“One of the more interesting “retrospective looks at the past century”
I saw on television during all of the Millennium brouhaha last
December, was a news magazine hosted by Tom Brocaw. It included
a glance back at how, throughout the 20th century, man imagined
he would be dressed in the third millennium. For decades, sci-fi
astronauts were all depicted in jumpsuits with enormous epaulets.
(There’s something about wide shoulders that spells FUTURISTIC.)
In the cartoon series, “The Jetsens,” characters wore bodysuits
with face helmets or cute, skimpy minis over tights and boots.
At a time when the world was preoccupied with the Russian-American
race to put the first man on the moon, French couturiers like
Pierre Cardin, André Courrèges and Paco Rabanne were inspired
to invade the runways with Sputnik wardrobes cut from “space age”
materials. It was an era that bucked the tradition of elegant
high fashion in noble fabrics and leapt into a younger, hipper
new epoch with machine washable, non-iron, synthetic gear cut
to shock the eye.
In Mutations//Mode 1960-2000, the latest exhibition to open at
the Palais Galliera, the 1960s is the starting point of a 40-year
journey spotlighting outlandish space age concepts, while documenting
the evolution of the use of prospective textiles in the garment
trade. Admittedly, the poster showing a vintage ’60s model surveying
an astronaut floating above the moon, suggests a concentrated
look at a decade that fantasized about the future with the help
of Carnaby Street’s “mod” look, Andy Warhol’s Pop Art, Peter Max’s
Op Art and television’s “Star Trek.” And though the exhibition
does tiptoe that way, it delves more deeply into the technical
advances of the textile industry which are the true driving force
of fashion today.
At the beginning of the 1960s, synthetic yarns, fibers and blends
accounted for the majority of fabrics used in garments. By 1938,
the petrochemical laboratories had successfully refined polyamide,
polyester, chloro-fiber, acrylics and elastic. Women, representing
a growing part of the active population, soon had washing machines
in their homes.Polyamide dried quickly and did not wrinkle, which
contributed to its instant appeal. The textile and garment industries
began working together to substitute chemical materials for natural
ones, imitating their every aspect. Thus polyamide resembled silk
and polyester cotton. Acrylic imitated animal skins, PVC and polyurethane
had a leather look and Lurex polyester film passed for gold or
silver. The silky nature of Dupont’s Quiana nylon gained such
respectability, it was used in one of Dior’s cocktail dresses
in 1969. The popularity of these new fibers generated a multiplicity
of brand names, resulting in the labeling act of 1963.
Unusual materials were also used for accessories. Many were transparent,
made from plastic or even plexiglass. Among the items displayed:
Charles Jourdan’s plexi sandals, and two-tone lime/olive green
vinyl platform shoes and black and white “Op Art” disk earrings,
both by Paco Rabanne.
The United States industry had its own ideas as to how the space
age generation might dress. The Scott paper company put out paper
dresses, throw-away party wear to match your paper tablecloth,
plates and napkins. Other brands entered the fray with products
like “Candy Wrappers,” disposable non-woven viscose and polyester
bikinis and swimming trunks, “Poster Dresses”... and a collection
of cellulose fiber garb splashed with oversized photos, flower
power daisies or even Andy Warhol’s famous Campbell soup cans.
No more weaving or sewing. Clothing for the next millennium would
be molded, heat-sealed, stapled, riveted or soldered. And it just
might be made from non-traditional materials like Paco Rabanne’s
“Hippy of the year 2000,” a foam rubber trimmed (non-woven) cotton
wool ensemble imagined back in 1972.
Some 35 years ago, Pierre Cardin used thermal energy to set 3-D
pyramid detailing over the hips of carbon fiber tunic dresses.
The material was heated in an oxidant atmosphere to a temperature
of 700 degrees. Thermo-shaped, these frocks are non-flammable,
washable, crease- and allergy-proof. The “Multi Robe K” by Bory,
was a do-it-yourself dress made from linked squares of cotton-back
vinyl.
Increasing numbers of air travelers and women in the work force
paved the way for the success of Italy’s knitwear industry in
the 1960s. Expansion in this field contributed to the arrival
of pantyhose, seamless stockings, socks and second-skin slips.
Moreover, jersey was adapted to the menswear market, with Cardin’s
signature leisure suit.
The last leg of the exhibition takes you to a visually confusing
hodgepodge of clothing from recent designer collections. Try hard
to stay focused on the theme of the expo so it will continue to
make sense. In this Ali Baba’s den of trendy fashion, we see Issey
Miyake’s sculpted horsehair jacket, Lecoanet Hemant’s banana fiber
jacket designed to look like an enormous leaf, and Corinne Cobson’s
silicon plastic evening dress. Take a close look at Hubert Barrere’s
corset. It’s made from oxidized banana fiber, embroidered with
hologram plaques, green sequins and bronze nails. Then have yourself
a belly laugh as you marvel over the assemblage of Thierry Mugler’s
custom-painted “Harley Davidson” dress (the one worn in George
Michael’s video), outfitted with handlebars, rear view mirrors
and headlights.
Chemists or alchemists, contemporary designers actively participate
in the transmutation of the roughest materials, which are tortured,
crushed, slashed, corroded, boiled, pressed and chemically treated,
as if to concoct some sort of recipe...
Today, new generations of clothing that are glued, soldered or
laser-cut are finally coming of age. The diversity of working
tools available — both manual and computerized — contributes to
the perfect execution of each model. And, the multiplicity of
propositions emerging as a consequence of the textile creation
process is perhaps even more important than the actual design
of the garment.
