A DYNAMIC IDENTITY-BUILDING PROCESS

A DYNAMIC IDENTITY-BUILDING PROCESS CONTRIBUTING TO NAMIBIAN COUTURE DESIGN

by

Melanie Harteveld Becker

Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree

MAGISTER TECHNOLOGIAE: FASHION

in the

Department of Fashion Design and Technology FACULTY OF THE ARTS

TSHWANE UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

Supervisor: Prof AJ Munro Co-Supervisor: Ms D Smal

October 2008

“I hereby declare that this dissertation/thesis submitted for the degree M. Tech: Fashion, at Tshwane University of Technology, is my own original work and has not previously been submitted to any other institution of higher education. I further declare that all sources cited or quoted are indicated and acknowledged by means of a comprehensive list of references.”

Melanie Harteveld Becker

Copyright© Tshwane University of Technology 2008

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This study is dedicated to my husband Hans for his support.

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I would like to express my sincere gratitude and appreciation to:

My supervisor, Prof AJ Munro, for his guidance, encouragement, support and most of all for his vision and enthusiasm towards the topic of this dissertation.

My co-supervisor, Ms D Smal for her support.

The Tshwane University of Technology for financial assistance.

My mentor and the co-creator of ELEVEN, Amy Schoeman, for an inspiring working experience with you and your photographic images.

My family for their support.

My friends who encouraged me to complete this dissertation; Elise Heikkinen, Sanna Latva-Ranta, Philippe Talavera, Laura Pokela, Alice Rosslee and Satu Miettinen. Your encouragement and support was much needed and appreciated.

The Pambili staff and team for carrying the extra work load while I was focusing on my writing; Susan and Pieter van der Westhuizen, Attila Giersch and Chakirra Claasen.

Last but not least my loving husband, Hans Becker, for his continuous support, encouragement, dedication and time spent searching for data on the Internet. Thank you for keeping me motivated.

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ABSTRACT

This dissertation sets out to describe the processes and dynamics at play in the development of a couture design range that attempts to engage with, and enhance notions of Namibian identity. While the end product of the practical work is a range of garments that speaks to and reflects a possible Namibian identity, the dissertation engages with the notions of identity and the dynamics of identity building, and the closer interrelationships with the creative process. The study intend to investigates design and design-related issues and how they impact on fashion design and couture design as well as how they relate to the identity formation processes in the development and justification of a possible Namibian couture collection. Therefore, the creative development process, the choices, negotiations and adaptations that the designer involves herself with, are described and then drawn through to the nature of new identity formations. The design process is measured against the basic design theories as outlined in the relevant chapters in the dissertation. The study reveals that Namibian individual identities are shaped by juxtaposing indigenous cultural identities in combination with what is “imagined” [as Anderson (2006:6-7) explained] to be a “Namibian” national identity. It considers how the designer, embedded in the design process, but also part of a particular identity, interacts with these tensions. The dissertation attempts to isolate material elements in the Namibian landscape that can be used in the identity-building process. It argues that the same Namibian material hallmarks of identity, the specific design elements that have been identified as “authentic” Namibian, have been used in this specific couture collection. Finally the study investigates how these design elements (both generic and specific) relate to the specific Namibian design element aspects in an attempt to see whether this specific couture collection contributes to “defining Namibian couture design”.

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CONTENTS PAGE ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ABSTRACT CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES LIST OF IMAGES LIST OF DIAGRAMS LIST OF SKETCHES GLOSSARY

iv v vi x x x xi xii

CHAPTER 1 1 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.3.1 1.3.2 1.3.3

1 6 6 6 6 7

1.3.6 1.4 1.5

INTRODUCTION Question Objectives of the study Chapter divisions and discussion Chapter two: Identity Chapter three: The designer and identity Chapter four: The material hallmarks of Namibian identity related to clothing and fashion Chapter five: ELEVEN – from landscapes to couture design Chapter six: ELEVEN – a process creating Namibian couture design Chapter seven: The conclusion Methods Conclusion

CHAPTER 2 2 2.1 2.1.1 2.1.2 2.1.3 2.1.4 2.2 2.2.1 2.2.2 2.2.3 2.2.4 2.2.5 2.2.6 2.2.7 2.2.8 2.2.9 2.2.10 2.2.11 2.2.12 2.3 2.4

IDENTITY What is Identity and how is it formed? Identity Self-identity Collective identity Identity and the individual Identity formation Identity and culture Identity and global culture Identity and community Identity, nationalism and political affiliation Identity, race and ethnicity Identity and history Identity and religion Identity and geographical location Identity and social classification Identity and professions or work similarities Identity and gender Identity and taste Sense of identity Negotiation and adaptation

11 11 12 13 14 17 18 22 22 24 26 28 30 31 32 33 35 35 36 38 43

1.3.4 1.3.5

7 8 8 9 9 10

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CHAPTER 3 3 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.3.1 3.3.2 3.3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7

THE DESIGNER AND IDENTITY Design Design dynamics explained in a diagram Design explained in a social context The person The field The domain Clothing and the fashion phenomenon Fashion, identity and self-identity The designer and identity Haute couture, couture and couture design

49 49 55 58 59 60 60 61 63 66 68

CHAPTER 4 4 THE MATERIAL HALLMARKS OF NAMIBIAN IDENTITY RELATED TO CLOTHING FASHION 4.1 The hallmarks of Namibian identity 4.1.1 Namibia 4.1.2 Namibian ethnicity vs Namibian nationality 4.1.3 The Namibian attitude towards “modern” material culture 4.2 Namibian fashion 4.3 Elements in defining the Namibian fashion design identity 4.3.1 Colour 4.3.2 Texture (fabric) and detail

76 76 77 80 82 87 89 90 94

CHAPTER 5 5 ELEVEN – FROM LANDSCAPES TO COUTURE DESIGN 5.1 Landscapes 5.2 The relationship between an identity creation process, landscapes and Schoeman's photography 5.3 The relationship between art, photography and fashion in general – was it done before? 5.4 The ELEVEN process – Schoeman's photographs as inspiration 5.5 The ELEVEN process – the designing of the ELEVEN couture collection 5.6 The ELEVEN process – inspiration to design sketches 5.7 The ELEVEN couture collection as the “object” 5.7.1 Culture 5.7.2 Nationalism 5.7.3 Race/ethnicity 5.7.4 Gender 5.7.5 Geographical location 5.7.6 Social classification 5.7.7 Religion 5.7.8 Community 5.7.9 History 5.7.10 Profession 5.7.11 The individual 5.7.12 Taste

99 99 103 109 114 116 119 124 125 125 126 126 127 127 128 128 128 129 129 130

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CHAPTER 6 6 ELEVEN – A PROCESS CREATING NAMIBIAN COUTURE DESIGN 6.1 “Hybrid” elements: colour and texture 6.2 Juxtaposition of design elements 6.2.1 Colour 6.2.2 Fabrication/texture 6.2.3 Detail 6.3 ELEVEN - the total body of work 6.4 The ELEVEN couture collection 6.4.1 Oshana Silk – The Ovambo – Flexibility 6.4.1.1 Interview with Schoeman 6.4.1.2 Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences 6.4.1.3 Sketches 6.4.1.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and

131 132 135 135 135 136 137 139 140 141 141 142

detail

142

6.4.1.5

Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity

143

6.4.2 6.4.2.1 6.4.2.2 6.4.2.3 6.4.2.4

Desert Disc – The San – Mysticism Interview with Schoeman Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences Sketches Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and

143 144 145 145

detail

146

6.4.2.5

Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity

146

6.4.3 6.4.3.1 6.4.3.2 6.4.3.3 6.4.3.4

Sperrgebiet – The Whites – Genuity Interview with Schoeman Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences Sketches Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and

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detail

150

6.4.3.5

Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity

150

6.4.4 6.4.4.1 6.4.4.2 6.4.4.3 6.4.4.4

Marble Mosaic – The Basters – Hope and Optimism Interview with Schoeman Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences Sketches Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and

151 152 152 153

detail

153

6.4.4.5

Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity

154

6.4.5 6.4.5.1 6.4.5.2 6.4.5.3 6.4.5.4

Textured Trinity – The Tswana – Joy/Happiness Interview with Schoeman Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences Sketches Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and

155 152 156 157

detail

157

6.4.5.5

Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity

158

6.4.6 6.4.6.1 6.4.6.2

Lace Agate – The Herero – Pride/Courage Interview with Schoeman Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences

