I've been watching project runway for quite a few seasons now, but I haven't seen every season start to finish. I started watching towards the end of season 5, and then I've watched every episode of every season since, and now it's season 9!
My friends tell me that they've grown tired of Project Runway because the challenges are beginning to repeat themselves and people are less creative, but I completely beg to differ. Yes, some of the challenges are similar to ones done in the past, but I dont think any are completely the same, and as the show continues with new contestants, the pieces keep getting better and better. I absolutely love watching how every person accepts the new challenges in different ways, and every time I am amazed that they are able to produce such amazing garments in as little as 2 or 3 days. I love coming across the designs that are so incredible I want to snatch them right off the model, and cringing at a pieces who's vision was much grander than it's end result. It's always sad to me when someone is eliminated because it's almost like crushing their dreams, and almost all of them are extremely talented and creative, and sometimes things just don't go as we envisioned them.
Anyways, I can't stop thinking about project runway because I have finally made my decision on a grad project: designing my own 25-piece collection and producing 3 garments. YAY!
I have extremely little faith in myself for this assignment, considering my sewing skills are as basic as computerized sewing I at my school plus some work I did over the summer. But I shall soon be buying a Bernina and taking some more lessons, and hopefully I'll complete some work I'm really proud of! I'm excited.
So with this new wave of possibilites, I couldn't help but spend some time tonight looking back on my favorite pieces/collections/designers from all my seasons of watching project runway. I'm feeling totally inspired after viewing these images, but also terrified. I'm a total beginner, so I wont be creating anything as amazing as these designers, but it's inspiration nonetheless!
So here are some pictures of my favorite designs from the Project Runway archives
Kenley - season 5. I'm a HUGE fan of Kenley's vintage and colorful aesthetic. Its cute, flirty, and fantastic. Though Kenley wasn't the nicest person on the show, I couldn't help but love nearly every piece she created. She's definitely one of my favorite Project Runway alums
Kenley. This dress is GORGEOUS.
Kenley. I think I would wear this to prom if I could take out some of the poof in the skirt.
Mondo Guerra - season 8. Mondo is probably my favorite designers ever on project runway because I love him as a person. His designs are great, I love them, but I also think he's absolutely adorable and a very kind person. I actually cried when he revealed he was HIV positive. I think he was the most deserving contestant of season 8 and should have been the winner! I was so disappointed when he didn't win. Just look how ADORABLE this dress is!
Mondo. I love how he's never afraid to play with color and pattern. And he always makes it work.
LOOK HOW ADORABLE HE IS! I LOVE MONDO.
Leanne - season 5. Leanne was the first designer I saw on project runway and LOVED. Her designs are so simple and beautiful. I believe this a piece she has in a collection designed outside of PR.
Leanne. Not only is she adorable, but she makes absolutely stunning dresses. I love that royal blue!
Leanne. I believe this is a piece from her bridal collection. Her stuff is so simple but elegant. Really lovely.
Leanne. Here is the collection that made her the winner of season 5. I love every single pieces in this collection. The movement and repetition in shapes is soft and beautiful. Plus, I dont think she could have found more gorgeous colors. I think this is possibly the best final collection I've ever seen on the show.
Mondo. I SERIOUSLY WANT TO STEAL THIS WHOLE OUTFIT AND WEAR IT EVERYDAY OF MY LIFE.
Korto - season 5. Upon viewing this jacket, I think everyone would agree that it is fantastic in every way, shape, pattern, color. Then, upon finding out it's actually made of car seatbelts, I think it would blow them away, rightfully so. This is the best piece I have ever seen come out of one of the unconventional object challenges. I am in love with this jacket.
Mila - season 7? I can't remember what season Mila was in, but I think it was 7. Though I didn't particularly love Mila's designs at the time, looking back, I think they are simple but elegant. I love her patterning and the dark colors. Her mostly black and white color palette seems a little drab sometimes but I think it comes off beautifully in these pieces.
Mila. The detailing on this dress is gorgeous, and I absolutely love the sheer satin in the back.
Andy - season 8. When Andy made this dress entirely out of ribbons, I was blown away, its edgy, its beautiful and absolutely awesome. It reminds me a lot of McQueen. I always applaud the designers who can take one material not typically used as fabric and make an amazing piece of clothing out of it. That takes serious skill.
Anthony Ryan - season 9. I just watched this episode a few days ago and loved this piece that Anthony Ryan created. I think its stunning, creative, and completely avant garde. I was glad he won the challenge for this dress because it's one of the most creative pieces I've seen.
I'm excited to see the ending of season 9! I have already made my prediction of the top 3: Anya, Victor, and either Josh or Anthony Ryan (but I think probably Josh).
Let's see if I'm right!
Also, my favorite band, fun., has just released their new single today, and I think it's absolutely fantastic... so you should listen to it!
It's been an interesting Friday... and at the moment my brain is nearly spinning out of control with a myriad of thoughts.
