Billed as the highlight of the V&A’s India Season, The Fabric of India will be the first major exhibition to explore the dynamic and multifaceted world of handmade Indian textiles from the 3rd to the 21st century. The show will feature over 200 pieces including an 18th century tent, ceremonial and religious cloths, textiles created for […]
Luxury is ubiquitous, craft has been commodified and, according to Peter York, “authenticity is a con.” When luxury is no longer luxurious and limited editions can be purchased at Primark, only ultra-luxury will do. This means finding something that no one else can have, or afford – be it bespoke, vintage or antique – perhaps a pair […]
Visuology visits the Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life themed 2015 Milan Expo and discovers what visitors should know in advance: The Negatives 1. Queuing to get into the pavilions If you can walk quickly through an area that offers clear explanation, where what’s on display is easy to understand and interpret then you are on to a […]
In anticipation of the British Museum’s forthcoming Indigenous Australia exhibition, we look at the rise of Aboriginal textile designs in fashion and interiors. Indigenous Australians’ oral tradition and spiritual values are based upon reverence for the land and a belief in the Dreamtime – a sacred era when ancestral totemic spirit beings created the world. […]
“We don’t have codpieces now, but we have pretty tight jeans,” says Tim Knox, Director of the Fitzwilliam Museum. There is now a noticeable interest in romantic male accessories and man-bags – a trend we pointed to in Tudor-themed Visuology Issue 1. These are the sorts of items mentioned by Matthäus Schwarz in a Renaissance […]
No, it’s not a load of bollards, though there is one in the V&A’s latest exhibition, All of This Belongs to You. The stainless steel bollard in question (SP 400 by ATG Access), located amongst the railings and public signs of the ironwork gallery, is the type used in many of our public spaces, including […]
The main difficulty with an all encompassing design competition is that, ultimately, it does not compare like with like. Some of the entries are life changing, or could affect us all in the future. Others seem more of an artistic expression, designed purely for our amusement. There is the added complication that, whilst some of the […]
Commercial yet contrarian, Lee Alexander McQueen inhabited a parallel world to most of those around him. Being so rapidly catapulted from council house kid to multi-millionaire couturier must have been psychologically unsettling, but his morbid feelings were sadly compounded by the rigorous demands of his trade, by bereavement and a bad drug habit. Referred to in the V&A’s new exhibition Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty […]
As much as people try to be different, they rarely are… but Viktor Wynd is more unusual than most. In a world where little if anything shocks, Wynd’s interests and lifestyle are decidedly odd – sleeping with a pet snake wrapped around his feet, kissing a shrunken head goodnight, and collecting celebrity poo, for heavens […]
Why are women so fascinated by clothes, and how does our relationship with schmutter affect the way we are perceived? Women Fashion Power at London’s Design Museum showcases one outfit from each of twenty-six “exceptional” women. All are leaders in their field and understand that “the clothes they wear are a part of the way that they […]