159 160 160

148 149

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6.4.6.3 6.4.6.4

Sketches Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and

161

detail

162

6.4.6.5

Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity

162

6.4.7 6.4.7.1 6.4.7.2 6.4.7.3 6.4.7.4

Liquid Sky – The Kavango – Celebration Interview with Schoeman Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences Sketches Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and

163 164 165 165

detail

166

6.4.7.5

Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity

167

6.4.8 6.4.8.1 6.4.8.2 6.4.8.3 6.4.8.4

Shades of Velvet – The Coloureds – Humor/Dance Interview with Schoeman Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences Sketches Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and

167 168 169 169

detail

170

6.4.8.5

Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity

170

6.4.9 6.4.9.1 6.4.9.2 6.4.9.3 6.4.9.4

Pregnant Sand – The Nama – Perseverance Interview with Schoeman Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences Sketches Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and

171 172 173 173

detail

174

6.4.9.5

Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity

174

6.4.10 6.4.10.1 6.4.10.2 6.4.10.3 6.4.10.4

Rock Diva – The Damara – Adaptability Interview with Schoeman Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences Sketches Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and

175 176 176 177

detail

178

6.4.10.5

Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity

178

6.4.11 6.4.11.1 6.4.11.2 6.4.11.3 6.4.11.4

Water Taffeta – The Caprivian – Creativity Interview with Schoeman Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences Sketches Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and

179 180 180 181

detail

181

6.4.11.5

Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity

182

6.5

Prominent Design Elements of ELEVEN

182

CHAPTER 7 7 THE CONCLUSION 7.1 The research summary 7.2 The research results

186 186 188

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7.3 7.4

The shortfalls in this research Future research possibilities regarding related areas

191 192

BIBLIOGRAPHY

194

ANNEXURE A: ELEVEN FotoFashionFusion

200

ANNEXURE B: ELEVEN TITLES

207

ANNEXURE C: ELEVEN PRESS RELEASE

208

LIST OF TABLES Table 6.1 Table 6.2 Table 6.3

Colour Fabrication/Texture Detail

135 135 136

LIST OF DIAGRAMS Diagram 1.1 Diagram 2.1 Diagram 2.2 Diagram 3.1 Diagram 3.2 Diagram 3.3 Diagram 5.1

Design research The Individual in a Socio-cultural Setting The Object Wheel Eame's Model The Adapted Eame's Model Model by R. Keith Sawyer (2006:123) The Creative Development Process of the ELEVEN Couture Collection Diagram 5.2 The Adapted Object Wheel

5 17 46 56 57 59 121 124

LIST OF IMAGES Image 4.1 Image 4.2 Image 4.3 Image 4.4 Image 4.5 Image 4.6 Image 4.7 Image 4.8 Image 4.9 Image 4.10 Image 5.1 Image 5.2 Image 5.3 Image 5.4 Image 5.5

Namibian deserts and sunsets Namibian deserts and sunsets The autumn Mopane forest Sunset at a traditional Ovambo homestead Makalani palms set off against a late afternoon sky Oshanas in late summer Namibian textures Namibian textures Namibian textures Namibian textures The Yves Saint Laurent Fall 2008 Collection The Yves Saint Laurent Fall 2008 Collection The Yves Saint Laurent couture dress – Mondrian-inspired An example of early Christian art, depicting the Madonna The Gaultier 2007 Spring/Summer couture collection

91 91 92 92 93 93 96 96 96 96 110 110 111 112 113

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Image 5.6

The Gaultier 2007 Spring/Summer couture collection

113

Image 6.1.1 Image 6.1.2 Image 6.1.3 Image 6.1.4 Image 6.1.5 Image 6.1.6 Image 6.1.7 Image 6.1.8 Image 6.1.9 Image 6.1.10 Image 6.1.11 Image 6.1.12 Image 6.1.13 Image 6.1.14 Image 6.1.15 Image 6.1.16 Image 6.1.17 Image 6.1.18 Image 6.1.19 Image 6.1.20 Image 6.1.21 Image 6.1.22 Image 6.1.23 Image 6.1.24 Image 6.1.25 Image 6.1.26 Image 6.1.27 Image 6.1.28 Image 6.1.29 Image 6.1.30

Oshana Silk – Amy Schoeman Oshana Silk Ladies Oshana Silk Man Desert Disc – Amy Schoeman Desert Disc Ladies Sperrgebiet – Amy Schoeman Sperrgebiet Lady Sperrgebiet Lady Marble Mosaic – Amy Schoeman Marble Mosaic Trio Textured Trinity – Amy Schoeman Textured Trinity – Felt and Beading Textured Trinity Lady Textured Trinity Lady (back view) Lace Agate – Amy Schoeman Lace Agate Lady Lace Agate Trio Liquid Sky – Amy Schoeman Liquid Sky Lady Liquid Sky Wirework Collar Shades of Velvet – Amy Schoeman Shades of Velvet Lady Pregnant Sand – Amy Schoeman Pregnant Sand Lady Rock Diva – Amy Schoeman Rock Diva Lady Rock Diva Trio Water Taffeta – Amy Schoeman Water Taffeta Lady Water Taffeta Lady

140 140 140 143 144 147 147 147 151 151 155 155 155 155 159 159 160 163 164 164 167 168 171 172 175 175 175 179 179 179

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Illustration 6.2.1 Illustration 6.2.2 Illustration 6.2.3 Illustration 6.2.4 Illustration 6.2.5 Illustration 6.2.6 Illustration 6.2.7 Illustration 6.2.8 Illustration 6.2.9 Illustration 6.2.10 Illustration 6.2.11

Oshana Silk Desert Disc Sperrgebiet Marble Mosaic Textured Trinity Lace Agate Liquid Sky Shades of Velvet Pregnant Sand Rock Diva Water Taffeta

PAGE 142 145 149 153 157 161 165 169 173 177 181

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GLOSSARY

ELEVEN:

theme for the photography and fashion exhibition of Amy Schoeman and Melanie Harteveld Becker portraying the eleven cultural groups of Namibia and aiming at living up to the “essentially Namibian” credence.

ESSENTIALLY NAMIBIAN: fundamental elements of Namibia.

UNIQUE:

“being the only one of its kind; unlike anything else; remarkable or unusual. Adjectives such as unique/equal/infinite/complete contain the idea of something that is absolute and which by definition cannot be more or less than it is. Strictly speaking, a thing can not be quite unique or very unique. However, in practice these adjectives have acquired secondary, less precise senses, which can be modified by adverbs. For example the secondary meaning of unique is remarkable or unusual.” (Reader’s Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2002:1072) For this investigation the researcher will only adhere to the primary meaning of unique: “something that is absolute and which by definition can not be more or less than it is”.

INTUITIVE:

“able to understand or know something without conscious reasoning” (Reader’s Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2002:509)

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FELTING:

cloth made by rolling/rubbing and pressing wool by the application of moisture, heat and soap to form the most basic textile form.

NUNO:

a textile construction and/or decoration technique where textiles are used together with fleece in the felting process. The wool fibres attach themselves to the textile by penetrating between the warp and weft of the textile and thus inter-hook at both sides of the textile during the felting process. The penetration of the wool fibres through the textile can also be aided by the use of a felting needle.

COUTURE DESIGN:

design for high-end fashion.

KARAKUL:

a breed of Asian sheep having dark curled fleece when young. According to Bannister and Johnson (1978:66) this breed was successfully imported to Namibia in 1907 and is considered one of the eldest of domesticated breeds of sheep.

KALAHARI WILD SILK:

Namibian wild silk yarn spun from the cocoon of the “brand” worm.

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CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

Identity plays a primary role in who we are, who we think we are and where we belong or think we belong. It addresses the very foundation of our existence – and answers the question “Who am I?” or “Who are we?” The dictionary (Reader‟s Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2002:478, words in brackets added) describes “identity” as “the characteristics, features or qualities determining a specific person (designer) or thing (product)”. Awareness of identity strengthens awareness of the self and results in deeper levels of self-awareness. In a world where individual and group identities are constantly changing, adapted and remoulded faster and faster, people are holding onto material things that will assist the manifestation of their identity. One of these material “things” is fashion – the way people choose to dress to “identify” themselves with or apart from others. While individuals adapt and negotiate personal and group identities in order to “fit in”, designers are just as much influenced by these dynamics and senses that are at play in identity formation processes. Therefore, the work and products of designers are influenced and inspired by these identity dynamics.

