Jean Paul Gaultier for Target

Photo-13-03-2016,-11-54-02-AM

There hasn’t been much promotion going on around Melbourne but I do want to point out the awesome 20th annual event of Virgin Australia’s Melbourne Fashion Festival. The event took place  from  March 7th to the 13th and it was one hell of a week filled with elite  runways, seminars and workshops for aspiring fashion designers and fashion enthusiasts around Melbourne, particularly myself. Thanks to Creative Victoria, I was extremely fortunate this year to book a  seat  at my first runway show, and it couldn’t get any better knowing  it was Jean Paul Gaultier’s show for Target.

Photo-9-03-2016,-7-47-40-PMPhoto-9-03-2016,-6-43-29-PMPhoto-9-03-2016,-7-47-40-PM

Whenever someone asks you to define “Haute Couture” you should tell them to google Jean Paul Gaultier. His designs are a  vehicle for driving haute couture to the highest limits, without Gaultier there are no couture shows that are comparable to his. If you love architecture and fashion then he’s your guy – most of his prominent works blur the lines between these two fields of practice. His crazy outlook on the world, over-exaggerated costume ideas and success had previously landed him a role as a creative director in Hermes for over 7 years. After Hermes, Gaultier’s  name kept surpassing the list of best designers in the world,  an exhibition was even held in Montreal to celebrate his prodigious  career. You may have also noticed his exhibition at the NGV last year, The Fashion World of Gaultier. I’m disappointed I didn’t get a chance to go but my friend who went did learn that his first runway shows featured men wearing skirts. Hah how cute!

It came to my surprise earlier this year  to hear Gaultier doing  a collaboration with Target Australia to create an affordable range of clothing as part of the ‘designers for Target’ movement. Seeing a designer who’s so used to doing  cutting-edge designs and now creating a simpler range is a pretty challenging move.  Last time there was Roberto Cavalli which seemed to be a success. After seeing the runway I thought Gaultier  executed the Target range quite well, I spotted a bit of Gaultier with the trademark corset and cone bra designs sewn onto  some of the garments. I didn’t get to take many photos but  when I did, they were mostly blurry and unusable for this post. I should’ve brought my DSLR! Here’s a quick look of JPG’s notable playful aesthetics:

madonna

Madonna with Gaultier’s cone corset

haute couture 2014

JPG Haute Couture 2014

fall 2009

Fall 2009

49b6fb35c6a9ad8905a764a1f61e25e48

Fall 2008

spring 2014

Yellow is the new Helvetica

Photo-18-02-2016,-1-04-28-PM

I often mention in my posts how time flies quickly and I’m gonna mention it again. I realized it’s been a month since I made my last post and it seriously hasn’t felt  THAT long. This past month was pretty crazy with Chinese New Year gatherings,  freelancing, a new job, new art ideas and new purchases to keep me inspired. I recently bought  Pantone on Fashion  because I was interested in seeing how color developed in fashion over the years and how notable luxury brands use color to revolutionize their brand.

I first came across this book while waiting for the plane in Jakarta airport last year. I didn’t end up buying it because admittedly, I didn’t have enough cash on me at the time. So instead, I spent a good few minutes flicking through the pages. The first thing that caught my eye was the cover…that bright yellow cover! The book didn’t have the cover case in the airport store but when I saw it online I noticed the casing  is actually  this really cool image:

Photo-18-02-2016,-1-09-39-PM

They say never “judge a book by its cover”…and  I just did. This book is exactly what I expected when I saw the yellow. The color  has rapidly grown on me  and it’s already  my favorite color. It’s versatile with design, especially in web where you’ll see  black, dark blue and yellow color combos frequently. Speaking from a psychological perspective, it’s a no-brainer yellow is friendly, inviting, often  connoting nature and positive energy.

When I was working at Jin & Co. I usually gravitated towards yellow for a lot of the designs we did. My research is to blame for this as I’ve seen tonnes of yellow on the web and in print. It’s like using Helvetica for everything, my friends and my lecturer used to say “when in doubt, use Helvetica”. In this instance, yellow IS the Helvetica of color. In the first photo of this post, I wanted to point out that a lot of my favorite  possessions are in yellow, I unconsciously pick these things without noticing the yellow. That’s how effective  the color is haha! No but really, when putting these together I didn’t realize how common the color is in my room.

