Space, is it the final frontier?
Who knows, either way, it's the destination for this blog.
Did you know Tintin and his pals got there first, in 1952.
Feel like watching the video of Tintin's adventure to the moon, part 1 and part 2.
Back to the actual history.
The 'Space Race' occurred between the USSR & the USA. It originated in the ballistic missile-based nuclear arms race between the two nations following WW2. The Soviet Union achieved the first successful satellite launch with Sputnik 1 on October 4th, 1957. (A good year that one!) They sent the first human being into space with Yuri Gagarin, April 12th, 1961. The Soviets were also ahead of the Americans sending the first woman, Valentina Tereshkova, into space June 16th, 1963. It looked like the USSR had the advantage, but we all know that the American eagle was the first to land on the surface of the moon July 20th, 1969.
I got thinking about space due to Comme des Garcons latest Homme Spring 2021 collection, 'Metal Outlaw'
Maybe I'm reminded of these guys, Space Family Robinson, 'Lost in Space', a popular Sci-Fi TV show of the 60s. Often described as fun and campy, starring Billy Mumy and Angela Cartwright. I think Dr. smith was the campy one. (Interesting fact, Angela's sister, Veronica, starred in 'Alien' of "In space no one can hear you scream.")
Their silver outfits might have been inspired by 'Project Mercury', the United States first man-in space programme, initiated in 1958 and completed in 1963. John Glenn is the name I am most familiar with, as he was the first American to orbit the Earth.
This is a link to a great photographic evolution of the spacesuit, starting with the latest highly flexible 'Artemis'.
The spacesuit is actually a fascinating story. Amazing Playtex seamstresses, whose area of expertise lay in latex moulding bras and girdles, constructed the spacesuits Armstrong and Aldrin wore on the moon.
The story is presented in this children's book...
1.Teamwork is crucial in getting the job done.
2.To get to the best outcome, lot's of different minds might need to work together. In this case designers, engineers and seamstresses work together.
3. Trial and error is a big part of the process...you don't get it right the first time.
Here is one of the actual streamstresses discussing the experience. I think she was responsible for the gloves.
and this is a video of a really interesting talk given by Nicholas de Monchaux, author of 'Fashioning Apollo'.
I like this photograph by Annie Leibovitz for the Louis Vuitton 'Core Values' campaign. Who are they?
Sally Ride, the first American woman in space, June, 1983, Buzz Aldrin, Apollo 11, 2nd man on the moon, and Jim Lovell, who guided Apollo 13 back home after its mechanical failures. They are modelling for LV 'Icare' luggage, named for Icarus; the mythological man of flight. There's a lot to observe and consider in this photographic composition.
The 'Space Age Race' had a direct effect on 1960s fashion, as it became a metaphor for both youth and progress. Designers like Andre Courreges, Paco Rabanne and Pierre Cardin devised fabulous space inspired clothing.
Andre Courreges was at the forefront of space inspired fashion. He produced a "Space Age" collection in 1964, which established white and silver as a defined space aesthetic.
Here he is, dressed in that aesthetic.
Looks like she is off on a moonwalk. Apparently Courreges wanted women to "connect with their time."
The trailer for the film, a bit cringey now, of course.
Cardin's 'Cosmocorps' Collection, 1967. I've used this image before and I'll say it again, the one in the orange dress is very Star Trekkie.
It takes me to this very cool garment...Emilio Pucci's S/S 2007, by Matthew Williamson, fabulous silk jersey tunic and enamel dress
and if you look at this image...
Spanish designer, Paco Rabanne had a penchant for spacey type materials, like plastic and metal.
His designs inspired Jane Fonda's futuristic sex bomb costumes in Barbarella, in particular, the green costume.
And this is a rather fun video about Rabanne's career, if interested.
Now, Pierre Cardin really embraced the Space Age
Apparently, he's one of the few civilians who has been able to try on a NASA space suit.
Much of his look is based on geometry, tending to a clean and minimal line. He was described as "a man who has always had stars in his eyes and his eyes on the stars".
Cecil Beaton (British fashion, portrait and war photographer, 1904 - 1980) wrote that Cardin was "a member of the Martian school: his young models are equipped for any science-fiction activity. Their heads are protected by crash helmets..., they are silhouetted like torpedoes or rocket missiles,...They are in the advance guard of those exploring outer space."
This link takes you to a good article about an exhibition held in 2019, relating to the 50 years of man landing on the moon, while celebrating Pierre Cardin's creativity. Even if nothing else, take in the video halfway through, it's groovy.
