Antilubuk: How designers rethink fashion for "Russian"
RELATING TO "NATIONAL STYLE", JOURNALISTS they usually start with the aristocracy who fled abroad, which at one time largely inspired Russian culture in the West, and complete with the aesthetics of the suburbs - sung by Gosha Rubchinsky and Demnaya Gvasalia. But this list of Russian names in fashion is far from being exhausted. Today we are dealing with a new “Russian wave”, which has a chance to recreate the local fashion market.
Working with a national theme in Russia has always taken a run from kitsch to barely distinguishable allusions. Someone limited himself to decorating or retelling ornaments - like Daria Razumikhina with meters of colorful lace, sewn on skirts and coats, or Denis Simachev, who generously used Khokhloma designs in design. Someone did without visual symbols, but also took as a basis "national subjects" - like Alena Akhmadullina, who dedicated several collections in a row to Russian fairy tales. The Russian theme in the early 2000s did not reach a global scale: the then Russian designers worked with a limited number of clients and their success, of course, cannot be compared with the “fashion by Rubchinsky”. It is possible that someone was not accurate enough in the artistic statement, and someone from the representatives of Russian fashion just ahead of time. The current generation, which has grown out of a shortage of things and information, is much more puzzled by the search for its own identity, improvement of the environment and meaningful consumption. Interest in cultural roots organically complements this list.
Claims to the “Russian design” range from accusations of popular opinion, would it be a paraphrase of the abstract “Russianness” of Dyagilev's ballets or “matrioshka-balalaika vodka” - to criticism of the same Rubchinsky and Gvasalia for the fact that in Europe Russia is represented by images ” Gopnik from the 90s. " Against this background, says Tim Ilyasov, a fashion journalist and researcher, a completely new reading of “Russian fashion” appeared - Jahnkoy: “This is a sportball, this is a grunge, these are volumes multiplied by an attempt to find more ancient codes of Russian culture. This is a combination of modernity with a historical past and it became what distinguishes the fashion of the beginning of the 2000s from the fashion of the end of the 2010s in the context of the Russian style. That was theatrical Russianness, and now we are talking about conceptual Russianness. "
In the past ten years, a whole stratum of new artisan has emerged in Russia, with the millennials, that is, people aged 25-35 years old, becoming its main adherents. Shredding, wool felting, hand knitting, organic dyeing of fabrics, wood carving, embroidery, beadwork, creation of craft paper, etc. - these are rich in city markets and virtual marketplaces from "Lambada" to "Craftsmen's Fair". Here you can find everything - even modern sandals.
In parallel, there is an update of national brands with history. For example, the company "Krestetskaya line" produces incredibly modern models of dresses and shirts, decorated with thin and elegant sacral embroidery, and in parallel produces interior items: embroidered tablecloths and napkins, which are not ashamed to bring as a gift to a foreigner.
“The Ministry of Trade and Industry financed the Rustrens project,” says Tim Ilyasov. “The idea was very interesting: young designers from all over the country created new concepts for brands of folk art crafts such as Gzhel, Zhostovo, Gusevskoy Crystal Factory,” Yelets lace "and others. But the project, like many other government initiatives that exist" for reporting ", did not receive a continuation." Despite this, says Ilyasov, the young designers looked, finally, in the direction of folk crafts: Gzhel opened a stylish shop-salon on Pyatnitskaya and began to introduce collaborations - for example, with the Half & Half brand, Zhostovo also opened a boutique and created New design and new image of traditional trays.
Designer Masha Andrianova, having received her education at the Paris school Atelier Chardon Savard, "returned to the roots" and began working in the genre of ethnominalism - she uses silhouettes inspired by old-fashioned clothes, but avoids color and decor: "" Inspiration Rus' came to me suddenly. I suddenly I think this is an urge to find myself and my roots. I go to museums in search of ideas, but unfortunately there are not too many exhibits. You can get more information in books. There are many old photographs - people live in photographs, not in museums. I am inspired not only by the costume itself, but also eople, life in the countryside, nature. I also collect old homespun and embroidered shirts, which I give a lot of information, and on a cut, and hand stitching. And I cut remains modern, even if I use part of the national costume. "
Colleague, close in spirit, Masha calls the designer Juhanna Nikadimusa. The young man is keen on recreating old hats: he prefers to call his products “replicas,” emphasizing that they use authentic materials and original technologies to make them. A scheme for the construction of crowns and kokoshnikov Johann "solves" by studying photos and museum samples. Magnificent, painstakingly and tastefully executed works of Nikadimus are not cheap - from $ 2500 - and have the status rather of art objects for collecting, exhibitions or interior design. But the artist proposes to use them in life - for example, for wedding ceremonies, he dreams of returning kokoshniki to everyday life.
Young artists often take the Russian theme as a starting point, as a general mood. Elena Gubina under her own brand "White Sea" is developing prints for clothing and home textiles. "In each print I try to reflect the beauty of the northern nature. Coastal algae near the pine forest or old fairy tales with giant mountains and brave little men. The Karelian-Finnish poetic epic" Kalevala "had a great influence on my drawings. close connection between nature and mythological characters. Our customers are also often associated with the North: someone used to live there, someone just interested in this culture. This summer we began to cooperate with two St. Petersburg brands: "Le" are simple dresses from aturalnyh tissues and Gosha Orekhov Bags -. Ergonomic Backpacks concise manner things are best in harmony with prints, telling its own story. "
“When people talk about“ Russian-style clothing, ”mechanical antiquity ornaments appear on the head in new fabrics, a sense of some kind of deception. Or birch bark with traces of glue,” Elena continues. “But it seems to me that today Many designers have become more responsive to tradition. For example, Fy: r is a Moscow-based clothing brand inspired by the Russian North. A very interesting combination of ancient cut and modernity. "
By the way, designer Fy: r, a British graduate Svetlana Salnikova was initially inspired by Scandinavian minimalism, but later switched to her native northern aesthetics, romance of old Russian cities and elements of national costumes, while maintaining a calm, concise design - really, a great example of ethnics in everyday city clothes .
Is there any interest in "Russian aesthetics" from ordinary buyers? “My clients are the most diverse people, but with an open view of the world,” Masha Andrianova shares her impressions. “These are people who understand that Russian culture is rich and distinctive. Yes, most people are still afraid to be different, trying to dress like everyone else.” But the desire to show myself through clothes, through Russian clothes, is already there. Do I have to persuade someone that traditional Russian clothes are far from stereotypes, from popular prints and kitsch? No. With this, I, fortunately, did not come across. People know how to distinguish the contrived from the present. "
It seems that the new fashion on the "national" is not imposed by hurray-patriotism and not a meaningless imprint of the folklore pattern, but an unexpectedly sensitive and thoughtful interest in history and culture. And this is a promising trend.
Photo: Fy: r, Denis Simachev, Alena Akhmadullina, Gosha Rubchinskiy for Altamont, Jahnkoy, Masha Andrianova
