In the Vitrine

Episode 25: We went to the Critical Fashion Studies conference at the University of Melbourne last week. Nadya gave the presentation “Cut, Arrange, Paste: Stolen, Ong Shunmugam and the Singapore Fashion Identity” and Dani “Re-adoptions of the Aesthetic of Use in Contemporary Fashion”. We speak about our panels, our favourite papers, and our experience in general at the conference.

Episode 24: What do low-cost polyethylene bags from IKEA and MUJI have to do with fashion? And what about fanny packs worn prominently across one's chest? We trace these ironic anti-fashion fashion trends back to cult streetwear labels Vêtements and Supreme. We also muse about how bags come in all shapes and sizes today, from the impractically tiny (Jacquemus' Le Chiquito) to the practically overs...

Episode 23: This week, we are moved by the collision between dance and fashion. We begin with recent fashion shows that have incorporated dance and movement into their presentations. In particular, the beautifully frantic and urgent choreography in Marc Jacob's FW 2020 show by "the punk ballerina" Karole Armitage, the joyful dance in Issey Miyake's SS 2020 followed by the youthful abandon in Marni...

Episode 22: Given the escalating Coronavirus situation in Singapore and elsewhere, we thought it appropriate to discuss all manners of facial masks, from the disposable ones at the hospital to reusable offerings from Off-White and Heron Preston. We recall the beaked bird-like mask worn by doctors to protect themselves from the plague in the 17th century. And to end, we marvel at the creativity of...

Episode 21: We speak about Dani's curatorial project, A Stubborn Bloom, with collaborator artist Stephanie J. Burt, and muse about femininity and the stories that clothes and cloth live to tell. We also talk about surfaces in Sofia Coppola's films as analysed in a book by Anna Backman Rogers.

Episode 20: We speak about purchasing new clothes to wear in celebration of Lunar New Year, and admire the collaboration between Ong Shunmugam and graphic designer and illustrator Ella Zheng for the first OM Ed collection, which feature whimsical prints such as a juxtaposition of mandarin oranges and ninjas. And we chat about what it was like to attend the first Awkward Party and how it reminds us...

Episode 19 | In our first episode for 2020, we speak about the multi-step process of ritualised self-care at an onsen hotel in Hakone, Japan and at Turkish Hammams. We lightly delve into different cultural practices of bathing--public and private. How do we view and treat the undressed body – of our own and others – in different cultures, and what are the hygiene practices that people observe to n...

Episode 18: Jumping off from a panel discussion where Dani spoke about pre-loved fashion in Singapore organised by The Fashion Pulpit, we discuss the move towards a circular fashion economy and how consumers have a say in the industry's development. We also ruminate on counterfeit cosmetics and the reality of recycling plastic as seen in the Netflix series 'Broken'. And that's all from us in the v...

Episode 17: Riffing on a panel discussion about collaborations between artists and brand name corporations Nadya moderated at Culture Cartel in Singapore, we speak about collaborations in the fashion industry, from Alexander Wang for H&M in 2014 to the Dries Van Noten and Christian Lacroix partnership this year.

Episode 16: We discuss Max Mara Creative Director Ian Griffith's design philosophy, what it meant for Nancy Pelosi to wear red coat from the Italian brand to the White House, and other instances of women in politics sending messages through dress, from Margaret Thatcher's handbags to Madeleine Albright's pins.

Episode 15: Feel Brand New: We speak about makeovers, beginning with our thoughts on Queer Eye: We're in Japan! and moving to Extreme Makeover. We discuss the formulaic transformations in stories like Cinderella and films such as Mean Girls. In addition, we talk about how dress can not only alter appearances but how we feel, and reminisce about significant sartorial switchovers in our lives.

Episode 14: Time Travel: Met 2020 & The Prairie Look We unpack the Metropolitan Museum of Art 2020 Theme About Time: Fashion and Duration and discuss intertextuality across fashion exhibitions, films and collections. We discuss grounds for the enduring prairie look trend, echoed in the costume design for the web television series The Handmaid's Tale that looks to a dystopian future and the upcomin...