1. Keep Calm and Be Happy frame is a gift from my sister. An artwork of Kaws’ bearbrick portrait.

2. I’m a collector of keychains. The Pom pom and mini gameboy color is part of the collection (the gameboy works too)

3. Miniature  mario, minion and golden mushroom toys. Minions came from McDonalds (another brand showing yellow prominently).

4. Sometime further down the track  I hope to be  proficient in Mandarin. The desire comes along with my  love of watching popular Chinese TV shows,  The Brain and If You Are The One. Part of it is also because my grandma wanted me to learn so I could communicate with her better. I regret not learning earlier as it is too late now. I got this mini book with 500 words in Chinese to memorize so I can take it everywhere.

5. Yellow paper and a dulux swatch. Yes I collect these things too!

6. I have lemons with water every morning.

7.  Yellow box packaging. I went to NeNe chicken and did takeaway for the first time, the packaging is just as good as the chicken…I even asked for an extra box to keep for myself. I have a cupboard at home that keeps all my favorite packaging, from empty food boxes to clothes and cosmetic wrapping, whatever is unique I’ll definitely keep.

img103img105 Photo-18-02-2016,-1-12-26-PM

8. One of my favorite clients was BJ Balls Paper back in uni when asked to design a piece that highlights the awesomeness of their new paper range, “YUPO”. YUPO had yellow branding and I loved incorporating it into my design. It’s my take on a Snakes & Ladders board game classic, only with YUPO counters, and paper and ink as the primary visuals of the  game mat.

As I said, yellow is versatile and is seen being  applied to a lot of  contemporary  designs. Below are some discoveries  I saved when browsing the web. Goes to show you how nice and effective yellow can be!

Kristinas_guide_to_hello_yellow_2From Kikki.K’s blog:  Kristina’s Guide to Creating a Positive Work Space

IMG_3514Paper fruit by Design studio ‘Safari Inc.’

downloadBrianne Boland’s Yellow coffee branding

B is For Burberry and Bearbricks

Photo-1-12-2015,-1-58-39-PM

Burberry just launched a new series  of items; items you wouldn’t usually see in  a luxury fashion  store. It’s stationary! I was carefully analyzing the design of the Burberry site which then turned into a couple more minutes of browsing the online store when  I suddenly noticed their “Stationary Collection”. These pencils are a treat to myself this festive season hah. So am I going to use them? I already have. Last time I saw anything like this was when Marc Jacobs had a set of mini coloring pencils but they were sold out and are no longer in production. My favorite brands are gradually  selling more playful/childlike ideas: Moschino recently showing off their Super Mario collection, Fendi and their fur keycharms and Angry bird-like artworks, and Burberry with their soft toy bears and limited edition wooden puppets.

Photo-3-12-2015,-1-19-23-PM

How cool would it be to have more designer pencils? I’m working on my last drawing for the year – perfect time to trial the Burberry pencils and so far so good. Another factor that made me want to purchase these set of coloring pencils was that they came in really nice soft shades.

Meanwhile other festivities happening in my household is this bearbrick tabletop setup with mini candy canes, presents and a mini christmas tree. Thought I’d have a bit of fun this year by using old christmas props and marrying it with the toys I’ve acquired this year.

Photo-3-12-2015,-2-31-07-PM

Photo-3-12-2015,-2-48-20-PM

Photo-3-12-2015,-9-57-30-PM-(1)

Finally, like every other year, my mom and I set our  tree up. We’ve had this tree since I was a toddler and it’s still standing strong!

Design had evolved naturally, as a passion and a lifestyle beginning at an early age when I made trips back to the motherland, Indonesia, I experienced the surroundings and the lifestyle that was vastly different from what I was used to. I found myself passing by villages where children made their own toys with whatever was left around them; scrap metal, bits of cloth, banana leaves, and even cigarette butts. Despite this, the children were happy and proud with anything they created.

This image struck me and forever inspires me to contribute my skills to places that need it the most. Design helps me make decisions, while art helps me take risks. Both areas reward me with opportunities to create something impactful and everlasting!