Sketches by Beatrice Brandini: vintage clothes
Here I am, in my first “diary page” through my blog!
First of all, there are some people I want to thank. It is true that usually one thanks people and the list of credits are at the end, but, as you will see further ahead, I like to “subvert” the rules a little bit, at least those of “etiquette”.
I would like to start off by thanking my husband, without whom also this adventure would never have started, nor would it have made sense. Heartfelt thanks!
Thanks to my son, LYMPH of my life. It is because of him that I understand the true essence of the word “love”.
Thanks to my mother and father, for having always loved me, so much. Thanks to my brother and all my relatives.
I’d like to thank, then, some friends for whom in these last three years I have not been very present. Thank you Alessandra L., Eleonora, Francesca, Paola, Petra, Silvia, for having continued to love me, for always having been there for me with discretion, for having made me feel better even with a simple message. Knowing that you were there was, and is, important.
I want to thank Luigi for having shared some of the most important moments of his career with me, showing me unconditional and sincere esteem.
Thank you Claudio, Francesco, Luca, Gero, Paolo, Stefano, you are IMPORTANT AND GENUINE. I am lucky to be your friend. You mean so much to me!
Perhaps I’ve forgotten someone, please forgive me, but honestly, the names cited are those who have been closest, the ones I wanted to mention right from the start.
This is going to be a fashion Blog sui generis, of course I’m going to talk about Fashion, but also about Art, Cinema and Photography. I will share with you designs and illustrations, trends, impressions, and especially DREAMS.
I’d like it to be a more “democratic” blog, dedicated also to persons who are no longer young, or with spending power that is aligned with this moment in time (it’s fantastic to dream but it is also fantastic to have respect, of money, and of those who watch and follow us).
I realised that all the most important bloggers in the world are, in addition to very beautiful, VERY YOUNG! Thus, what they propose are often reflections of themselves. But all the other persons, those who we see every day in the Underground, on the bus, at the supermarket, in the office, in front of nursery schools or at school themselves, out of breath and tired??!! Can they see themselves in those images? This is not criticism towards the work of others, just a different point of view.
Not only that, the images of the outfits are rarely suitable for someone over 35 (unless your name is Anna dello Russo, {you are a LEGEND!}), and for daily life.
A “normal” person, even with good economic leverage or a creative job, how can she go to the office as if she were about to be photographed by Vogue? Having to deal with clients, managers, colleagues, suppliers… doesn’t allow you to wear clothing that is too pretentious. Everything is possible and tolerated (that’s what’s great about fashion!), but in a life made up of relationships, in everyday life, certain limitations are a rule, in addition to the fact that professionally (and, like it or not, for women it is still this way), there is the risk of being considered and remembered more for one’s appearance than for her professional values.
I say this based on experience; I was young and attractive, my job was a creative and managerial one in Milan for over 10 years that was involved with fashion.
And also for this reason my BLOG was born!
Lastly, I’d like to say to all those persons who would like to stay with me, to never stop dreaming; to never give up on their goals, desires, aims, because it is with commitment and constancy that one can reach any finish line. All it takes is unconditional and sincere love of what you are doing. If you have a passion for sports, animals, study, singing, painting, inventing, dancing, your neighbour or even just for yourself…., try to never lose sight of what you want to become. I loved fashion since I was a child, so very much, living for and with this passion. Not always have I been understood, but I’ve always carried on; I have always tried to improve myself, obtaining enormous satisfaction, but also some disappointment, but I never abandoned my dream that has brought me here and I have always believed in what I was doing.
If the results are before the eyes of the entire world (and I hope so), or if they are only for a few, it doesn’t matter that much, or at least that’s not the most important thing. You will be awakened in the morning with a purpose and will go to bed thinking about the next step to take to reach it, this will have stimulated you, helped you, allowed you to grow and made you a better person. You will have left a mark, and your heart will be the first to thank you.
A good life to all!
VINTAGE:
Let’s get to the contents, or at least to the first argument that I want to share with you.
I went to see the Vintage exhibition in Prato. Unfortunately, in the moment that I’ll be telling you about it, it will have ended, because it closed on the 30th of May (my site wasn’t ready yet). But in addition to commenting on it with you, I will use it as a pretext to talk about VINTAGE.
The definition of Vintage was coined to define aged wines, prized ones, and its meaning then “expanded”, becoming especially the dominion of the fashion world, to define clothing, but also accessories and bijoux, belonging to a past era, as a cultural and social heritage of the same.
Yes, because fashion, beyond its own beauty, and everything that it generates and develops (business, but especially skill and excellence and thousands of workers), has always been the witness and the portrait of the era it represents.
Think about Poiret who liberated women from crinoline; Chanel who dressed them in trousers; Dior with the New Look created a new image of the woman and a new concept of femininity; Saint Laurent with the androgynous look; Mary Quant with her miniskirts, symbol of women’s liberation and the birth of feminism; Armani who dressed them in pantsuits, trying to bring them closer to the man’s world to give them more credibility and power, especially in the workplace…. In essence, all creative phenomena, perfectly aligned in the historical context.
Fashion has always photographed society, individuating its needs.
Let’s take punk for example, more unconventional, and to a greater extent, the subsequent grunge, which was more oneiric and minimalist, two social phenomena (music, fashion, design, in a word, culture) that broke with norms and especially were moments of dissent. Or, thinking about the logo phenomenon, highlighted as a status symbol in the 90s, a historical moment for us, coined with the expression “la Milano da bere” (Milan, a town to sip), in which appearance mattered more than essence.
The phenomenon of Vintage has in the course of the years completely changed its “social” meaning; the search for second-hand clothing started out as dissent and refusal to conform, in the 70s, to then become what it has been for more than ten years, the necessity of owning something exclusive, therefore, still being anti-conformist, but possessing something unique, (see the phenomenon of the red carpet with famous people), the sense is the same as it was when it began, but the social and moral intrinsic meaning is the opposite.
Let’s get to the show.
To begin with, the context was the magical one of the Museo del Tessuto in Prato, the building is the renovation of a former factory, the former shearing shop Campolmi, jewel of industrial architecture of the 19th century. Situated within the medieval walls of the city, it is a worthwhile place to visit.
Prato then, doesn’t only mean excellence in industry with its fabrics, threads and textile machinery, exported the world over, but also marvellous companies that have rendered “made in Italy” and its protagonists great. I know them well enough because I worked with them for many years, and for me they are a sort of “Tuscan Milan”, especially for their drive. An attitude that always strikes me in a positive way.
The show was interesting, especially from an exposition point of view, it was “spectacular”.
The clothing exhibited bore witness to the concept that I illustrated at the beginning, speaking of vintage, or rather, the second-hand clothing of the hippies, patchwork or denim, to those of military extraction such as the parka, to get to what has become a cultural phenomenon, the Pucci prints, the tailleur of Chanel, the Kelly by Hermes or the invisible sandal by Ferragamo.
I’ll show some photos so you can see what left the greatest impression on me.
Museum of fabrics in Prato
Mounting exhibition Pucci
Mugler Cardin
Valentino Cardin
Lastly, I made a few sketches on what, in my view, are the ICONIC garments by some of the most important designers or couturiers of the last century (some of them are still alive and productive, fortunately). To keep the subject on Vintage.
I hope all of this can be useful to someone (for study or inspiration) and that it however has been a pleasant little break to talk about fashion, our great PASSION.
Beatrice