Episode 13: Dani talks about going to the Cumulus: The Design After conference in Bogota, while Nadya speaks about the Why Not? (@whynot.works) community mixer back in Singapore. We discuss ideas that made us sit up and pay attention, such as biocouture, decolonisation in fashion studies and the call for anti-innovation in the industry, as well as the importance of bravely taking initiatives in th...

Episode 12: We discuss the capsule wardrobe as a practice in everyday life, a method for creating a designer collection and as a marketing strategy. From the Russian constructivists to Donna Karan's "Seven Easy Pieces" to individuals who wear a single colour, what are the challenges and benefits of keeping things "simple" sartorially?

Episode 11: We review Mary Quant and Tim Walker: Wonderful Things at the Victoria & Albert Museum. Extrapolating from Nadya's in-person experience of the exhibitions, we gush about the visionary genius of Quant and the impact of youthquake fashion (and music) on Singapore in the 1960s. We also consider the challenges of staging a good fashion photography show and the potential perils of museum fat...

Episode 10: We consider alternative ways of consuming fashion online and in brick-and-mortar stores. We share our experiences browsing and hunting for second-hand fashion in Singapore and on our travels to vintage fashion havens in Tokyo and Los Angeles. We end off speaking about renting and swapping.

Episode 9: We weigh the pros and cons of digitally experiencing fashion month, and wax lyrical about our favourite shows and collections from Caroline Hu at Serpentine Gallery to Rick Owens at the Palais de Tokyo. We also discuss the protest at Gucci, J. Lo strutting at Versace, and the questionable stand on sustainability that Dior took with trees for replanting.

Episode 8: We chat about how beauty is a part of the fashion image and experience, and the parallel conversations on sustainability, inclusivity and technology that take place in both industries. We refer to brands that have disrupted the industry such as Mary Quant back in the 60s, and more recently Fenty, Glossier and Huda Beauty. We also chat about our own encounters and habits when it comes to...

Episode 7: We discuss the late Peter Lindbergh's legacy, including his evocative photos for Comme des Garçons. We chat broadly about the fashion image from high fashion to exhibition catalogues, and from the runway to the streets, and refer to the work of photographers such as Tim Walker, Sølve Sundsbø, Darya Kobayashi Ritch, Niall McInerney, Bill Cunningham, Kim Weston Arnorld and Singapore's ver...

Episode 6: In this episode, we focus on a single technique: pleats! We refer to the work of pleating masters Mariano Fortuny and Issey Miyake, and discuss the merits and demerits of wearing and maintaining pleats through fashion history and in our own lives. We also ponder the prevalence of pleats in dress for various purposes, from the sari to the school uniform.

Episode 5: This week, we talk about HORROR, taking as a starting point costumes we’ve seen in recent horror films and how fashion designers have leaned into the genre for the Fall 2019 season. We also dredge up childhood memories of being haunted by fearsome Asian characters such as the pontianak and the jiangshi we watched on television. To round up the discussion, we explore embodiments of terro...

Episode 4: We talk about the use of plastic in fashion from 1950s to the present, our love-hate relationship with it in our own wardrobes, and consider the material’s ubiquity against the call for sustainability in the industry.

Episode 3: This week, we discuss criticism and its value to fashion. Who gets to be a critic? What does she contribute? How has the fashion critic’s role evolved over time, and is there a place for criticism in the Singapore fashion industry?

Episode 2: We discuss the “Guo Pei: Chinese Art and Couture” show at the Asian Civilisations Museum, what the number of hours taken to create an haute couture dress really mean and the general fashion exhibition landscape in Singapore.

Episode 1: We discuss alternative fashion presentations in the presence and absence of fashion week, focusing on examples in Singapore and Shanghai. Mentions: Shawna Wu, Why. Not, Stolen, Ong Shunmugam, Labelhood, Caroline Hu, Ximon Lee.