Csikszentmihalyi (1995:126, words in brackets

added) explains how everyday objects carry meaning for individuals and on the other hand these objects form and shape cultural “public images” or identities when he mentions: “The concrete objects we surround ourselves with are the concrete symbols that convey these (of personal meaning) messages.

The varying styles of visual

expression, ..., (are) part of the public image each culture fashions for itself. It provides abstract, general statements about the problems of a particular historical period”.

Designers are working in various areas of design, including the traditional areas of design such as architecture, graphic design and fashion design, to name a few. Nowadays the

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benefit of design has been realised worldwide and it is now acknowledged that designers can contribute to areas of design directly linked to communities such as social design, communication design, interphase design, design training and others. Miettinen (2007:9) notes:

“Social design is a professional practise that contributes to local economic

development of livelihoods.

The starting point for social design is strategic design

thinking”. In all these areas, designers are not only dealing with, interacting with, and drawing on their own/self identities, but also with and on group/collective identities. Thus, awareness of identity and identity formation is of importance to any designer. Awareness of identity issues might assist the designer to delve into deeper levels of thinking and planning.

It will allow the designer to better explain, adapt, negotiate and juxtapose

knowledge such as various elements, motivations for action and work methodologies that are relevant before, during and after interventions into areas of design.

An area that forms part of the identity endeavour and an area that will be interrogated in this study is the pursuit of a Namibian identity. Culture is one of the identity dynamics and with a numerous cultural bouquet of eleven recognised groups Namibia certainly boasts a rich cultural heritage, a fertile source of inspiration for Namibian (and other) designers. Namibian history – political, cultural and social – influenced and still influences the identity construction processes within Namibia and amongst Namibians. The Namibian history is unique to the Namibian geographical area since it involves the relationships of power that had an influence on the particular cultural groups that live within this geographical area. The content and context that can be employed to develop a representation of the Namibian identity should be investigated.

Namibia shares a unique history of past colonial power relationships.

These colonial

power relations were inflicted upon the country and its people both from outside Africa (Germany for example), mainly the Western world, as well as from within Africa, mainly from the Republic of South Africa and its Apartheid regime era. Namibia finally gained its

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independence from South Africa in 1990 and ever since it has been engaged in tasks of developing, convalescing and documenting its cultural heritage.

Since Namibian

independence was obtained, all the Namibian cultures were exposed to the ideology of the creation of a national identity, a “Namibian” nationality. In his speech Hon. Hage Geingob, the Namibian Prime Minister at the time (Malan, 1998:17-18) stated: “...this requires a national identity that puts an end to all other identities”. One of the areas in which Namibians started to create such a new national or “Namibian” identity, was in the areas of the arts and one of these areas of arts was fashion design.

One of the cutting-edge Namibian productions in the area of art and design was the ELEVEN exhibition that was presented at the NAGN (National Art Gallery of Namibia) in July 2005.

The total body of work was intended to be inspired by the “essentially

Namibian” (from which the title ELEVEN arose) as it was inspired by the people of the country, namely the eleven ethnic groups that form part of the Namibian geographical area. They are (in no particular order) the Ovambo, Damara, San, Herero, Kavango, Caprivi, Tswana, White, Coloured, Nama and Baster.

ELEVEN is a concept for an exhibition that has been developed and formulated by a Namibian photographic artist, Amy Schoeman, and a Namibian fashion designer, Melanie Harteveld Becker.

Preceding the ELEVEN “FotoFashionFusion” project, acclaimed

Namibian photographer Amy Schoeman and myself produced a photo and fashion exhibition in 2002 named “The Five Seasons”.

The body of work of this exhibition

consisted of fifteen 1.2m x 1.5 m block-framed prints and fifteen garments. The fifteen garments designed for this exhibition were directly inspired by the art photography of Schoeman. It was the first time that these two disciplines were combined in an exhibition in Namibia. The exhibition was hosted in September 2002 at the NAGN (National Art Gallery of Namibia). As a continuation of our co-operation, Schoeman and Harteveld

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Becker joined forces once again in a “follow-up fusion of photography and fashion” (Schoeman, 2003:4, 6), resulting in the ELEVEN exhibition.

The landscape photography of the Namibian landscapes as portrayed by the Namibian photography artist, served once more as the primary sources of inspiration for the fashion design collection created by the Namibian fashion designer. The fashion designer followed mostly an intuitive process while working on and creating the couture collection. These two bodies of work consisted of eleven works of art photography (total of 11 photographs) and eleven fashion collection trios (total of 33 garments).

One title

photograph and one title garment was also included in this body of practical work prepared for the ELEVEN exhibition, additional to the eleven photography and fashion collection trios.

After ELEVEN was created and completed, the designer realised that the analysing of the intuitive process will lead to valuable conclusions and results that can contribute to the design research field of fashion and design in general. Thus, ELEVEN will serve as a case study in this dissertation. The dissertation will argue that ELEVEN potentially may be linked to an identity creation process and eventually the objective of the theoretical study is to investigate how a dynamic identity-building process can contribute to defining Namibian couture design. This is only possible if the researcher engages in a thorough process of design research. In this case study, the role of identity formations and how it influence designers, will be of primary importance.

A closer interrogation of design and design research will strengthen or better motivate the purpose for the investigation of the selected case study ELEVEN.

According to the

Reader‟s Digest Word Power Dictionary (2002:256), design (noun) is “a plan or drawing produced to show the look and function or workings before it is built or made and/or the art or action to produce such a plan or drawing” and (verb) “plan or intend for a purpose”.

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According to King Roth (1998:14, emphasis in the original), “design – a word with many definitions – refers … to the major fields of industrial, interior … design” (presumably then also fashion design) and “… (design) research refers to the exploratory, investigative and analytical activities related to the cognitive, behavioural and semantic aspects of design”. Research in general refers to “exploratory, investigative and analytical activities”. In the case of design research, as indicated by King Roth (1994:14), it relates to the processes of collecting or acquiring knowledge via thoughts and experience, as well as the way in which design relates to the way in which a subject behaves, as well as the logic and meaning of a subject. S.A. Gregory (1966:323) continues to add the following: Design science is concerned with the study, investigation and accumulation of knowledge about the design process and its constituent operations. It aims to collect, organize and improve those aspects of thought and information which are available concerning design and to specify and carry out those areas of design which are likely to be of value to practical designers and design organisations.

According to Järvinen and Koskinen (2002:16), the basic structure of design research is illustrated in the following diagram:

Culture Applied science Art and elite culture

Products Designers

Material products Services

Popular culture

Diagram 1.1 – Design Research

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1.1 The Question

Given the above, the following question can be posed: How does identity influence the work of a designer so that it (the work) is identified with and/or defining a certain national identity? In a specific case study such as ELEVEN, a total body of work comprising of (1) Namibian landscape photography and couture design that has been influenced by this particular photography, (2) tacit and other knowledge, and (3) the design research activities engaged in will be interrogated. The dissertation will then investigate how identity influences the work of the fashion designer so that the couture design created in ELEVEN is identified with and/or defines a certain “Namibian” national identity.

1.2 Objectives of the Study

This question can be solved by looking into aspects of identity dynamics and how they influence the designer, what the Namibian hallmarks are that might contribute to the creation of a Namibian identity and how these Namibian hallmarks might relate to clothing and fashion. Finally, by looking at the ELEVEN case study, the specific design process applied by the fashion designer can be interrogated to investigate whether such a collection can answer to a dynamic identity-building process that contributes to defining Namibian couture design or not.

1.3 Chapter Divisions and Discussion

1.3.1 Chapter two: Identity This chapter will investigate or interrogate identity – what identity is, how identities come about, how identities are formed, how our senses contribute to identity formation and how we negotiate and adapt various dynamics in order to establish identities of the self and

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identities of the collective. Focussing on what identity is and how it is constructed, three related arguments concerning identity construction are offered.

First the argument is

made that there are certain dynamics at play that influence identity formation, then the argument continues to investigate how a sense of identity can come about and finally the argument looks into how objects can be analysed through the use of identity dynamics, but also how individuals can use identity dynamics to create new objects.