This is a link to a book about Pierre Cardin. I like the images and the comments.
https://www.thestylemate.com/pierre-cardin-fashion-futurist-a-retrospective-exhibit/?lang=en
This a similar exhibition, which was held in Brooklyn. The images are great, up close, with good explanations.
https://www.forestcityfashionista.com/2019/11/the-futuristic-fashion-of-pierre-cardin.html
There are great images in this link, not just clothing, it also includes furniture and spacey looking houses
https://rivingtonprojects.com/journal/2019/8/22/pierrecardinfuturefashion
In 1970 Cardin designed garments for nurses. Here he is posing with models wearing his designs. Some are quite nun-like, aren't they. I wonder what that was about?
Check them in colour through this video.
https://www.assouline.com/products/pierre-cardin
In particular, I like this image, an 'Articulated necklace in Plexiglass, 1971'.
you see another version on Sienna Miller, in a Vogue article, which is on the same wavelength re 'Space'.
In 1965 Braniff Airlines chose Emilio Pucci to design the uniforms for their flight attendants.
Watch the video 'The Air Strip' via this link, would they do this today?
Back to Cardin. I like this dress of his, which was known by some, as the 'egg container' dress.
It makes me think of CdG Junya Watanabe's S/S 2015 collection, particularly this garment. An astounding collection, with the most glorious head pieces...
Someone else thinking helmet, space like.
I found this 60s pattern
Christopher Kane's Resort 2011 collection 'Into the Galaxy' featured wonderful images of flaring nebulae (clouds of dust and gas in space, with some being the explosions of a dying star, such as a supernova) captured by the Hubble Space Telescope, which is named after Edwin Hubble(1889-1953), who played a crucial role in establishing the fields of extragalactic astronomy and observational cosmology.
This is a wonderful video relating Hubble's fantastic journey. Great images, great animation and out-of-this-world information.
A couple of years ago my Year 12 class worked on a fashion event with theme 'Starry Night'. They put together look books, which expressed their creative work. I love the image Angela screen printed on her sweatshirt, very Hubble-image like. It is a bit hard to see it clearly in these photographs, which is a bummer.
And a Yr.9 student also went with a space theme for the decoration on her flared skirt project. She found the gold and silver textile paints and created cool constellation designs. 
Lagerfeld docked a rocket ship under the glass dome of the Grand Palais, where he presented the collection, and apparently it "blasted off" accompanied by Elton John's 'Rocket Man'.
Watch this poignant video for EJ's 'Rocket Man'. Husband and father trying to get to a better place, for an improved life for his family.
I became so interested I tracked the film online. I was amazed at how much I enjoyed watching it, even though it is rather sexist, which is to be expected of a 1956 American film. It is considered to be one of the greatest science fiction films of the 1950s. Many of the characters and the isolated setting have been compared to those in Shakespeare's 'The Tempest'. It is one of the first science fiction films which depicts humans traveling in a faster-than-light starship, a flying saucer in fact. And, Robby the Robot is great. I think he could be the role model for Lost in Space's robot.
This garment involves an interesting aspect about space, the concept of Ma. 
Jiaying worked with beautiful starry fabrics
Chantalle was inspired by constellations, expressing them through machine embroidered constellations on the skirt.
Chanel's Fall 2017 collection by Karl Lagerfeld was also a bit out of this world. The standard Chanel tweeds and pearls were given a cosmic twist, "..glittery black-toed moon boots, translucent astronaut prints, metallic trench coats, quilted foil capes,.."
Now, a fashion shoot working with Hubble-like views in the background and alien-like displays of the garments by the models.
These spacey images come from 'The World of Interiors' magazine. They have a section, 'fabric sample' and come up with all sorts of creative ways to present furnishing fabric. This one is 1950s sci-fi inspired, possibly 'Forbidden Planet'. If you view the 3rd centre image, you can see the theatrical poster that was used for the film.
This is a link, which will take you to view the film.
"Andromeda is no stranger to galactic collisions. A survey of 300,000 stars in its outer halo has revealed that one-third of them are only 6 to 8 billion years old - just over half the age of the Milky Way's halo population. Whether these stars are the captured members of a smaller, younger galaxy or the progeny of a wave of star formation spurred by a larger collision is unknown." (Universe, A Journey from Earth book)
Scientists receive a transmission from a far off galaxy, which gives them instructions on building a super computer. The computer then instructs them on how to build a living being named Andromeda, played by Julie Christie. One of the scientists starts to fear that this creation might be used to conquer humanity and the world.
