionalizma-modernizm/odezhda-i-tkan-2.html [31.08.13]
Books
Vassiliev, A.A. (2008) Beauty in Exile - Russian Seasons in Paris, Slovo, Moscow.
Vassiliev, A.A. (2009) Aleksandr Vassiliev tells…, Eterna, Moscow.
Golosovskaya, A. et al. (2009) Fashion and fashion designers: the most beautiful and the most famous, World of encyclopedias Avanta, Moscow; Astrel, Moscow.
Pozharskaya, M.N. (1988) The Russian Seasons in Paris, Isskustvo, Moscow.
Appendices
Activity Log
24.09.12
First introductory lecture: How to start and shape your project
Today I had the first EPQ meeting at school. In it I was given directions on how to do this project. These were the Key Points of the meeting:
× Need to start making a plan for what I am going to do
× Keep updating my Log regularly
× Include information on “What?”, “How?” and “When?”
× Include dates and deadlines
× Identify problems
× Demonstrate the evolvement
× Need to start thinking what my project is going to be about
× Use the library, social media, news papers to do my project (Do not just use internet!)
× Make and keep updating my bibliography list
× Watch TED for interesting ideas
× Look up KHAN Academy – interesting topics
Also during the meeting I was given “Brainstorm, then consider some possibilities” sheet, on which I had to write down few topics of interest to me and then for each one state what intrigues me, the posetives, the negatives and finally rank it out of 5. This is what I have put down:
Topic of interest to me | What intrigues me? | Positives | Negatives | Rank 1-5 |
Fashion History | How designs, looks and trends change, evolve and come back in fashion. The iconic fashion designers such as Alexander McQueen. | I love Fashion and I kept it as my first career option since I was 10 up to present. | - | 5 |
History of Art | How people living in high-tech, modern world still value and admire art from many centuries ago. All the different pathways that artists take (eg. Futurism, Expressionism, etc.) | I like Art and History of Art looks very interesting to me. | I do not have any profound knowledge of it so far, so it would be difficult to start doing a new topic without knowing what to expect. | 4 |
Geography | How geography covers so many different areas that touch upon probably all matters in the World. Interesting facts and figures. | I like Geography and keep it as my second career option. | I do not have a specific area of interest in geography to explore in depth in my project, so it will be hard deciding and choosing the right are for me. | 3.5/4 |
08.10.12
Second Introductory Lecture: Research and note-taking techniques
Today was my second EPQ meeting at school. In this session I learned some new sites on-line where to look for broader information and I was also given some directions on how to take useful notes while list completing your research.
Further on-line resources for research:
· Encyclopedia Britannica
· The New Scientist (does not have many articles)
· Wikipedia (not very reliable)
· The British Library
· Audio resources (e.g. TV/Radio programs archives)
· On-line newspapers
· The UK News Stand (newspaper database)
How to take useful notes when researching:
Details of the source | Topic | Record | Relate | Reflect |
- Author - Title - Place published - Date published - Publisher - Date | Where does this fit in? | Major ideas | Connect with what you already know | Own ideas and questions |
Note-taking:
N.U.T – New (Something what I did not know before)
Useable (Is it relevant to my work?)
Tell-able (Can I summarize it in my own words?)
Don’t “copy & paste”!
Don’t try to fill up space!
Do use KEY WORDS!
Do summarize!
Do be concise!
Styles:
Headings and bullet points / double notes / pattern notes / annotations / summaries / lists / skeleton prose / spider- grams, mind maps, concept maps
15.10.12
Today I had to make the first decision on the topic of the area I am going to investigate by choosing an area of humanities, sciences or economics. I decided that I am going to do Humanities and more specifically History of Art or Fashion. By the decision I made I was put in one of the three groups with the rest of the students who are doing similar topic areas and from now on I will be having EPQ sessions which specialise in my field. I was also given an EdExcel Level 3 Extended Project student guide to lead me through the project. Next time I am going to have an EPQ session will be in three weeks time and in this period I will be expected to start so research work on my project.
05.11.12
Today I had my first session with the rest of people who are doing Humanities topic area for their EPQ. We talked about facts and opinions. Fact is a truth known by actual experience or observation where as opinion is a belief or judgment based on grounds insufficient to produce complete certainty. It is important to distinguish the difference between the two when collecting information for my essay because often what is an opinion is not the truth. Also we looked at some leading articles which are an opinion pieces written by the senior editorial staff or publisher of a newspaper or magazine. They may be supposed to reflect the opinion of the periodical. This was to give us an example of articles containing mainly opinions. Finally from this session I found out that I will need to include both opinion and facts in my piece.