1.3.2 Chapter three: The Designer and Identity This chapter discusses design and design dynamics and design in a social context. Then it looks into the fashion phenomenon, fashion design and the role and influence of identity on fashion. It continues to investigate how fashion and self-identity relate to each other. Identity not only influences the designer, but identity forms a crucial part of creativity, design dynamics and, eventually, how design functions in a social context. The specific area of design interrogated in this dissertation will be that of fashion design and the fashion phenomenon, haute couture and couture design. Thus, finally, I discuss haute couture and couture design and the role it plays in identity formations.

1.3.3 Chapter four: The Material Hallmarks of Namibian Identity Related to Clothing and Fashion This chapter will investigate the content that can be used to develop a representation of the Namibian identity.

It will continue to look into Namibian ethnicity and Namibian

nationality and the Namibian attitude towards “modern” material culture since this will lead to the discussion of Namibian fashion design. A brief history of Namibian fashion from the year 1995 until 2005 will provide a basic background for the investigation of what “authentic Namibian” fashion design elements might perceived to be.

A study of the

design elements that set Namibian fashion design apart from other nationalities‟ fashion design will point to the fact that a Namibian design identity can be created and come alive. Cultural activity can strengthen political economy. Furthermore, a national design identity

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can strengthen a national identity as was the case in the Nordic countries such as Finland, where national pride is enhanced by a strong Finnish design identity (Aynsley, 1993:42).

1.3.4 Chapter five: ELEVEN – From Landscapes to Couture Design Since ELEVEN consists of two bodies of work and since the fashion designer made a conscious decision to use the Schoeman landscape photographic images as primary source of inspiration for the creation of the fashion, and, since the study interrogate formation of identity, the role that landscape might play in identity formations need to be investigated. In this chapter the notion of the landscape (in general) is considered and following that it will demonstrate how ELEVEN and landscapes interface. An outline will be given on what landscapes are, how they relate to identity shaping and how landscapes can serve as inspiration for couture design. The design process implemented in ELEVEN, therefore (referring to the case study), will be discussed and the dynamics that influenced the identity shaping of the ELEVEN couture collection will be investigated.

1.3.5 Chapter six: ELEVEN – A Process Creating Namibian Couture Design This chapter introduces the notion of hybridity.

Design elements can demonstrate

hybridity, depending on their application. The designer can juxtapose design elements not only to create new design applications or design principles, but also to co-create other design elements. The thinking and decision making processes the designer followed in the design process of the ELEVEN couture collection will be documented. The interview Schoeman conducted with the designer in 2004 at her photographic studio on the designer‟s personal thoughts and how she (the fashion designer) interpreted Schoeman‟s Namibian landscape photographs and the inspiration collected from Schoeman‟s photographic images and various other sources of inspiration on the couture design collection, will be used as the basis for the analysis.

The thinking and development

processes that took shape during the illustration process, the most dominant Namibian elements in the couture collection trios (collection of three garments for each photograph),

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as well as how the elements used in the ELEVEN couture collection demonstrate hybridity, will be documented to illustrate the unique design process that was developed and implemented in this case study.

1.3.6 Chapter seven: The Conclusion The final chapter of the dissertation draws some conclusions from the research, and points the way forward to further work in the area. It also documents some of the problem areas of the research as research, and some of the arguments made.

1.4 Methods

This dissertation employs an exploratory approach, in that it sets out to find potential strategies for design in the pursuit of identity formation. There is a large amount of literature review that is used to develop set models to use in the interrogation, namely a model around identity formation and a model around creativity and design. These are then applied as a system of analysis for the creative work that forms the case study. It must be pointed out that in the creative design process an intuitive and heuristic approach was followed, based on experience, training and intuition (or aesthetic sensibility, for want of a better word). It is often in the nature of the art that the intuitive is employed, and the analysis follows, as opposed to the analytical which leads to the creative. As will be illustrated in the work of Sawyer (2006:123) in the relevant chapter of this dissertation this may not always be the case, but the matter is debated in this dissertation. It may also be argued that the notion of inductive reasoning leading to model building and design might be seen as the approach, as opposed to deductive reasoning in the building of the model, followed by a more troublesome inductive process of design.

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1.5 Conclusion

This introductory chapter locates the context in which the question or the problem of this study is set. It then continues to find possible answers to the question made and finally it explains the trajectory of the argument made in this dissertation. In the next chapter I will investigate identity, identity dynamics in formation processes, how identity formations come about and how they are applied to analyse objects or how they serve as inspiration in the creation of objects.

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CHAPTER 2

IDENTITY

The design inspiration for ELEVEN derived from the cultural make-up of what is generally recognised as the eleven ethnic groups of Namibia – from there the title ELEVEN. Schoeman (press release, 2005)

2.1 What is identity and how is it formed?

The key terms in this chapter are selected from the title of the study and they are “identity” (and “identity-building”), “couture” and “design”. These terms will form the theoretical framework of the discussion in this chapter.

The discussion attempts to interrogate

central aspects related to identity and design and also how they relate to one another. Many scholars/researchers, such as Miettinen (2007), Kupiainen (2000), Phillips (1998) and Heikkinen (1997) are giving shape to the popular discourse on the formations of identity through the creation and production of arts and popular and commercial tourist crafts.

Focussing on what identity is and how it is constructed, I offer three related

arguments concerning identity construction. First I argue that there are certain dynamics at play that influence identity formation, then I continue to investigate how a sense of identity can come about and finally I look into how objects can be analysed through the use of identity dynamics, but also how individuals can use identity dynamics to create new objects.

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2.1.1 Identity The word “identity” means “sameness of essential or generic character in different instances” and “sameness in all that constitutes the objective reality of a thing [oneness]” (Webster's Dictionary, 1971:413). Also, the word “identity” means “the fact of being who or what a person or thing is” and “the characteristics determining this” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:478). Therefore, the identity of an individual or a group of individuals is “the fact of being whom or what” he/she/they are. Identity also is locked up in the belief systems of individuals or groups about how they perceive themselves and whom or what they belief to be. “Identity consists of both what we believe themselves to be (self-perception) and what others can recognize about us that we are unable to see” (Sublime1-ga, 2006).

The Latin root of the word “identity” is “idem”, translates as “the same” (Webster's Dictionary, 1971:413). The key idea in understanding identity lies in the term “the same”. The irony is that to fully grasp “identity”, the contrasting concepts of “sameness” and “difference” come into play.

Smyth (2006) suggests:

“The concept of identity

encompasses both sameness, that is the extent to which one object is identical to another, and, individuality, that is the extent to which an object is different”. Smyth continues to argue that the “'human being is a category of sameness and each of us are made different, both biologically and socially through experience...Identity is not merely a product of sameness, nor difference, but an interaction between the two”.

Human identity is

therefore “interacting” between the “sameness” and “difference” in the I/Me/Self and also in the We/Us/Group. That might be what we refer to as our self-identity or our collective identity. It is trying to answer the complex questions “who or what am I” and “who or what are we” and Brace (2003:122) mentions: ...powerful arguments about identity rest on ideas connected with how we become to know ourselves and define others, and in particular how the process of marking oneself as having the same identity as one group of people also entails marking oneself as different from some others. This is what Mike Crang refers to as a

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relational concept of identity, which recognises that identity can be defined as much by what we are not as by what we are. Robertson and Richard (2003:16) quote Keith Halfacree by arguing that he “demonstrates that relationships of power occur by defining identity via 'what we are not', rather than 'what we are'”.

2.1.2 Self-identity Marcia (1980:159) argues: “identity could be viewed as a structure of beliefs, abilities and past experiences regarding the self”.

Important components of the individual (I/Me)

consist of the “material me”, the “social me” and the “spiritual me” (James, 1890 as quoted by Barresi, 2002). The “material Me” is “composed of everything that an individual can call mine” e.g. the person's body, family, clothes, home, property, and so on (James, 1890 as quoted by Barresi, 2002). The “social me” consists of a fundamental need to obtain “recognition from others of my kind” (James, 1890 as quoted by Barresi, 2002). Apart from functioning as individuals, we are constantly functioning as part of one or many groups and this might even happen simultaneously (while I am an active member of a family, simultaneously I may be part of other social groups such as a circle of friends, choir, sports team and political party). Consequently, it is not normal for an individual to 'act' the same in all of these social groups (Popenoe, 1980:144) and it is therefore normal to “put on different faces” when interacting amongst them. James quotes T.S. Eliot as follows: “prepare a face to meet the faces that you meet”.

