Sunday 11 January 2009

Tailoring as an art form

It was bitterly cold in London yesterday and the (sorry excuse) for snow began to fall we decided to seek comfort in Claire de Rouen Books and I'm glad we did! As well as being able to flick through all the fashion and photography books that I wish I could have on my coffee table (if I even had a coffee table that is) I came across the artwork of Hormazd Narielwalla within EXIT Gallery's "A Fairytale About Fashion" exhibition. Narielwalla's Dead Man’s Patterns is a design story, beneath the trappings of menswear into the book, the man, the pattern. It quite beautifully exposes the secret every tailor has with his clients, the pattern and the journey to the finished suit. I've always seen tailoring as an art form but the below illustrations take this a step further.






The world of tailoring has always been somewhat secretive. Measurements are kept close and patterns preserved long after a client’s death. In Dead Man’s Patterns Narielwalla unwraps some of the mysteries of the trade. Hidden beneath bespoke menswear, there is a secret… Everyone sees the suit, yet few are privy to that private dialogue which assesses, measures, and catalogues the subtle details which make up one single man.

These wonderful images and reading the inspiration behind them only intensify my own desire to enter the wonderful world of bespoke...to begin my own secret...

10 comments:

Ian Brown said...

Sick illustrations. I love the interior skeleton of clothes. When a garment is polished at the seams you're looking at real craftsmanship.

Songy said...

I was about to do a post on a guy who self-thought tailoring.
These illustrations are quite interesting.

When I asked this guy where he studied (which school) his response was - don't believe in formal education. Ha. That's what I was going to say...

Unknown said...

Such a unique post, I really must read up on bespoke and educate myself. As soon as I have the required funds I reckon a suit that actually fits like a glove will be first on the list.

/Cillian.

Style Salvage Steve said...

Ian Brown - I really want to watch a tailor at work. Watch on as cloth is turned into a masterpiece.
Songy - How interesting. Let me know once you've posted it. I agree that formal education is not always necessary!
Cillian - The suit (helps) maketh the man. I am still saving so that I can enter the world of bespoke. I just can't wait for the whole experience. The Sart recently posted that he was going to invest in Anderson&Sheppard upon his visit to London...this has inspired me to pinch those pennies once more!

the factualist said...

where did you find these beautiful illustrations !

great blog which i just discovered, keep on posting !!!!

StyleSalvage said...

the factualist: Thanks for finding us! I took the images straight off the the Dead Man's Pattern website. I first came across the work on the walls of the Exit Gallery on Charing Cross Road in Central London. We will indeed keep posting, we have big plans for this year!

Anonymous said...

awesome llustrations, love your blog

StyleSalvage said...

Kenny: Thanks for reading! Stay tuned because we hope to do a little follow up piece soon.

Nick said...

Fascinating pictures. I always wanted to enter the world of bespoke, but I never had the money for it.

I just wrote a post about the superiority of tailored clothing, which I've only just experienced thanks to these cheaper overseas places that you can send your measurements to and they send you back the wares.

It's a great service, but getting something in the mail just isn't the same as being able to experience the process up close, the way I imagine from looking at these photos.

Monica said...

Excellent post! That was an interesting illustration. Thanks for sharing.

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