Genealogies; First Thoughts

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For the Studio Project on Genealogies, I have decided to look at The Military Jacket. Coming from a background in enjoying designing around fashion marketing, advertising and branding I thought this would be a perfect example of an object that would give me scope to develop an exciting narrative. 


Looking at the Military Jacket, I thought the first narrative would be good to see The History of the Military Jacket, the context surrounding war and how it has influenced contemporary design today. I am very interested in prominent Graphic Designers and Creative Directors today that chooses to use this very grunge, industrial and iconic way of producing pushing edge clothing.


Virgil Abloh is a pioneering designer of famous fashion house off-white. The idea behind his clothes is convenient and conceptual. The designs of his fashion, as well as the branding behind it, is unique in the way that he implements this utility wear with harsh lettering and branding. He also creates a harmonious mix of Japanese warrior inspiration with crisp athleticism. It is even inspiring that most of his work is gender neutral; linking back to my idea of the military jacket and how ironically not genderfluid it was back in the prominence of war. This then also related to research on other fashion brands who carry this military semantic field of design into their collections and branding. 

Thinking about narratives, my mind was filled with ideas on sexuality and pushing-edge design concepts - looking further into this idea of comparing times and how women weren't allowed to wear military gear but find it an iconic fashion statement nowadays.


Thinking of final outcomes, I thought possibly a Zine, Lookbook or Magazine Feature that celebrates this idea of pushing-edge design. 

I also had an idea to look at symbolism; researching into this idea of using harsh lines, symbols and compositional layout within the branding of off-white and how this has been influenced by industrial designers such as Lester Beall for example. This also sparked ideas on looking at how symbols are prominent within culture today; gay flags, women's rights logos, charity logos for example. 

I also am really interested in this very bold and expressive design - words, letters, and icons posted across page layouts with harsh lines and features dominating compositions across all areas of design. This then gave me the idea to look at screen printing and editorial campaigns which can be manipulated and edited in this manner - this theme will only come with more research within whatever field I choose to study. 


I spoke to James, one of my tutors and he loved these initial ideas. He recommended me to visit the Imperial War Museum in Manchester which I did and to mainly look at the hierarchy of women within the patriarchal system that has always been in place. He also recommended to me to go to the library and without overthinking about it, scroll through history archives n take inspiration from the aesthetic; this could be literal or emotional - such as the layout of the pages or the actual content within the designs. 

Overall, I feel I have a great concept, and I look forward to producing a narrative to work from. 

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