The Spring Summer 2014 collections are over and those in the industry can breathe for the moment as the marathon month amidst a crush of talent has come to pass within the Big Four. The pent up creativity that squelched expression in leaner times could only be contained for so long. Now that there are signs of economic optimism, if even tenuous at best, the possibility alone is permission enough to bounce back, and a public weary of constant caution is only too welcome to at least be open to what is offered.  

Designers with a knowledge of fashion history knew to capitalize on the continued retro exploration and 80s fascination by channeling the spirit of creativity in the quest to balance nostalgia with instilling permission to expand one’s comfort levels of permissive wearability. Here, we already are bracing for a cultural overhaul on many areas ranging from climate to employment to career choices to economic approaches to lifestyle changes, much of it threaded by exponential technological growth that is happening before our eyes. Fashion already has been in tandem with revolutionary advances, both areas finding ways to incorporate each other as they lock for public embrace of inevitable change, the likes we have yet to experience compared to what is ahead the next decade when our century comes under full swing.

But fashion is fickle and we have become conditioned to constant stimuli and shortened attention spans.  And so fashion offers many elements, the availability a reflection of the cacophony of stimuli we have available due to our accessible world online. If we already get the message of tech as a mainstay component, what else can we embrace that opens the door to the new? How about art?

Fashion and art are continuous bedfellows, especially in the last century. The Deco period incorporated the Bauhaus geometry and flow from artists such as Erte as it looked to inspire people to a new way of modern expression as artists inspired the public to break free from convention of the century before. The 30s and 40s saw Schiaparelli collaborating with the Surrealists, including Salvador Dali and Jean Cocteau, broadening ways of communicating mood and inspiring thought via pattern and imagery within the confines of utilitarian cuts. The designers of the 60s incorporated art into design to support the democratization of expression that the Pop art movement also aimed to do, allowing the public to enjoy art and expression for all and not just for the economically fortunate few. The 80s rebelled against convention and opened the door for new shapes and forms, elevating it to a level of art as fashion made its way into museum exhibits, paving the way for phenomenon such as widespread appreciation of fashion in exhibit format.  Just as exhibitions on the history of Chanel and Dior woke the public up to the power of a designer’s cultural contribution and Issey Miyake’s technical skills that transcend the traditional garment, the McQueen exhibit of a few years ago exploded expectations of public interest and invigorated discussion on whether fashion today is art based on the intricacy of construction and material usage that was displayed for appreciation. And depending on whom you speak to, the answer covers wide opinion and interest but the power of provoking reaction certainly puts it in line with what art is meant to do.

Now we have the doors open for expecting change and art helps lubricate the appetite. Quite a few designers usually put an element of art into their fashion. While a design house like Chanel may make the statement more obvious in its presentation or a designer such as Comme Des Garcons chooses to dive fully into representational conceptual design, the bulk have found more freedom in the allowance of creativity that art allows. It comes in the boldness of print, the architectural cuts, the mix of materials or a combination of all three. The Paris shows in particular saw more of this creative expression for modern standpoint, but in truth there was more testing of boundaries in all of the Big Four collections at various levels. The only problem is whether the public can truly be on board. While incorporating art as Schiaparelli did makes sense based on applying design imagery on more classic cuts, the creative explosion of the 80s came at a price as the general public appreciated the creative effort but could not fully embrace the investment in clothes too unique to have good dollar/wear. Despite producing these pieces for the runway and having more wearable separates in their boutiques, the experiment of unbridled creativity can backfire when looking to cultivate customer base. It did for many back in the 80s when the design world saw a huge influx of talent and ideas spring forth.

So while the good times seem to roll, fashion offers something to talk about. Whether it can survive its need to express itself depends on whether the times can be as covetable and as appreciated as art. And so the internal dialogue may have more weight that the industry thinks if it’s remembering that it’s a business; the cliché of the starving artist would be the ironic and unintended manifestation of this inspiration for the coming season if not played right. That is one aspect of the 80s nobody wants to invoke, but its repeat would be great performance art.