Joie's inspiration (shown above) is a stunning use of mixed media. They combined a beautiful illustration with actual fabric swatches of textured whites to the paper and make tiny gathers to create the clothing silhouette. They also used a craft paper base, which you know I'm a huge fan of these days and have been illustrating on and experimenting with myself. (Remember this project for Vogue and Bobbi Brown)
Next up is Ralph Lauren's simple yet powerful watercolor silhouette. Again, not your typical "fashion illustration" but such a wonderful minimal painting. Sometimes keeping it simple and showing restraint makes more of an impact, or as they say "less is more." I'm curious to see his collection this morning and see if this feeling is carried through to the collection.
Lastly is Honor. At first glance this sketch seems to be just a floral appliquéd veil. It's only once you take a closer look and see the figure beneath veil: the head, the long arm, the tiered black dress, that you see how impressive this stylized illustration truly is. I would love to have a piece like this framed in my apartment. It also makes me want to whip out the gouache and experiment with painting layers of whites over a pencil sketch.
These three designer illustrations from New York Fashion Week inspire me to take risks and experiment in my own artwork. Fashion illustration doesn't have to be traditional. Sometimes thinking outside the box can is where your creativity can truly flourish.
(Fashion Illustrations by Ralph Lauren, Joie and Honor from WWD)
