I visited The Victoria and Albert Museum to get inspired by pieces that related to my mind map which was based on Culture, Afghanstain and Poverty. I picked out pieces that i found interesting and eye catching especially pieces that had texture,colour and detail was the direction i aimed for when visiting the museum.
Ottoman Embroidery
I was attracted by this piece of work because when I entered the 'Ottoman Empire' and read the description behind this, it actually fascinated me as it connected to women who created this piece of work in their own home. This connected to my research because its all about women power and being able to do a piece of art freely so I can relate to this to women in Afghhanstain, Syria and Iran who cannot have this freedom.
When I looked at this piece closely it looked like they used simple stitches such as darning stitch and running stitch. The colours used was complementary colours that went well together such as red and green, the detail and the scaling of each pattern piece blended in well as some pattern pieces stood out then the rest in terms of the size.
When I first saw this piece, I automatically thought of the word ' Persian' as this is something I would see in a persian home either on the floor as carpet or on the wall as a piece of art.This is why this is one of my Faviourite pieces as I can relate to it.
Calligraphy
Arabic writing, seen in the religion of Islam, written in the Quran.
This piece of 'art' attracted me because of the beauty of Arabic writing, the boldness and structure of the presentation against the thick piece of cement. Relating it to my concept and developing my ideas further, thinking of ways I can convert this on a piece of garment or make it more personal to me as an individual.
How?
remember its arabic writing that has a strong meaning to the religion itself, Islam. It shouldn't be used in a way which disrespects muslim individuals or muslim countries.
You can structure it on a garment thats respectful such a sleeved full length dress or a sleeve shirt. You need to embrace the beauty of Islam in a positive manor to show the public its a beautiful religion. This connects to my research because I'm showing the greater view of Islam which is the opposite to my research.
Church Vestment
When I first saw this piece, I got a warm feeling because this piece of art demonstrates the ability of skilled artisans when you look closely you can tell a few tools was used for this piece of art to be made. It creates a beautiful, simple textile piece using simple colours that worked well with the lace included. There wasn't much meaning behind this to me personally but I just liked the way it looked. I could relate it to Islam because Islam is all about patterns and colours and this is exactly what I see in the 'church vestment'.
Dress from Voltage Haute Couture
I love mesh, its one of my favourite materials because its light and friendly. It can be recycled and re used, to me Afghanistain, Iran and Syria are very poor countries by using mesh it shows the value of the material and can be converted into something diverse that can therefore be related to Islam and can represent poor countries.
when I saw this garment and the way it was created I was dazzled by the structure and the layout, it made me think more outside the box and made me realise how I can use it in my own work.
Bubble Bath
I have never seen such a piece of art that was made out of Nylon Filament, hand knitted,it seemed very soft and delicate. Durable synthetic thread has been used to capture bubbles, one of nature's most brittle forms. Its so light but yet so beautiful, thinking about ways I can connect it to my concept and make it environmentally friendly.
Alexander McQueen
One of my favourite designers of all time Alexander McQueen thinks a lot about nature and identity and thats one of the reasons I have interest in him, When I saw his design at the Victoria and Albert Museum I was engaged to it based on the fabric that was used and the way I could reflect to the pattern and colour.
Thinking outside the box and looking more into depth on how I could convert it to an islamic piece.
