making the tangibles

This is what I've done so far. Neither are finished and the sleeves desperately need to be reset. Ive also got a dress in the works. I've tried to load each garment with as many technicalities as possible, such as, darts, french seams, strategically placed overlocking, fly, jet pockets, side pockets, facings and visibly turned up hems.

I will then echo these techniques using pen ink directly next to the tangible technique.

first tangible garment : dress

Starting with three basic dress prototypes and using ink to produce the intangible symbols. After creating three dresses in three different fabrications i realized there were not enough technical details within the tangible dress to allow me to echo them with the ink. So for this exercise i added extra details in such as seams and stitching.

After creating these prototypes I had the realization that my tangible garments will have to be loaded with as many technical details of clothing that will have the overall effect of symbolizing clothing.

From now on I plan to use pen instead of watercolour ink, as its much easier to control and leaves a much cleaner and accurate line.

material studies

These photos look at the process of creating intangible symbols of clothing though the platform of tangible fabrications. This investigation was based around the trial of different fabrications and what kind of residue sinks through the fabric and onto the skin.

Transparent fabrications leave the best result. This is what I plan to pursue.




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The above three images show the laying of residue from the experiments. I really like the aesthetics of this and may use it in further investigations

definitions

I've been meaning to post these definitions for a while. They are 3 of my key words and play a large roll in my research.


tan·gi·ble
  [tan-juh-buhl]
–adjective

1.
capable of being touched; discernible by the touch; material or substantial.
2.
real or actual, rather than imaginary or visionary: the tangible benefits of sunshine.
3.
definite; not vague or elusive: no tangible grounds for suspicion.
4.
(of an asset) having actual physical existence, as real estate or chattels, and therefore capable of being assigned a value in monetary terms.



in·tan·gi·ble
  [in-tan-juh-buhl]
–adjective

1.
not tangible; incapable of being perceived by the sense of touch, as incorporeal or immaterial things; impalpable.
2.
not definite or clear to the mind: intangible arguments.
3.
(of an asset) existing only in connection with something else, as the goodwill of a business.



sym·bol
  [sim-buhl]
–noun

1.
something used for or regarded as representing something else; a material object representing something, often something immaterial; emblem, token, or sign.
2.
a letter, figure, or other character or mark or a combination of letters or the like used to designate something: the algebraic symbol x; the chemical symbol Au.
3.
a word, phrase, image, or the like having a complex of associated meanings and perceived as having inherent value separable from that which is symbolized, as being part of that which is symbolized, and as performing its normal function of standing for or representing that which is symbolized: usually conceived as deriving its meaning chiefly from the structure in which it appears, and generally distinguished from a sign.

bluring tangible and intangible

3 stage process,

- Wearing the tangible - Painting on the tangible material to create the intangible
- The tangible outcome off the body
- The intangible symbol of clothing

In this case i used the hook and eye imagery i explored in my symbolic sleeves experiment. Do the hooks and eyes down the back of the legs symbolize clothing?

symbolic sleeves

applying identifiers of clothing in residue form

these are what i believe are the most prominent identifiers of clothing

seams
stitching
straight
overlocking
zig zag
coverstitch
binding
fabrication
woven
stretch
heavy
lightweight
fur
natural
synthetic
elastciation
silhouette
fastening
zips
buttons
hook and eye
press-studs

quote

In my reading of Fashion-ology by Yuniya Kawamura i found this quote:

"not a material product but a symbolic product which has no content by/in itself."

i think it sums up my process so far. the symbolic product being the residue t-shirt which has no content (tangible) outcome.

the t-shit is just a symbol of a t-shirt, not a real tangible, 'wearable' t-shirt.