For this collection, I explored various Japanese handicraft techniques like shibori dyeing and origami. I recalled back to the Japanese Occupation and this thought came to mind, that perhaps amongst all this chaos, people found solace and comfort in these handicrafts. It was their way of coping.
^ These are some shibori dyeing samples that I explored in my research
I also explored expressing abstracts of the chaos of war and violence through playing texture and volume. I wanted to create a collection that was 'strategically chaotic' so there is still that sense of control what a child would like to perceive a soldier as.
Somewhere Over the Rainbow is a collection to inspire hope amidst adversity. It draws inspiration from Japanese handicrafts and explores how they provided solace to children during World War II. This collection reimagines the fear of the Japanese Occupation through the eyes of a child in the form of textures and light colours clashing with dark khaki uniforms.
With recent events of war, I was prompted to reflect on the recurring nature of war and I wondered, “ why do these things– war and violence, continue to persist when history has already borne witness to the ravages of war? Specifically, how does this impact children?
Thus, I wanted to highlight the fear and horror of the Japanese Occupation through the eyes of a child. Essentially, when a child is in the presence of formidable Japanese soldiers, how might they re-imagine the uniforms, to something less intimidating?
I have decided to implement textures and light colours to clash with the otherwise sturdy dark khaki uniforms. Some of these various textures are meant to symbolise debris from war buildings, origami and playful childlike frills.
Somewhere Over the Rainbow
^ Some samples of various textile manipulation techniques that I experimented with
I was also heavily influenced by Japanese origami folding. I decided to infuse my designs with pleats to symbolise these precise folds. In my initial design exploration, in addition to the usual sketching, I also decided to use paper to drape on the dress form, as I wanted to explore my designs to having some sort of structure to it.
^ Excerpts from my sketchbook of my pleated designs
^These are some sketches that I did in my exploration
^This was my initial draft lineup
^ I drafted and draped my various outfits and these were my initial toiles
After the initial toiles, I made adjustments and even modified the design of my dress (third from the left). It was meant to be just a dress at the beginning, but after careful thought, I decided to change the dress to have a bag and a buckle strap instead. This meant having to rethink the different layers of the design and re-draping and drafting my pattern pieces.
^ This is a snippet into the process of what I did to make this dress
For this project, I went to Guangzhou, China to source fabric and materials. It was such an insightful trip and I saw so many fabrics that I would not be able to find in Singapore. I managed to find everything I needed and even got some interesting fabric swatches.
^ Some highlights in Guangzhou
For this project, I wanted to make sure everything was planned out well. I wanted to know that things would work before I start on them proper, so I made swatches of different components like pockets and shoulder patches. These are some of them.