12.11.12
In today’s session we have discussed deconstruction. It is a method of critical analysis of philosophical and literary language that emphasizes the internal workings of language and conceptual systems, the relational quality of meaning, and the assumptions implicit in forms of expression. It is an important area for my EPQ because I will be doing a form of deconstruction myself when I will be interpreting articles from which I will take information for my own essay. We were given some examples of media which include deconstruction. One of such examples was Top Gear, we looked at how they persuade the audience that slow driving has more victims than fast driving (which is clearly nonsense because if we look at any statistics it is obvious that this is not the case), however they were trying really hard to prove their point of view and looked very convincing when they showed a graph which of course was no relevance to what they have been trying to prove, but audience who wanted to believe them would not of realized that what they were being sold is not the truth. Other examples of deconstruction could be found in Simpsons where they have a specific view on Hollywood stars. In addition models and fashion world carry a source of deconstruction, as what we are presented with – glamorous looking, skinny and jolly girls wearing luxury clothes – is not what happens in reality and models suffer a lot by dieting to try and fit the boundaries set for them. This brought me on to a thought that I will have to look out for deconstruction in sources that I will be using and make sure that what I am taking on as the truth is the truth.
20.11.12
Today we talked about terms which are used in EPQ:
Relativism is the concept that points of view have no absolute truth or validity, having only relative, subjective value according to differences in perception and consideration. For example the conflict between the Palestinians and Iranians – one can see it as defense and another as attack. Another case would be deciding where assisted suicide is murder or not.
Determinism is a philosophy stating that for everything that happens there are conditions such that, given those conditions, nothing else could happen. For example stating that children will vote for whom their parents have voted is false. Also it could be stated that our background determines who we are, which is arguable.
Post-modernism is a philosophy that is skeptical of explanations that claim to be valid for all groups. It is a rejection of the modernist movement, for example, in the area of urban planning and music. Specific illustrations which we looked at were a painting by Rothko which was sold for 17 million pounds but consisted only of three different-colour and thickness lines; Tracey Emmins’ bed which won the Turner Prize; the Shard building in London; “4:33” music piece by John Cage. All these pieces are so high in value and popular because they are unique and the “first ones”, as the artists who created them were the first ones to think and interpret their ideas.
26.11.12
Today we talked about ideology – a set of ideals that constitutes one’s goals, expectations and attitudes. Used by many leaders to convince people they have clear set of ideas. First used in French Revolution to explain the different viewpoints: Radical and Conservative. World leaders such as Lenin claimed to have an ideology of Marxism which he renamed into Leninism, the idea of state control. Hitler had an ideology of pure human race – the Arian race. There are some political ideologies as well, such as Nazisism, Democracy, Fascism or Socialism.
03.12.12
Today we had our final group meeting. I was given a supervisor who is now going to lead me through the project. I was also issued a Project Proposal Form which I will need to feel out by the end of this term and submit it to my administrator. In addition I was given a Project Activity Log form which shows how the log can be presented. We were told that from now own we are going to do purely our own study and research in order to gain information and get ready to write up the EPQ essay.
10.12.12
Today I had my first meeting with my supervisor. We have discussed where I am taking my project and few ideas. We talked about History of Fashion and how a can narrow this big topic area down to one question for my essay. The discussion included portraiture, feminism and post-feminism, social history and the movement of suffragettes. It was made clear that my essay is going to touch upon Art, Fashion< History, Sociology and Politics areas. As an example we talked about Queen Elizabeth the I, how she used herself as a model for propaganda paintings which often had political meaning and her feminist view on her sexuality, representing herself as a symbol. At the end of our discussion a question has evolved in this: “How does fashion influence the body form and female identity?”. My next task is going to be to go to the library and get book on all the topic areas we have discussed to gain information we I can use for my essay.
27.12.12
I took out three books from the library to develop on the areas I have allocated so far in my project. The three books were “A Concise History of Costume”, “The Visual History of Costume” and “An Illustrated History of Fashion”. Today I have spent some time looking through them and reading relevant topics. I picked up some ideas but understood that perhaps this topic are does not interest me as much as I thought it would.
03.01.13
Today I came across an interesting article in Elle Russia magazine called “Russian Soul”. The article talked about how fashion goes through cycles and there are always remnants of previous fashion in new collections and how fashion designers look for new ideas in the old. It touched slightly on how the Russian culture influenced fashion but did not develop on it. I became really interested about this and decided that my EPQ project can be based on the research I am going to do about this influence.
16.01.13
Today I have completed the first draft of my Project Proposal Form. The title of my project is: How Russian cultural heritage embodied in modern design/influenced the development of modern design? The project objectives are: I want to explore Russian cultural heritage, Russian and worldwide modern/contemporary fashion, architecture, interior design, furniture design and art. I want to find evidence of the influence that Russian traditional design had on New Russia and the rest of the world. I would like to have a really close look at how this heritage found place in fashion amongst famous designers of 20-21 centuries. The reasons for choosing this project are: I am from Russia and I would like to learn more about my heritage. I am very interested in high fashion and where it takes and develops new ideas from (one of the places being cultural heritages). I am currently studying Art for A-Level and looking to go into an art/fashion institute in future. I believe that this project will give me a better understanding of t
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