Personal Purgatory
I designed and created this look for my Fall Semester 2019 Final in my Sophomore year at RISD in Apparel. We were given the task to create a shirt and a bottom but only out three white fabrics provided. Everyone was given three white fabrics to choose from and work with, so everyone was using the same color and type of fabric for the final project. The idea behind this was to focus more on design, volume and shape instead of color, fabric qualities and pattern. I used all three fabric choices for this look being there was a corduroy fabric which I used for my collar, a twill fabric which I used on the cape and shirting fabric which I used for my tiered skirt.
The Catholic Church influences my work very much, not only the clothing I design but follows into who I am as a person. This project was perfect being I am very inspired by the shapes and drape of the garments worn in and around the church. Since the garment is white, it makes the fabric speak for itself and becomes more about the drape and how it looks on my model instead of being about the color and decoration. In the church the garments are very decorated and elaborated on but it really becomes about how it falls on the person wearing it, the rest of it is just bells and whistles to make it look nice. I thought it was a perfect opportunity to reflect on the Pope of the church and his position within society. Being that the garment had to be white and the Pope is the only figure within the Catholic church that is allowed to wear white the project was forced to comment on the Pope being it is a garment inspired by the Catholic church. The Pope is the figure head for the church where he makes all the decisions and really is the church himself by being the representative for Saint Peter who was chosen by Christ to withhold the church. In my generation a lot of questions and concerns have come up so people turn to the Pope who is responsible to comment and make decisions. These questions used to not been paid attention to and or not asked before. The church is a very traditional and conservative place so I feel that the Pope now is in a very difficult position because he is looked to answer these difficult questions people are asking.
I was born and raised Catholic which is still with me today where I continue to go to mass every weekend. There is so much about the church that I love and goes further than just the garments, for me it is something that is very personal and will always have significant meaning for the rest of my life. I named this project "Personal Purgatory" because of how I often feel torn on some issues within the church. I feel as if I am not sure which way to lean towards so I often try to stay neutral to not offend anyone. RISD is a liberal place while the church is highly conservative. This work shows how I feel being Catholic where I question some of the political beliefs the church holds. I am proud to say that I am Catholic but get torn on the political stances the church holds in certain areas where I feel that no matter which way I turn I will displease the other side being the liberal community at RISD or the conservative community at the church.
The collar of this garment is made of corduroy fabric which was the stiffest of the fabrics given. I added lining on the inside of the collar and velcro so it could be put together. The collar is based on the roman collar that the priests wear where I expanded it where it would surround the head and neck almost like a dog cone. The cape is made from the twill fabric which was a medium weight fabric. I liked this fabric for the cape because it held a good shape and volume but still fell perfectly on my model. The cape was inspired by the vestments the priest wears during the mass. I added red lining to give a nice pop of color on the inside of the cape. The skirt was made of the shirting fabric which was the lightest and had the best drape which was the perfect fabric for a skirt. I made the skirt by creating all the tiers separately which in total there was four where I would put them all together at the end. The waist band on the skirt is three bands of elastic that rest right over the belly button above the waist to hold up the skirt. All of the seams on this look were made with the french seam which I liked because the look has a flow to it when my model walks and catches the wind so the inside of the garment has to look just as good as the outside. My model was tall and very slim which I felt was the perfect fit for this look being I wanted the garment to have good drape and have a nice flow but did not want my model to look and feel engulfed in the outfit. Below are pictures of the outfit for the front, sides and back also pictures of my sketchbook, work hung for the final critique and some detail photos.