Lastly, the “spiritual Me”

consists of “our psychic faculties and dispositions” (James, 1890 as quoted by Barresi, 2002), in other words how we arrange or disarrange things in a particular way through our inherent mental power so that it makes sense to us. It is important to next look at the collective identity since self-identity might be conceived or shaped by the individual in terms of that which emerges from the collective identity (“social me”).

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2.1.3 Collective Identity “We categorize ourselves in terms of other people and groups” ; consequently, “the fear of rejection from the groups with which we identify is a powerful force” since the “fear of its social effects” keep us from doing certain things that will not be regarded as 'correct' or the 'norm' by a certain society we wish to identify with. Furthermore, “we consequently also define ourselves by comparison and contrast with others” (The need for: a sense of identity, S.a.).

Since we are constantly comparing ourselves with other people and

measuring ourselves against the norms of society, our identities are partly formed as a consequence of the comparison with a group and the feeling of “belonging” to that group. Otherwise, our identities might be formed as a consequence of the comparison with a group and the feeling of not “belonging” to that group. We are all driven by a force that motivates us to form our individual identities according to what we consider our collective identity through the feeling of “belonging”, even if that force is the “fear of its social effects”.

To illustrate the complexity of identity one also has to look at aspects of the physical and the psychic. “In the physical world, one body corresponds to one particular identity. The Self (psychic) may be complex and mutable over time and circumstances...” (Marshall, 2005). Our physical attributes might remain more or less the same (apart from natural changes through ageing and trend influences such as hair styling, plastic surgery, weight loss etc.), but our psychic is formed, shaped and changed through psychological and sociological influences and significant occurrences that have psychological influences on us. Yet, the identity of the physical body provides a “stabilising anchor” above the many different psychic identities a person may have (currently or over a given period).

Identity paradoxes further add to the complexities of identity. One example of an identity paradox is when individuals have to or want to change their sense of identity when the “me vs. us” is concerned and this includes “taking on group values and beliefs, even if we do not particularly agree with them” (The need for: a sense of identity, S.a.). Another

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example of an identity paradox is the juxtaposing of the “perfect me vs. real me” – we manage to mentally separate these two personas. “(W)hen they are forced together, we instantly find justification and excuse for our misdemeanours” (The need for: a sense of identity, S.a.).

Brace (2003:122) argues that “...academics are much more likely to refer to identity as something that is constructed, created and re-created – all words that help us see that our identities are made through different social processes and constantly on the move”. What are the elements, characteristics or dynamics that contribute to the making, creation, recreation, formation or building of an identity? Marcia (1980) quotes Sprinthall and Collins (1984) when he argues that establishing an identity involves “integrating into a coherent whole one's past experiences, ongoing personal changes, and society's demands and expectations for one's future”.

Brace (2003:122) also points towards: “...identity formation as a narrative process – an ongoing story in which the plot is directed by social rules, practices, institutions, places, interaction with family, nation, the economy, and lots of other political and social institutions and practices that constitute our social world and that are temporally and spatially specific”. Therefore, many influences should be considered in the discourse concerning the formation of identity. The most important aspect Brace is mentioning is that the “process” is “temporally and spatially specific”, meaning that it is specific concerning the given period it lasts for until it is reformed or restructured and that it is related to the freedom and scope one allows it to develop in.

Most scholars name culture, gender, class and race as priority characteristics that contribute to the formation or building of an identity. Robertson and Richards (2003:16) argue: “...because identity is made, both socially and culturally, it is also involved in relationships of power...identity formation is a dialogue constantly in progress”. Robertson

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and Richards (2003:16) continue to say that “... identity is constructed, created and recreated through social and cultural processes, and is constructed through a diverse range of social registers such as gender, disability and age, as well as class and race”. Those are, to name a few relevant to this study, culture (art, language), community, nationalism and political affiliation, race, history, religion, geographical location, profession and work similarities, gender relation, taste and the individual.

All of these are the

“organised” (and organising) elements contributing to the formation or building of an individual's or a community's “identity”. Mans (2002:256) observes: “Identity formation rests upon the drawing of boundaries between „us‟ and „them‟ in terms of various units such as association with family, gender, place of residence, economic position, employment and ethnicity”. It is important to add that all these areas are formed by the individual, but that these areas also form the identity of the individual.

As has been suggested, selected key areas of consideration and how they relate to dynamics involved in identity formation, are culture, global culture, communities, nationalism and political affiliation, ethnicity, race, history, religion, geographical location, social classification, professional and work similarities, gender, taste and the individual. All these dynamics will be considered in the following section when the influences they have on identity formation will be discussed. This is an important contribution to answer the question of what identity is and how an identity-building process can contribute to the defining of design.

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“I”, the Individual The Family Friends Social Class

Influence

Selected Subcultures One's Own Culture Other Cultures

Diagram 2.1 – The Individual in a Socio-cultural Setting

This diagram is adapted from the model “Major Consumer Reference Groups” by Schiffmann and Lazar Kanuk (1997:324) and it illustrates how the individual is placed in his/her social and cultural setting and it illustrates how the individual is influenced by his/her peripheries and vice versa.

2.1.4 Identity and the Individual According to Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk (1997:136), “each individual has an image of himself or herself as a certain kind of person, with certain traits, habits, possessions, relationships, and ways of behaving….(A)s with other types of images and personality, the individual‟s self-image is unique, the outgrowth of that person‟s background and experience”. According to the Reader‟s Digest (2002:404): “Our sense of self at any age depends strongly on our interactions with others, and these can take place at an unconscious as well as conscious level. In many ways these interactions provide the basis of our identity – an identity that lives on, in the minds of those we have known ...

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when our lives come to an end”. The individual is the “I” in the centre of the circle in Diagram 2.1 (refer to page 17), and the individual (“I” and the “sense of self”) strongly depends on the various other peripheries surrounding the centre circle and it illustrates the individual and how it depends on the interactions with the family, friends, social class, selected sub-cultures, own culture and other cultures (all the various “others”). In other words, the individual identity is a product of the peripheries surrounding him/her. Yet, the individual is embedded in these peripheries and therefore he/she also shapes these peripheries. The individual copies to fit in according to what he/she perceives his/her identity is/should be. Also, the individual claims his/her identity by making his/her own “unique contributions” to the processes of fitting in or copying to fit in.

Cultural manifestations and “things” (material culture) such as brands and products are representations of our individual identity.

Individuals use “things” to illustrate their

individual identities. Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk (1997:136) say: (P)roducts and brands have symbolic value for individuals, who evaluate them on the basis of their consistency with their personal pictures or images of themselves…Consumers attempt to preserve or enhance their self-images by selecting products with „images‟ or „personalities‟ they believe are congruent with their own self-images and avoiding products that are not. Therefore, the popularity of brands is the manifestation of the individual and cultural perception that the symbolic meanings of brands add value to their personal images of themselves. Brands can also be considered to symbolise and add value to certain social classes, thus shaping their identity and the identity of the individual belonging to that social class.

2.2 Identity Formation

2.2.1 Identity and Culture E.T. Hall notes (as quoted by Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk, 1997:405): “It (culture) is a mould in which we are all cast, and it controls our daily lives in many unsuspected ways”.

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The word “culture” manifests itself in tangible and intangible ways such as “the arts and other manifestations of human intellectual achievement regarded collectively” (such as fashion design) and in “the customs, institutions and achievements of a particular nation, people or group”, relating to everyday activities (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:229).

Therefore, culture is the manifestation of dynamics or the specific

characteristics determining the being of a particular culture such as art, fashion, customs and daily activities. These dynamics or specific determining characteristics shape the identity of individuals or groups since these are the very “things” that one identifies with or not. I continue to argue that identity can directly refer to, amongst others, these specific characteristics determining the being of a particular culture (or society, race, religion), which again refers directly to the abovementioned tangible and intangible dynamics. Therefore, identity and culture can be argued to be interrelated terms and that culture is a constituent of identity.

Mans (2002:256) adds an interesting dimension to the discussion of culture when she makes the following statements: “culture contains an element of stability that we often refer to as tradition and custom”, yet, at the same time “culture is always changing, having a dynamic quality that seeks new experiences and adapts to new situations”. Culture offers an individual or a group the opportunity to “hold” themselves within certain boundaries, thus offering them safety and security through what they know and what they are used to. Yet, culture is a dynamic force that is changed and shaped by internal (from within the culture) and external (foreign or “Other”) forces and influences such as economy, politics and art.