Here's a short grocery list of things plaguing my mind right now:
My desperate need to come up with an excellent graduation project by September 26th
Two 3-paragraph English essays on Princess by Jean Sassoon and Outliers by Malcom Gladwell, and finishing the 50 last pages of Outliers due September 30th (nevermind the fact that I dont start Senior English until mid-January 2012).
AP studio art - drawing vs. 2D design portfolio. which one -OR- both ?!?!
Psychology project on Mary Ainsworth due September 26th and planning all the creative aspects of it / the food I have to make for the day
Starting my first 2 AP Studio art projects: a hand/foot study & my own personal choice of attacking the most dreaded of all subjects... SELF-PORTRAITURE
[And very stupidly]... I just found out that the spring musical this year at my school is probably going to be Legally Blonde the musical, which is only my favorite musical of all time. Knowing full well that it would likely never make an appearance at my high school, I vowed 3 years ago that if it were to ever to be our show, I would have to try out. So now I am freaking out because even though I have never been in a school-produced muscial in my life and I have absolutely zero singing ability, I want to be in this show. I've actually been singing this song all day.
So yes, those are my big concerns right now. Grad project is actually probably my largest concern since I have to basically figure it out this weekend.
Here's my idea:
To put together a collection of a few dresses and fashion accessories, and then attempt to make a handful of these and show them at the final display of my project. I love the beautiful and classy fashion sketches from the 1950s (my absolute favorite decade in history), featured below.
To me, this sounds great and like a ton of fun, but it also sounds like a ton of work and since I do not own a sewing machine, I fear its not even a feasible possibility. My mother and I are in the talks of buying a Bernina, but that has yet to happen, plus we have to do major research into costs (since the cheaper ones cost about $750) and where to buy one. I also need to contact a mentor, and though I have one in mind, she lives 3 hours away from me and I'm not sure how much she could help me if I needed it. Oh, and I also forgot to mention the fact that my sewing skills remain extremely basic, going off what I learned in the Sewing I class I took at school last year and some work I did over the summer. I'm not even sure if I could make my own dresses. I attemtped one this summer and it came down to a last-minute spazz attack when I realized that I had done some stitches wrong and I had run out of time to finish it for the art show. Here's a picture of the still-unfinished dress I designed, dyed, and sewed myself this summer (note: picture taken by my friend because I was too ashamed of it's sloppy state to take a picture):
(I'll explain more about this dress and it's creation
in my next post.)
So yes, that is my freak out at the moment.
Anyways, tomorrow I am going to Parsons in NYC for an open house. I'm kind of excited, but I have to wake up at 6am, which sucks considering it's a Saturday. But I'll probably sleep in the car. College stuff always freaks me out, but I've already taken a brief tour of Parsons so hopefully I'll just get some more information and a view of the dorm rooms. So it should be an eventful day!
And since it's almost 2:30am and I will be waking up in about 3 and a half hours, I believe I should probably get to bed.
I'd like to end my fridays with LOLpicture just to brighten things up for the weekend.
One of my favorite lolcat pictures is feature below. The cat's face is just so priceless.
It's not the funniest picture I own, but it's late and all my funny pictures are saved to my iPhone. So maybe I'll post a better one tomorrow.
Also, I will end today's post with my favorite song of all time by my favorite band of all time, called The Gambler by Fun. This song is so great, its helping to calm me down through all this stress.
So this doesn't shock me at all, but absolutely no one has seen this blog yet. No one but me. And I'm not sure if it's even appropriate to use the word "yet" in this situation, seeing as there is no reason for me to believe that anyone will ever see this blog.
But if that is the case, that no one shall ever read this blog, then I guess it's somewhat of an online secret diary. It's not secret, and I actually am posting things that are viewable to majority of the virtual world, but if no one ever sees it, then it's more just for myself I guess. And I'm okay with that.
Anyways, today I'd like to post some pictures of some really great pieces of artwork. Just random pieces of artwork that I actually found on my iPhone app called "ArtGallery."
It's a great app and I highly recommend it (to all the people not reading this blog!) if you'd like to find some inspirational artwork. It's definitely one of my favorite and most useful apps.
so here are just a few pieces:
Van Gogh
Barbara Kruger
Janet Fish. (So amazing! I love this piece)
Ralph Goings. (Stunning Photorealism- yes this is really painted!)
Duane Hanson. (I love his sculptures of modern people doing the most basic boring things!)
Michelle Caplan. (Beauitful collage work)
Banksy. (the classic street artist!)
Barbara Kruger
Mary Cassatt
Dulah Marie Evans. (painted in 1920 - absolutely gorgeous colors.)
Janet Fish
Duane Hanson
Guillaume Seigna (the girl in this painting, titled "Virginity," has the most angelic face I've ever seen)
Michelle Caplan
Joseph Cornell
Man Ray
Ralph Goings
Rene Magritte
David Hockney
Michelle Caplan.
More artists and artwork tomorrow...
Time for bed!
"'if i should die,' said i to myself, 'i have left no immortal work behind me - nothing to make my friends proud of my memory - but I have loved the principle of beauty in all things, and if i had had time i would have made myself remembered.'"