An introduction to another interesting film, television programme actually...in 1924 Edwin Hubble established an intergalactic breakthrough, when he managed "to resolve individual stars in M31, the Andromeda 'nebula', using the cutting-edge 100 inch Hooker Telescope at the Mount Wilson Observatory."
"200,000 light years across and surrounded by a swarm of at least ten satellite galaxies, Andromeda is the other titan of the Local Group. It may be twice as large as the Milky Way, but recent research suggests it is considerably less massive. As it is heading towards us at 500,000kph, in 3 billion years we will have a much more accurate estimate of its weight." (Universe A Journey from Earth book)
'A for Andromeda' 1961. It is best known as Julie Christie's first big role. A British BBC series, which ran for 2 series. Christie did not appear in the 2nd series, as she had starred in the film 'Dr Zhivago' and her future was sealed.
Have a look at this episode, fascinating, well rounded vowels from Shakespearean stage actors and then the lovely Julie Christie.
...just a tribute to Julie Christie, the connection with space is her becoming a star.US Vogue, February, 1966, Julie wearing a classic 60s shift style dress.
A little spaceman is assisting with this fashion shoot. These are Balenciaga by Nicolas Ghesquiere. The collection was described as having hints of Courreges (one time assistant to Balenciaga). Ghesquiere said he would like to design for a science-fiction film. I cannot locate what collection these garments actually came from, annoyingly!
Crinkled lacquered satin dress and metal belt by Dolce & Gabbana, a sexy space look, from Fall 2007.
And, of course, Issey Miyake's Spring/Summer 1994 'Flying Saucer Dress'. Nothing else quite like it.
Ma is the space between a garment and a body. It is more than just emptiness. It is a rich space that possesses incalculable energy. Ma has long been used within Japanese design, as a means of creating aesthetically pleasing objects. Ma is a space, gap, void between an object, a movement or even a conversation. (The latter interests me, as some people feel they must always fill that gap in a conversation.)
Ma is seen in garments where abundant fabric cocoons the body, creating spaces between it and the cloth.
Rei Kawakubo designs often relate to this 'space' concept.
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| Art of the In-Between: Rei Kawakubi/Comme des Garcons exhibition curated by Andrew Bolton, 2017 |
"The void is important."(1985)
"I like to work with space and emptiness."(2000)
Space, if it's not a final frontier, it's certainly a fascinating frontier, definitely a fascinating history.... and a personal one...sitting on London underground train, heading off to work, always grabbed Metro, one day, here was this image.
Many voids, gaps and space permeate her collections. She, along with the other Japanese designers of the 80s, revolutionised pattern-cutting, as they abandoned figure-hugging forms and introduced a more abstract relationship to the body.
The absence of a tailored quality generates its own structure of space.
Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garcons Autumn/Winter 1983-84. Photo:Naoya Hatakeyama
Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garcons Spring/Summer 1984 Photo:Naoya Hatakeya
I have just completed making a dress from fabric which has a space-like constellation pattern. It definitely relates with Ma, as there's lot of space in it!
I also had a go at creating a Junya Watanabe inspired helmet head piece! Always creative and curious.
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| "The space shuttle Endeavour approaches the International Space Shuttle on a delivery run. Here it is seen against the backdrop of Cook Strait, which separates the north and south islands of New Zealand." |
More history relating to 'Space' from my London days...went to see an exhibition at Fabrications, Broadway Market and a fabric artist, Peter Crush, presented an exhibit "TinTin had needed to think quickly, it had been hard to leave Snowy's cold body on the moon, but there was simply not enough fuel to carry any extra weight in the way home" Crush had constructed a perfect little Snowy in his spacesuit, lying on his side, all alone, and dead. Of course I was taken by it, Tintin fan that I am. I have looked high and low for an image, but no joy, so can only come up with this one...
(Absolute months later...I have found it!)
I was fascinated with Peter Crush's work. He was recorded as saying "... art is a cultural artefact ... in my work the domestic is manipulated to reflect upon the self in society... I take cartoon characters and use them to reflect upon the experience of aging and loss... using humour, pathos and irony... all are about ultimate defeat"
Remember the comment regard Pierre Cardin having stars in his eyes and eyes on the stars. How about going to sleep with stars in your eyes. I have been making eye masks.
I leave the last word to Carl Sagan. I love this recording. I once read his words out for my reflection at a staff briefing. We are such a tiny piece of it all, perhaps that is what makes it, both so amazing and so humbling.
'The Pale Blue Dot'.