The Vuitton artist collaborations are also notable because of their full-bodied approach. They truly embed the collection in the artist’s vision. From product to mood to presentation, etc. For Louis Vuitton’s Spring 2008 collection, the brand collaborated with the artist Richard Prince and entered the naughty nurse world. Not only did these classic, yet provocative, bags encompass the fusion of Jacobs’ and Prince’s designs and ideations, but even the fashion show brought Prince’s painting of nurses to life, and featured them holding the bags from the collaboration. The personification of the subjects from the paintings, holding bags that the artist designed, made for a very fascinating and 4D experience.
We may not be able to answer why fashion loves art. But we do know that the finished product appeals to us because most humans don’t operate on a single superficial level. Most of us have millions of likes and emotions and references. And when a designer can create not only a good look, but a piece that actually evokes emotion, they are successful — and I believe that the use of art in fashion can aid in this success. It’s a way for the designer to communicate with their customer and say, “I like this artist, do you?”
It’s almost like walking a customer through your home, sharing artwork and vintage quilts and sleek chairs. It’s breaking through the superficial, shallow veneer of fashion and letting in emotional and intellectual content.
Sherry Akbar: Founder & Creative Director, Wisteria Design, Painter Max Ferguson and Sylvie Millstein, Designer of Hellessy, weigh in on the connection between art and fashion:
Alice Roi: Why do you think painting and fashion design are so closely linked?
Sherry Akbar: All art and design disciplines are essentially the same for me and linked. The day-to-day and the function might be different, but it’s essentially about being creative and going for it. It’s about being inspired and creating something unforgettable from that inspiration whether it’s a painting or a dress.
Max Ferguson: Fashion designers often have a firm background in art and painting, and so it is only natural that those designing clothing often integrate elements of painting, especially color, in their designs. I think designers share painters’ overall aesthetic sensitivity.
Sylvie Millstein: The creative process has similarities: choosing the composition (proportions and lines of a garment), the colors, the textures (strokes). A painting on its own can crystallize a mood, color palette and a direction and many designers do look at art and paintings for new inspiration each season. As much as to take a painting and use it to replicate it as a print on garment (see Yves Saint Laurent and his Mondrian dresses).
AR: What artist has inspired you the most with regards to fashion and your own work?
Millstein: Damian Loeb‘s most recent work — so crisp, precise and beautiful.
AR: Do you ever keep fashion in mind, or trends, or even a fashion muse, while painting?
Akbar: Fashion is definitely a muse. My mother was a fashion designer and we grew up breathing fashion. Hours were spent daydreaming while flipping through L’Officiel and Vogue. The colors, the story behind a collection, the designer’s personality, the fabrics, the smallest details — it all inspires my art as well as my interior design work.
Ferguson: I think very long term with my paintings, both in the sense of their physical preservation, and their shelf life in terms of appeal. I aim for a certain timelessness and universality in them, and hopefully they will retain their appeal long into the future. While of course I would like to believe I am in step with fashion, ultimately I am aiming for something that transcends fashion, more along the lines of Levi’s Jeans or Converse All Stars (clothing that seems to always be in fashion). Obviously I want what the models are wearing to work well in the general context of that particular painting, especially in terms of color. I recently painted a woman standing in front of a Vermeer at the Met. I was careful that the colors of her clothes worked well with the color scheme of the Vermeer on the wall. When choosing clothes that my models wear, I try to pick things which I feel won’t be rapidly dated. Today’s avant-garde is tomorrow’s passé.
AR: In a perfect skill set world, would you rather be a painter or a designer?
Akbar: I need to be both.
Millstein: A designer. My thrill is to see someone wear my creations, I am inspired by my desire to dress a moving body — I would be happy to leave it to artists to dress my walls…