According to Popenoe (1980:105), culture is made up of three main elements: (1) the symbols, meanings, and values that define reality and determine standards of good and bad, right and wrong; (2) the norms, or expectations of how people should think, feel and behave in a given society; and (3) the material culture – the practical and aesthetic man-made objects, which to some degree reflect nonmaterial cultural meanings.

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Since culture is such an abstract entity, these three main elements contribute to make a culture concrete and observable. Rapaille (2006:21) also refers to 'elements' (such as “language, an art, a history, and so on”), yet he links these elements directly to identity formation when he says: “...the way all these elements, this content is organized, creates the unique identity of each culture”. Therefore, a “cultural identity” can refer to certain “organized” elements that encourage or result in a sense of belonging or a sense of community. Culture therefore provides ways for individuals and groups to distinguish themselves from others.

From the above three main considerations of culture arise, as discussed by Popenoe, firstly “the symbols, meanings, and values that define reality and determine standards of good and bad”. The reference to the “symbols” and “meanings” points to language, art, semantics, and the like that exists within each culture and “defines the reality” of such cultures. The word “defines” refers to “to make distinct in outline” and “to determine the essential qualities or precise meaning of” (Webster's Dictionary, 1971:216). These two meanings both become important when we consider the defining of reality of cultures. “Values” are needed to determine “standards of good and bad” and Popenoe (1980:108) notes: “A value is an idea shared by the people in a society about what is good and bad, right and wrong, desirable and undesirable”. Kennedy (1995:11) is more specific and further explains: “culture is produced and challenged within historically specific systems of value…” and he continues to say: “...the question of values and their use can then become a stimulus for practical work”. The practical work can refer back to the concrete “symbols” such as art, poetry, literature, music, taste, etc. and explains why these came to be part of a culture in the first place or why new “practical work” (art, poetry, literature, music and taste, for example) can become representations of certain cultural values, meanings and symbols. These “symbols” and “meanings” create parts of a given and developing cultural identity. The “symbols” and “meanings” are accepted into a cultural

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identity according to the culture's values and depending on whether a culture would accept as for instance “good or bad” and “desirable or undesirable”.

The second consideration on culture as discussed by Popenoe (1980:108) refers to “the norms” (also referring to “customs” since the Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary [2001:658] name “custom” a synonym of “norm”), “or expectations of how people should think, feel and behave in a given society”. Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk (1997:405) explain it well when they say: “customs are overt modes of behaviour that constitute culturally approved or accepted ways of behaving in specific situations…. Customs are usual and acceptable ways of behaving”. These “acceptable ways of behaving” construct the norms of a community or a culture. The word “norm” means “a principle of right action binding upon the members of a group and serving to guide, control, or regulate proper and acceptable behaviour” (Webster's Dictionary, 1971:575). One example of a general norm in many societies is that clothes are worn for modesty reasons.

As Jenkyn Jones

(2002:18) states: “We need clothes to cover our nakedness. Society demands propriety and often has passed sumptuary (clothing) laws to curb extravagance and uphold decorum” and “(M)odesty is socially defined and varies among individuals, groups and societies, as well as over time”. Yet, Popenoe (1980:111) continues to note: “The vast majority of norms, however, are associated with particular statuses and roles…” and “Norms vary greatly in their social importance; many can be broken without serious consequence”.

Brace quotes Jackson (1999:133):

“Identities are subject to social

regulation through cultural norms and expectations and also the power of some groups to define the identity of others...”. Norms, although they sometimes “can be broken without serious consequence”, will differ form culture to culture, from roles to roles and statuses to statuses, but they play an important role in the formation of cultural identities, since identities are subject to “social regulation” (norms).

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The third consideration on culture as discussed by Popenoe (1980:108) is the material culture – “the practical and aesthetic man-made objects, which to some degree reflect nonmaterial cultural meanings. Personal and other objects, whether they are functional or decorative, are the “things” or “materials” we surround ourselves with that could possibly serve as evidence of our individuality on the one hand and tradition and cultural heritage on the other (Van Wolputte, 2003:165).

These “things” “…socialize and identify the

members of society in the norms, roles and values they usually take for granted” (Van Wolputte, 2003:165).

Consciously and sub-consciously we surround ourselves with,

create or consume objects that we value for whatever knowledge or reasons. These “things” refer to the material culture of a certain society. Also, “…a person finds meaning in objects that are plausible, concrete symbols of the foremost goals, the most salient actions and events in that person‟s life…” (Csikszentmihalyi, 1995:121). Therefore, all concrete objects (generally referred to by art historians and anthropologists as material culture) are manifestations of culture and representations of identity. Díaz-Kommonen (2002:23) mentions that “the material basis of culture came to be regarded as a source of data that can reveal aspects about the mentalities of societies”. Thus, material culture plays a concrete and important role in the formation of individual-, group- and therefore also cultural identities and at the same time material culture acts as a “source of data” that can reveal information about societies.

2.2.2 Identity and Global Culture Brace (2003:123) observes: “Some academics argue that real material changes in the nature of society and economy in the later half of the twentieth century have resulted in new identity formations and undermined some of the presumed certainties of cultural identity”. Good examples are the new identity formations that resulted (and still will and continue to result) from eras and phenomena such as the Swinging Sixties and peacemovement of the hippy era, the Cold War, the '68 Student Revolt that started in Paris and spread over Europe, the Anti-Vietnam War Sentiment in the USA and Europe, the Green

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Peace movement, the fall of communism, the start of globalization, the threat of terrorism and the fight against it, the upcoming of new superpowers such as China and India and the New Russia, and, pertinent to this study, the end of the colonial era and the beginnings and development of independent African states (such as Namibia), to name a few.

Due to easy access for most people to (at least some) worldwide modern novelties such as international transport and travel, tourism, communication aid such as cell phones and the World Wide Web, television, for example, global communities and cultures are more and more exposed to new global influences brought to them via these modern communication methods.

Nevertheless, the use of these modern communication

methods in itself will have an influence on accepted cultural values. An example is that it was previously considered to be bad manners to have a telephonic discussion at a western culture dinner table. Nowadays the use of cell phones at dinner tables is a common phenomenon. It is clear that some dynamics are at play to change the normative behaviours in certain cultures and one dynamic is the power and influence modern technology displays in the global society. These new cultural influences that are brought to us via, and shaped by these new technologies, will eventually have an influence on the mutation of at least some traditional cultures.

Dickey (2008:72) argues: “For as long as history has been recorded, cultural strains have been blended to reinvent art, architecture, music, literature, haute couture, and even fast food cuisine. When all roads led to Rome, all the world's known art and culture found its way there too”. Dickey refers as example to the “Local American identities, to the extent it existed at least in the Seventies, are now about distinctions without difference”. That world cultures are “blending” is inevitable, but, as Dickey (2008:72) continues to argue, “There is the risk that the ever-accelerating interaction of people everywhere in the world will destroy the uniqueness of their societies, offering tastes of seemingly infinite variety,

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but also creating a single global culture of common denominators that evolve ever lower”. This phenomenon poses a universal threat to some individuals and cultures and Dickey (2008:72) adds to the discussion: “...those elsewhere who believe their own distinct ways of life focus their ire on the Unites States as the source of this culture-corrupting juggernaut”.

Another phenomenon of global culture is that cities become more and more what one refers to as “international”, meaning that their special and distinct characters or identities are “blending” due to the fact that one finds “KFC shops from Caracas to Cairo” and “Starbucks coffee shop in the Louvre when the classic French Cafe is disappearing” (Dickey, 2008:72). According to Landry (quoted by Thakara, 2004:15) when referring to place brochures used to advertise places and locations, “identity has become a commodity; diversity or distinctiveness are edited out, and a predictable bland mix of facilities and attractions is promoted for every area”. Owen (1999:118) quotes Paterson (1995) when referring to the city as a “melting pot”: “its diversity of peoples, its ethnicities, its subcultures, its alternative cosmopolitanisms, its representations of both core and periphery [are] an instrument for changing that culture”. Therefore, the phenomenon of global culture is becoming an “instrument for changing (that) culture”; consequently, it is also an “instrument for changing” cultural identities. Dickey (2008:71; 73) refers to this phenomenon as “the machine” and he concludes his article by saying: “The machine is what it is, but sometimes it can be what we want it to be. What the machine cannot do is stop”.

