Week 2 - Hussein Chalayan

1. Chalayan’s works in clothing, like Afterwords (2000) andBurka (1996) , are often challenging to both the viewer and the wearer. What are your personal responses to these works? AreAfterwords and Burka fashion, or are they art? What is the difference?

Not all clothing is fashion, so what makes fashion fashion?

When i first saw these two works, i was a bit shocking, kind of in both good and bad way. For the Bruka, when i saw the youtube, i didn't understand the meaning behind the show, but i didn't even have any interest to research it, because i think it is disgusting and scary. However, the Afterwords (2000) I find it is quite interesting, because on youtube, the whole video clip looks like a tv show combined with catwalk. The most interesting thing is that all the chairs, desks, cases turned into garments in sudden, which I think the idea is amazing.

Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging symbolic elements in a way that influences and affects the senses, emotions, and intellect. But Fashion is a general term for the style and custom prevalent at a given time, in its most common usage refers to costume or clothing style. I think these two works are more into art, because in my opinion, something that you can’t even wear to the public in daily life is not fashion, it should be piece of art which should be displayed in art gallery. Just think about it, can we wear like that to the public?

2. Chalayan has strong links to industry. Pieces like The Level Tunnel (2006) and Repose (2006) are made in collaboration with, and paid for by, commercial business; in these cases, a vodka company and a crystal manufacturer. How does this impact on the nature of Chalayan’s work? Does the meaning of art change when it is used to sell products? Is it still art?

I think when a piece of art has a value and starts becoming a product which can be sold, it is not a piece of art anymore, because piece of art can be something that people can have different critiques , can be good or bad. However, when a piece of art turns into a peice of commercial products, it should be created to a best result,so that most of the people can accept it and buy it.

4. Many of Chalayan’s pieces are physically designed and constructed by someone else; for example, sculptor Lone Sigurdsson made some works from Chalayan’s Echoform (1999) and Before Minus Now (2000) fashion ranges. In fashion design this is standard practice, but in art it remains unexpected. Work by artists such as Jackson Pollock hold their value in the fact that he personally made the painting. Contrastingly, Andy Warhol’s pop art was largely produced in a New York collective called The Factory, and many of his silk-screened works were produced by assistants. Contemporarily, Damien Hirst doesn’t personally build his vitrines or preserve the sharks himself. So when and why is it important that the artist personally made the piece?

As a artist, i think creating and experimenting and making piece is most important because art is not just about the result, it is about the process, a piece of work is not just a object, but a piece of work that contains lots of meanings behind and how to present can bring audience different feelings and thoughts by different artists.

http://www.husseinchalayan.com/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CE07_aFF4no

http://www.fashion-lifestyle.net/designers_en_broi7