Sandra Backlund’s Ink Blot Test 
The newest collection from Sandra Backlund, “Ink Blot Test”:
photo by Peter Farago
Sandra Backlund’s Ink Blot Test
Sandra Backlund’s Perfect Combination of Tradition and Renewal
The intrinsic value of fashion as a function of art is diminished when we define it in terms of this season’s lines, shapes and the next must have accessory. Being a sucker for strict categorization, I am as guilty of this as anyone. Speaking with designers in an artistic capacity has reaffirmed for me the value of abstractions that set the mind wandering. Sandra Backlund’s design process with knits is often an exercise in discovering a garment’s shape, which may be lurking just beyond awareness. Improvising from ideas rather than sketches is what makes Backlund’s designs, such as those from “Diamond Cut Diamondâ€, so unique and progressive. “I think I work with design as a form of therapy. When others write poems to deal with themselves, I do fashion. Because I work like that I cannot tell you so much about how a specific collection develops. The only thing I know for sure about Diamond Cut Diamond is that I suddenly got obsessed by the story of diamonds. The typical symbol of wealth, power and success, they hold the interesting double nature as both a glamorous messenger of vanity and a natural everyday working tool. It is the ultimate combination of beauty and purpose.â€
from Backlund’s “Diamond Cut Diamond” collection
Progressive vs. Play-It-Safe?
In fashion the right combination of instinct, skill and innovation shows true mastery of the craft. It is critical to be inspired by the past, but it is equally critical to invent. At the big shows there seems to be a line drawn between what is wearable and what is merely artistic gesture. Unfortunately this translates into looks that are sellable and looks that aren’t.
There is no need to belong exclusively to either the Gareth Pugh camp
image: Gareth Pugh a/w 2006-7 www.style.com
…or the Monique Lhuillier camp.
image: Monique Lhuillier a/w 2006-7 www.style.com
The progressive or the play-it-safe.
Fashion is about the seamless blend of tradition and modernity. There are designers who tread the delicate line of being inspired by timeless elements and original conception. This is a testament to skill. I would argue that a good many Japanese designers tread this line gracefully. Examples include:
Tao Kurihara of Tao
image: Tao a/w 2006-7 www.style.com
Yohji Yamamoto
image: Yohji Yamamoto a/w 2006-7 www.style.com
Mami Yoshida and Patrick Ryan of Yab-Yum
image: Yab-Yum a/w 2006-7 www.yab-yum.com
Tsumori Chisato
image: Tsumori Chisato a/w 2006-7 www.aufeminin.com
Jun Takahashi of Undercover
image: Undercover a/w 2005-6 www.style.com
As much as I am obsessed with the talent coming out of Japan, the fusion of timelessness and modernity can also be found in the work of:
Miuccia Prada
image: Prada s/s 2006 www.style.com
Alexander McQueen
image: Alexander McQueen a/w 2004-5 www.style.com
Sabyasachi Mukherjee
(look for Sabyasachi at Olympus Fashion Week
in New York next season!)
image: Sabyasachi Mukherjee, the snail collection 2006 www.specials.rediff.com
Nicholas Ghesquiere of Balenciaga
image: Balenciaga a/w 2006-7 www.style.com
Alber Elbaz of Lanvin
image: Lanvin s/s 2005 www.vogue.co.uk
bruno Pieters
image: bruno Pieters a/w 2006-7 www.vogue.co.uk
Alexandre Herchcovitch
image: Alexandre Herchcovitch a/w 2006-7 www.style.com
Viktor & Rolf
image: Viktor & Rolf a/w 2006-7 www.style.com
Sandra Backlund
(Her work is so inspirational I’m posting two images.
For more see link below.)
image: Sandra Backlund, perfect hurts collection www.sandrabacklund.com
image: Sandra Backlund, body, skin and hair collection www.sandrabacklund.com
Fashion needs its visionaries, even if there seems to be little tolerance in the industry for them at the moment. Jum Nakao and Gareth Pugh are visionaries. An example of Jum Nakao’s work:
image: Jum Nakao s/s 2005 www.dailytimes.com.pk
The extent of their “vision†or “progressiveness†is a matter of eventuality. In other words, the measure of modernity in their designs – if not already clear - will become clear when imitations or watered-down versions emerge either on future runways or on the street. I believe this is what’s meant by Cathy Horyn’s comment in reference to John Galliano: “The modernity of Mr. Galliano’s torn-apart approach was eventually borne out in the imitations.†(www.nytimes.com May 21, 2006)