2.2.3 Identity and Community According to the Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary (2001:187), a “community” is “the people of an area or country considered collectively; society” and “the holding of certain attitudes and interests in common”. Popenoe (1980:84) defines a community as follows:

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When the population cluster is relatively small, focused on individual residences and places of work, and based on daily patterns of interaction (such as that involved with work, shopping, and school), the cluster is called a community. The local community is usually a relatively small and by no means independent or selfsufficient part of a larger population cluster known as a society. For example artists and designers do not “work isolated or alone, but within societies comprised of diverse communities that influence their practice” (Díaz-Kommonen, 2002:95). Díaz-Kommonen (2002:64) argues: “Human beings are social beings, and human consciousness itself develops within a social setting”. In this statement DíazKommonen refers to “human consciousness development” which closely relates to human identity formation. Therefore, the “holding of certain attitudes and interests in common” can contribute to the formation of a certain communal identity. She (Díaz-Kommonen, 2002:64) continues to argue: “The individual performing an activity is never an isolated part, but rather is part of a community. Even in the cases in which an activity is performed in solitude, the social context of human activity is evident in the tools utilized. The activity itself is affected by the individual‟s participation within a community” (refer to Diagram 2.1, page 17).

Verwijnen (2004:27) quotes Byrne (2001:69) who quotes Williamson's (1985:118) definition of community: The notion of community embraces not just the idea of locality or social network of particular kinds: it refers to the rich mosaic of subjective meanings which people attach to the place itself and to the social relations of which they are a part. It is in terms of these meanings that the community can be recognised and the people who live there can recognise themselves. The patterns of these meanings are what constitute the culture of community. The notion that people can “recognise themselves” refers to answering the question of “Who am I?” and where this “I” fits in. The recognizing of the self constitutes self-identity and the recognising of themselves constitutes group or social identity.

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2.2.4 Identity, Nationalism and Political Affiliation The word “nationality” refers to “the status of belonging to a specific nation and/or an ethnic group forming part of one or more political nations” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:644). Nationality and political affiliation is well-explained in Anderson's (2006:6) popular definition of a nation:

“it is an imagined political community – and

imagined as both inherently limited and sovereign”. Nationality is also the “attachment that people feel for the inventions of their imaginations” (Anderson, 2006:141).

Anderson (2006:6-7) continues to explain that: It (nationality) is imagined because the members of even the smallest nation will never know most of their fellow-members, meet them or even hear about them, yet in the minds of each lives the image of their communion; it is limited because even the largest of them, encompassing perhaps a billion living human beings, has finite, if elastic, boundaries, beyond which lie other nations; it is imagined as sovereign because the concept was born in an age in which Enlightenment and Revolution were destroying the legitimacy of the divinely-ordained, hierarchical dynastic realm; it is imagined as a community, because, regardless of the actual inequality and exploitation that may prevail in each, the nation is always conceived as a deep horizontal comradeship. Nationality is the imagined “communion” of those who feel they are part of the “bonding” that is imagined by/exists in the mind of their fellow members. Of course “bonding” is not looked upon as being “imagined”. This “bonding” is a true and powerful emotion between fellow members who never even met or heard of one another before. This communion or bonding is limited because there are so many other nationalities living on the globe and many of these nationalities include several ethnicities and cultures within their limited “boundaries” (referring to geographic outlines/borders of national states).

Even the

smallest or the biggest nationality is confronted with the limitations of the area they find themselves in, even though those boundaries are “elastic”. These boundaries may even be wrapped (and therefore limited in itself) within other boundaries. An example is the presence of various “China Towns” that are situated within many metropolitan and smaller global cities. These inhabitants in these small “elastic” and of course “limited” boundaries are imagining themselves just as much a part of the bigger nationality (China) that is

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possibly situated on another continent. Nationality is considered to be sovereign because the western nations as we know them today were born out of the ultimate power gained by the state over the domination by the church, aristocracy and monarchy. The power gained over the abovementioned came as a result of the age of “Enlightenment” which refers to the enlightenment of beliefs and a shift away from the period that was referred to as the Dark Age when old Christian beliefs, transferred solely via the church were perceived as the only truth. Highlights of the era of Enlightenment was Newton's and Galileo's theory on gravity and that the earth is round and Copernicus' discovery that the earth is part of a solar system where planets are rotating around the sun instead of the earth being flat with the sun rotating around the earth (Der Brock Haus, 1996:310; 486; 636). The era of “Revolution”, a result of the era of Enlightenment, refers to the French revolution against the French aristocracy and monarchy based on Louis XIV's Absolutism for the establishment of freedom and democracy; the American revolution against the British monarchy and colonialism; the industrial revolution when Bell discovered the telephone and when Edison discovered the electrical current between electrons (Der Brock Haus, 1996:87; 220; 339).

These eras were so significant for the birth of

nationalism because they were destroying the ultimate power of the godly commanded church, aristocracy and monarchy. Finally, nationality is referring to a community of fellow members who perceive one another equals, “regardless of the actual inequality and exploitation that may prevail in each”.

Brace (2003:128) argues:

“The appearance of a homogenous, unquestioned and

unquestionable national identity is achieved by a process of inclusion of ideas or images that give credence to a particular version of national identity and omission of ideas or images that challenge it”. In a homogenous society the common identity is achieved by what most members of the society accept to be true to their national identity and all that is challenging the normative is unacceptable. In an inhomogeneous society where many opinions, norms, values and customs are practised and relevant, it is difficult to be guided

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by what most members of society consider to be true to their national identity. In cases like these the dominating cultural or ethnic identity may be considered the national identity, an assumption that will be looked upon by other cultures or ethnic identities as challenging the normative and therefore considered to be unacceptable.

Anderson (2006:141)

suggests: “The cultural products of nationalism – poetry, prose, fiction, music, plastic arts – show this love (attachment people feel) very clearly in thousands of different forms and styles”. As in the case of culture, these concrete “organised elements” ('cultural products') contribute to the formation of a national identity. Daniels (as quoted by Brace, 1993) confirms this statement by saying:

National identities are co-ordinated, often largely defined, by legends and landscapes, by stories of golden ages, enduring traditions, heroic deeds and dramatic destinies located in ancient or promised home-lands with hallowed sites and scenery...Landscapes, whether focusing on single monuments or framing stretches of scenery, provide visible shape; they picture the nation. As exemplars of moral order and aesthetic harmony, particular landscapes achieve the status of national icons.

The manifestations of memories, captured from history, become the makers of cultural identity.

2.2.5 Identity, Race and Ethnicity In biological terms a “race” is a “distinct population within a species or subspecies” and/or “a group of people sharing the same culture, language, etc.; an ethnic group” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:798). Ethnical refers to “human groups that entertain a certain subjective belief in their common descent because of similarities of physical type or of customs or of both” (Popenoe quoting Weber [1968], 1980:313), and racial refers to “moral, intellectual and other non-physical attributes or abilities” (Popenoe quoting Van Den Berghe [1967], 1980:315). Popenoe (1980:338) further offers: “An ethnic group is defined by many sociologists as a group that is socially differentiated, has developed its own sub-culture, and has a 'shared feeling of peoplehood'. A race is a group of people who others believe are genetically distinct and share certain physical characteristics”.

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Even according to the dictionary the word “race should be avoided, because of its associations with the now discredited theories of the nineteenth-century anthropologists and physiologists about supposed racial superiority” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:798). The Webster Dictionary (1971:704) refers to “race” as “a division of mankind possessing traits that are transmissible by descent and sufficient to characterize it as a distinct human type”.

Therefore, it can be argued that race is

something to which one is naturally (or not as a matter of free will) a part of. Race is a primary constructing element of identity since it forms the core of a person or a group of people's ethnic identity. Race, identity and culture can also be argued to be undergoing “processes of hybridization”, meaning that they are constantly changing and therefore dynamic in themselves. What makes the discourses about race so difficult or even impossible today, are the processes of hybridization in all levels such as racial hybridization, social hybridization and cultural hybridization to name a few. If one refers once more to Diagram 2.1 (refer to page 17) and it is agreed that these outer peripheries surrounding the individual and the family and the friends and the social classes and the culture, one has to accept that all these peripheries are influencing one another through social processes, therefore all these peripheries are constantly on the move and therefore the processes of hybridization are inevitable.

