Several years ago I had the fortunate and eye-opening pleasure to visit a fantastic exhibition at the San Francisco Asian Art Museum of exemplary and influential Japanese fashion designers from the 80's. Designers like Issey Myaki, Junya Watanabe, Rei Kawakubo and Yohji Yamamoto have become legends in the fashion industry and several of their most famous and inspirational pieces were on display. Not being a fashion history buff but still a lover of great figurative art and the Asian Art Museum, I figured I would poke my head in and see what was on display.
To my surprise I immediately found myself right at home. I took the afternoon to walk through the exhibit several times in absolute rapture and awe of what I saw. What passed before my eyes resembled more of a science fiction movie than a fashion retrospective. Shape and form spiraled together to create an imaginitive and innovative running story in my mind that inspired me immediately bring together two art forms that in my mind couldn't have been farther apart. I never could have imagined that high-fashion and science-fiction could tolerate standing in the same room together let alone working together in such a natural and elegant way.
With my small bag of drawing supplies and sketchbook I began to draw immediately whatever I could capture, I had to. Somehow I had to get down on paper what I was seeing. Being more of a fantasy geek than and fashion diva I was unfamiliar with the work of these artists from the opposing side of the galaxy. What I walked away with that afternoon was an idea that maybe as artists from differing worlds we might sometimes feel light years apart, but in our search for "The Edge" of creativity and imagination we might just be next door neighbors and maybe even friends.
If you would like to learn more about exhibit you can visit the SFGATE review on the exhibit --> HERE
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco --> HERE
Drawings & Studies ©Copyright Trey Gallaher
plate 1: dress design by Yohji Yamamoto
Study (marker)
Plate 2: dress design by Issey Myaki
Study (graphite)
Plate 3: dress design by Junya Watanabe
Study (charcoal)
Plate 4: dress design by Rei Kawakubo
Study (watercolor pencil)
Plate 5: dress design by Junya Watanabe
Study#2 (marker, ink)
Plate 6: dress design by Rei Kawakubo
Study#2 (marker)
