Tuesday 9 June 2009

The Visible Craftsman

During a lull on Sunday I wandered around the exhibitors at Earls Court and found myself unsurprisingly attracted to a display of magazines at the University for the Creative Arts at Epsom. I've been flicking through the contents of Segue (available online here) ever since. My favourite article inside issue seven introduced Edward Lorenz Tan, a menswear graduate from Parsons, to me. The Parson's judging panel recently named Lorenz Tan Menswear Designer of the Year and from this article it is obvious that he is an exciting talent. There are few images of his work available online so I had to snap my favourite image from the article which shows a t shirt from his 'Craftsman' collection.

"Most men who buy clothes now don't necessarily understand how much work actually goes in to a button-down shirt or a pair of pants," Edward Lorenz Tan.

The designer dipped his fingers in black paint during the construction of each piece of his 'Craftsman' collection documenting where he touched the garments and ultimately demonstrating how much work was put in to the creating process. It is true that most of us have no idea what goes in to the construction of our favourite wardrobe inhabitants and I for one would love to know more. This collection explicitly displays the designers craftsmanship to a much more tangible level for a newer generation and ultimately shows that there is art in the creation of even the seemingly simple pieces. I have to confess that I am tempted to dip my own fingers in to paint and attempt something similar...although it might just get me in to trouble...

3 comments:

j said...

Yes, and what confuses me also is how they are priced. I can understand paying a couple hundred dollars for a blazer, but then why are others priced at $1000 dollars and still others at $100. Of course there is materials and quality of construction, but I still don't quite understand the wide range in price.

Quail said...

I might be able to answer J's question. Price is heavily related to what the label owner believes is required to market their specific label and achieve sales and then profit. Labels with mega marketing budgets are well known whilst grass roots labels are obscured from view and totally unheard of. In my specific case--I operate a tiny speck of a label and wholesale to independent shops around the UK--'My' retail prices are what shops require to pay their rent, staff, taxes etc.

In the same vein of the post subject, people often wonder why baby clothes are so expensive. True, the marketing devil is at play but it's also fiddly as hell to manufacture baby clothing. The fabric, zips and button costs is overrun by sheer specialist labour.

Unknown said...

-ansother aspect is that though garments can be overpriced, there are even more underpriced garments! There should ring an alarm when things get to cheap!

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