The main reason I chose Picasso, other than the fact is he’s commonly known, is because his work is currently being displayed in Toronto. For those of you who live around the area, I thought it would be interesting to feed off of what’s happening close-by! His artwork is coming all the way from Museu Picasso in Barcelona, which is currently under construction. So if you’re near-by Toronto, or planning a trip there soon, I highly recommend going to the AGO to see his amazing work in person.
I was lucky enough to see some of his paintings when I went to New York a few years ago, along with many other artists of his caliber, at the Museum of Modern Art. It’s one thing to see pictures, but to see these paintings up close, in all their glory. I was never a big follower of more modern surrealist paintings, but that really changed my view of them. You see the size of the paintings, or the details of the brush strokes, or even the amount of paint on the canvas, and you realize it’s not just something to throw up onto a white board. It’s much more complex than that.
Picasso has many different periods throughout his life. He began under the training of his father, and actually started as a realist painter. It wasn’t until about after 1901 that he started developing the more surreal style. What many people don’t know is he is actually one of the founding fathers of the cubism movement. One of his most famous paintings, and one known as a major step in the beginnings of cubism, is a painting called ‘Les Demoiselles d’Avignon’. Since it was such an influential piece in the history of his work and cubism, I thought I would start with that!
Shirt: Forever21 / Skirt: ASOS / Purse: Lulu's / Shoes: Call It Spring / Belt: Charlotte Russe
The fun thing with translating paintings or artwork into
fashion inspiration is picking out things from the piece that can be translated
into clothing. Of course, colour is the simplest way to collect inspiration
from art, but there are many other principles that work in both fashion and
art. For instance, I chose the skirt because, not only was the colour perfect,
but it also has an oblong shape, that much resembles the curvature in the arms
and legs of the women. I also loved this top because the imperfect stripes
almost look like brush strokes – how cool is that??
Another painting I chose, from his later years, was one
called ‘Rembrandt Figure and Eros’. This
one, while very abstract, had amazing colour that I just couldn’t pass up! It
also has little intricacies to it. I knew as soon as I saw it what would be the
main piece I’d wear for this outfit.
Dress: Forever21 / Scarf: Thrifted / Clutch: Vintage
Belt: Thrifted / Shoes: Thrifted
I bought this dress a while back at Forever 21 and haven’t
really worn it very often. But after seeing this painting, I knew that it was
perfect for this. The scarf is a bit of a throw back to Thursday’s post all
about Rockabilly, but I tied mine into a little bow. That scarf I just bought
yesterday when we went out to the thrift store! It was perfect, as not only is
an abstract pattern, but it also has almost the exact same reds, purples and golds as this Picasso
piece! What a find!I wrote this post mainly to show that inspiration can come from literally everywhere! It could come from a song, a movie, a TV show, celebrities, painters, photography, anything! The best part of inspiration is it’s all for you. Sometimes it’s a colour scheme, sometimes it’s the repetition, the pattern, and sometimes, it’s just the feeling or emotion it makes you feel. Don’t be afraid to try putting new combinations together, because generally if you love the look or feel of it in a painting, you’ll love it just as much in the clothing you wear. Inspiration from different media is all about inspiring you to try something new!
Have you ever found inspiration in an interesting place? If so, where? And how did you capture it?
- Rebekah Eden
The Velvet Team
LOVE the picasso inspired shirt: cut, colour, style are so perfect. And FINALLY vertical stripes: horizontals way overdone and overdue to be overtaken (over did the over's? ;-) ).
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