Archive Fashion, the beginning…
Though the term “archive fashion” is an ambiguous term, meaning an archive piece can range from your favorite designer’s lines a few seasons back. However, it could also mean seeking after a garment from maybe your favorite designer or just a piece you saw on Pinterest that you really liked and actually digging for that piece. And by digging, I mean doing laps around the world wide web until you find what you’re looking for. This brings me to my next point, which is that just because you have a piece of “archive fashion” does not necessarily make you an archivist or even into the topic for that matter. When it comes to being into this sort of thing, it really is more about the journey of getting what you are looking for and finally acquiring it, versus it being easily accessible off a resale site. Don’t get me wrong, I would not consider myself some sort of top tier archivist with some secret formula on how to find what you’re looking for, but for now we can say that I am an “amateur archivist”.
As an amateur archivist, and as Judy, my favorite brand is Prada and I especially appreciate Prada’s archive and also much much more recently, Miuccia Prada’s collaborations with Raf Simons in the previous, yet recent, years. Their collaborations feature tastes from both designers making iconic collaborations to this day. The two have known each other since around 2005 since Raf was “appointed” as the Jil Sander’s creative director when they were still a part of the Prada Group. In the more recent years, the two have had amazing collaborations with my favorite being last year’s collaboration with their women’s wear Fall/Winter 2022 line. It was very vibrant and the show itself just makes you want to get up and dance. It was that good. I especially appreciate how their lines together feature sort of the framework of an archive with a modern twist.
Another iconic moment from the archives that I feel is extremely prevalent in the fashion world to this day would be the Maison Margiela Tabi’s.
The Margiela Tabi shoes are essentially one of his very iconic archival works that has been reworked and is still sold today, even though Margiela is no longer at the brand anymore. This beautiful line of shoes shows a pair of shoes sort of reworked into a more non-traditional style, yet still being practical. The shoe was first shown in 1988 on the runway and has sort of been a Margiela staple since.
When it comes to archive fashion, there are many layers and you kind of have to dig deep to not only find a product you’re looking for, but also the information that you want to know regarding certain lines and such. With this blog, I just wanted to begin the conversation and just scratch the surface of what archive fashion means to me and things that I find particularly interesting. This definitely will not be my last blog about this topic and there will most likely be multiple blog posts regarding this same thing. I just wanted to sort of give my own definition of what the topic means to me and as I do more research, I most definitely will be sharing both my findings and knowledge, as well.
Thank you and xoxo :-*
Judy N. Ulayyet
Sources:
https://www.archivaria.ca/index.php/archivaria/article/view/12792 https://www.hungertv.com/editorial/is-the-internet-ruining-archive-fashion/
https://hollowayexpress.org.uk/the-historical-significance-of-archive-fashion/
https://www.sumunage.com/an-introduction-and-the-meaning-of-archival-clothing/
https://www.farfetch.com/style-guide/trends-subcultures/archive-clothing-and-archival-fashion-brands/
https://www.luxuo.com/style/fashion/archival-and-dated-fashion-pieces-old-is-new-again.html#:~:text=Efforts%20that%20conserve%20fashion%20archives&text=Retrieving%20archives%20builds%20the%20heritage,of%20brand%20cultures%20over%20time.
Image sources:
https://pin.it/3hfCI8d, https://pin.it/7x4EOhR, https://pin.it/2bc2Yh6, https://pin.it/1S87ZVi, https://pin.it/7EQ1yUe, https://pin.it/6IUu06c, https://pin.it/7hV9Jn3, https://pin.it/7HrrY03, https://pin.it/4BfMl42, https://pin.it/6knazIn, https://pin.it/aw97Woh, https://pin.it/5EOBeJl, https://pin.it/7LL88EV, https://pin.it/12RUlwj, https://pin.it/5A470QC, https://pin.it/2PNTYVB, https://pin.it/4KnMeBW,
