Valentino Autumn/Winter 2014: Butterfly Couture

 

 

It's strange to be thinking of the autumnal drizzle, and cold of winter in light of the summer heat that we are currently experiencing, but here are more beautiful butterfly fashion creations courtesy of Valentino's A/W Animalia collection. The embroidered dress trimmed with feathers, as well as featuring embroidered butterflies above, is just stunning. Valentino had already flirted with the butterfly theme in their Spring Summer 2014 Collection (below), creating this very sexy dress, but really went to town with it for this current Autumn collection. The designers are Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli.

Most fashion designers usually reserve butterflies as a theme for their summer collections, so it is unusual to see them being used to adorn garments during a period of the year when they are less active. These garments will provide a nice splash of colour throughout the forthcoming grey, cold, days which are the Autumn/Winter season.

 

 

 

 

 

I like equally the stark contrast of the tailored pieces below, which are simpler, more tailored and less fussy than the embroidered pieces above.

 

 

Details of the embroidery and print

 

 

Some accompanying Valentino butterfly accessories. The ad campaign for the accessories below, was devised and shot by controversial photographer Terry Richardson. It is also his tattooed arm that features in the ads. Great use of pattern (print and tattoo), against a plain background.

 

 

 

 

Still with the Valentino butterfly theme but not part of the A/W 2014  collection is this interesting fashion drawing for a Butterfly themed dress created specifically for singer Katy Perry by the design team at Valentino.

Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs

 

It was with a sense of anticipation and much excitement that I went to Tate Modern to see this exhibition of the paper-cut works by the master, and original 'Scissorhands' - Monsieur Henri Matisse. It didn't disappoint either.

It was a really uplifting, joyous blast of colour and shape created from paper, and for all the innovations that he brought to the medium of paint through his rivalry with Picasso, I got the impression that he was somehow "freed" through his work with these cut-out pieces.

 

Much has been said about the exhibition and also Matisse's deteriorating health, which saw him confined to his bed for long periods, and having to employ a bevvy of pretty young girls to paint and arrange the paper shapes that he cut to his specifications. One of the elements that impressed me was the sheer scale of some of the pieces, especially those towards the end of the exhibition, which indicated that his artistic vision and ambition weren't hampered as a result of his bad health.

 

It was good to see the original collages from his book Jazz, and the pin holes in the paper indicating how he would pin the cut shapes to a background, rearranging them many times before he felt content enough to glue them down. Some of the collages still had the pins in which gave the pieces another element of interest for me. It was also interesting to see the short films of Matisse at work cutting, and to see the huge scissors that he used in his work compared to the small ones that I use.

 

It was also interesting to see the pictorial evidence that he lived with these works surrounding him in bed, in his studio, letting them grow organically across his studio/bedroom walls adding and subtracting various elements until he was happy enough to have them glued down. In this it could be argued that he was creating the prototype of what has come to be known as "installation art".  

 

I was impressed by Matisse's cut-out designs for stained glass, and thought the collages translated well to that medium with the light giving them another dimension. Seeing the collages translating to textile designs for the chasubles of the priests for the chapel in Vence was also interesting, and it would be good to have seen some footage of the priests wearing them and the designs of the chasubles animated by human movement. From memory favourite pieces that stood out were Zulma and Creole Dancer, for the scale, colour and movement. 

The shapes of the birds in the Oceania pieces on display made me want to get to work cutting more of my own series of bird pieces.

 

Despite it being titled Blue Nude IV, this piece was the first in the series attempted by Matisse and I like the fact that his struggles with it are clearly visible in the charcoal outline drawing, and also the multi-layering of paper to complete the silhouette of the figure. This gives it more interest to me than the other three Blue Nudes of that series.

 

 

I loved the vibrancy of the colours, the torn edges and placement of some of the papers in The Snail, which takes the piece close to abstraction.

A very short piece of footage of Matisse drawing with scissors can be seen by clicking on the link.

 

 

Henri Matisse: The Cut-Outs 

until 7th September

Tate Modern

Bankside

SE1

Butterfly Banknotes



 

My print - "Can't Buy Me Love" has been getting a lot of love of late from clients. It is currently being featured on the homepage of Aubergine Art, as I am one of the new artists on the roster of that gallery. It was also recently named "Print of the Week" by the good folks at Jealous Gallery. There are some remaining copies which can be obtained at Jealous , Aubergine, or direct from myself via my website.

 

 

The Rowley Gallery also have one of my 3-D collage pieces (Fiscal Ball), created from original banknotes available for purchase. I've been working on some more currency based pieces and looking at banknotes decorated with butterflies and birds for inspiration.

 

 

In other more science based news, the natural iridescent qualities of butterflies may also be used in the future development of new banknotes. Scientists have found ways to mimic their iridescent colours and minute scales, and will be putting their discoveries to use in the security and production of paper currency and credit cards, making it harder for them to be forged. They have created artificial structures that reflect light in the same ways as the minute scales on butterfly wings.

 

These artificial structures will be used to encrypt information in optical signatures on money and other valuable items such as passports. The science teams used a combination of nanofabrication techniques to make scales which produce the same vivid colours as real butterfly scales. Nanofabrication is used to create incredibly small devices which are measured in nanometres. One nanometre is equivalent to a millionth of a millimetre.

 

 

Scientists believe the butterfly may be using its natural iridescent colour to encrypt itself, appearing one colour to potential mates and another to predators. If its eyes see fellow butterflies as bright blue, while predators see only green patches in a green environment, then it can remain visible to members of its own species whilst simultaneously hiding from predators. Below are some more fantastically detailed, colourful examples of butterflies and other winged things on paper currency.