McCarthy (1998:6) argues that “to study race, identity or culture, and to intervene in their fields of effects, one must be prepared to live with extraordinary complexity and variability of meaning” and McCarthy (1998:15-16) also says that “...terms such as 'race', 'identity' and 'culture' are highly decentred and decentring social constructs – the products of historical centre-periphery relations and consequent processes of hybridization”. Race, culture and identity are social constructs that are not only dynamic because of constant change, but the fact that they are subject to change is primarily influenced by the fact that they are a “combination of” or a “mixture of”. Race, identity and culture are not focussing on the individual, but are rather “decentred/decentring social constructs” that moves away

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from the core of the “I” to focus on and concern the outer circle (periphery) surrounding the “I”. The irony is that although these social constructs focus away from the core of the circle (“I”), they are influencing the “I” to a great extent.

The issue of hybridization

(constant change and combination/mixture of) is a common occurrence in the periphery surrounding the “I”. Therefore, the effect of hybridization influences the individual to a great extent and to conclude, the effect of hybridization on social constructs affects the process of identity creation of the individual and, also, the social group surrounding the individual.

The effect of hybridization (constant change and combination/mixture of) results in the challenging of boundaries set by culture, race and identity. Verwijnen (2004:15) offers the following: “identity has become a commodity...diversity or distinctiveness is edited out, and a predictable bland mix of facilities and attractions is promoted”.

These effects

spread so wide that it includes the entire globe, therefore influencing the identities of most global nations, societies and individuals included.

2.2.6 Identity and History “The past is a great narrative of people's lives, events both trivial and major, ideas and ways of thinking. It (history) develops in students an understanding of cultures, ideas and values that are important to other societies as well as their own” (History, S.a.). History writes the past and present of a culture, community, nation, race, religion, individual, some event or happening. Said in the simplest way, history tells us about the past events of someone or something.

In an interview with Mr C. Muecke (2007), he explains that

history is also the systematic research into past events and an accumulation of past events and factors that together constitute history, which in itself explains the development of humankind and the surroundings they live in. Therefore history can tell where we are coming from and if history is clear to us and we have the ability and

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common sense to analyse it, then we could tell where we are heading.

The

manifestations of memories, captured from history, become the makers of cultural identity.

History is the accumulation of events and happenings related to culture, nations, people, cities and it refers to how they developed and changed over time.

History is the

knowledge that is transmitted in documented and/or verbal format about habits and customs, buildings, implements, clothing, jewellery and decorations, armourment/ weapons, paintings, art and excavated items of all kinds from generation to generation (translated from The Brock Haus, 2000:330). Usually the “winning/winner's story” used to be transferred in verbal and/or documented form. Nowadays modern media publish both sides of the coin. The historian is conveying what is ethnically, nationally and culturally important or significant.

History is often written by forces beyond our control, is an

ongoing process and something we are all part of; therefore, history is something we cannot escape from. Díaz-Kommonen (2002:23) mentions: “History is also made in the present”. This may be why Michel Foucault described history „one way in which a society recognizes and develops a mass of documentation with which it is inextricably linked‟”. History is part of an individual's “yesterday” and how an individual‟s history is “captured” in the present. Therefore, it (history) has an inevitable influence on the identity creation process of an individual since it shapes individuals' ideas about where one is coming from, which inevitably shapes the notion of where one is going.

2.2.7 Identity and Religion Popenoe (1980:403) quotes Emile Durkheim (1965): “Religion is a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things…which unites into one single moral community…all those who adhere to those [beliefs and practices]” and Popenoe (1980: 408) continues to say that one of the five reasons why people need religion is because: “Religion helps people to develop a sense of identity. Religion assists in answering a basic human question, „Who am I?‟” Religion assists many human beings to find their

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way to the “I” since they discover the “I” through finding answers to the question “Who am I?”

Popenoe continues to argue that “Another way in which religion helps people develop a sense of identity is through membership in religious organizations” because religion is a source of the “shared feeling of peoplehood” (1980:338; 408) many people need to construct their individual identities. Religions are often interwoven with ethnical values and norms, they often do not focus on the individual, but rather form part of the “decentred/decentring social constructs” that moves away from the core of the “I” to focus on and concern the outer circle (periphery) surrounding the “I”. Therefore, religion forms part of the issue of hybridization (constant change and combination/mixture of) since religion and religious movements are also constantly changing. These “new” religions have been and are introduced to social groups and they are affecting social groups, thus contributing to the effect of hybridization that in turn influences the individual to a great extent. The effect of hybridization on social constructs affects the process of identity creation of the individual and the society. Perhaps the largest influence religion has or might have on cultural development is on the notions of the norm and the normative. Religions tend to have a conservative and conserving approach to such artist development, for example.

2.2.8 Identity and Geographical Location Geography has always played an important role in the way which people identify aspects of culture such as attaching and associating a certain stylistic or figurative tradition to a certain place (Aynsley, 1993:31-32).

“The geography of a place thus always has a

historical and evolutionary background” (Verwijnen, 2004:28). Identity refers to a specific local system in which “economic and social elements interact both with each other within a given space and with the particular details of the physical geography of the place…thus,

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locality seems to be the product of human interactions of everyday life in which we construct our social world…” (Verwijnen, 2004:28).

Thakara (2004:15) adds another dimension to geographical location when he refers to “territorial capital” as a term being used to describe the hard and the soft assets of a place: “Hard assets include natural beauty, and features; shopping facilities; cultural attractions; buildings, museums, monuments and so on. Soft assets are all about people and culture: skills, traditions, festivals, events and occasions, situations, settings, social ties, civic loyalty, memories and the capacity to earn”.

Therefore, “territorial capital” plays a

concrete and important role in the formation of individual and group identities.

Crozier (1994:105) quotes Proshansky et al. (1983) when he defines the concept of placeidentity as “...an aspect of one's self-concept that summarizes the understandings of place that have been acquired through experience. This is important to a person‟s well-being in that it helps to maintain a sense of self and gives meaning to the environment. It also provides an outlet for the expression of the person's tastes and preferences”.

This

argument concerning place-identity relates to the later chapters of this dissertation when identity issues related to Namibia and the Namibian environment, nature, landscapes and Namibian ethnic groups will be discussed. This argument will also relate to the later discussion of the creation of the photographic artist's images and the design and creation of the fashion designer's couture collection in Chapter 5.4 (page 114) and 5.5 (page 116). The essence of this study is based on Namibian-related identity issues and the Namibian place-identity of both the artist and the designer “provided an outlet for ... tastes and preferences” in the relevant design and creation processes of ELEVEN.

2.2.9 Identity and Social Classification According to Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk (1997:376), “Social class is defined as the division of members of a society into a hierarchy of distinct status classes, so that

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members of each class have relatively the same status and members of all other classes have either more or less status”. They (Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk, 1997:398) continue to say:

“Social class profiles provide a broad picture of the values, attitudes, and

behaviour that distinguish the members of various social classes”.

According to Popenoe (1980:294; 296), “certain status groupings are referred to as social classes…the term social class…has often been used to mean a status grouping based on economic criteria:

wealth and access to the means of production…” (One is Marx‟s

famous social class distinction between the bourgeoisie, -- those who own the means of production, and the proletariat -- the workers who own their own labour). He continues to say: “Three approaches to determining social-class divisions have been developed (by sociologists): approach”.

the objective approach, the reputational approach and the subjective The reputational approach rather makes use of well-informed community

members to define the number and nature of social classes rather than sociologists. The subjective approach is applied when sociologists or investigators ask subjects to identify social-class systems and to place themselves in one social class or another. Objective criteria include: “amount of income, type of occupation and years of education” (Popenoe, 1980:296). Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk (1997:376) refer to the same criteria, namely “family income, occupational status and educational attainment”. Objective criteria are used in this study since the other two approaches are specifically developed, identified and applied for/in sociological research.

These objective criteria often determine which main cultural elements a group or individual would choose to indicate their identities or their social status. Material culture, a main cultural element discussed earlier, will be used as an example to explain this statement. Social classes used to be, and still are amongst others, identified according to the clothes (material culture) they wear. Says Seeling (2000:9): “In earlier periods (and now) there were many different ways of dressing, and these varied between countries and social

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classes”. Schiffman‟s and Lazar Kanuk's (1997:398) statement further explains (referring to the late 1970's and early 1980's): …lower middle-class consumers have a strong preference for T-shirts, caps and other clothing that offer an external point of identification such as the name of an admired person or group (e.g. Elizabeth Taylor), a respected company or brand name (Heineken) or a valued trademark (Nike) …in contrast upper-class consumers are likely to buy clothing that is free from such supporting associations…upper-class consumers also seek clothing with a more subtle look. 2.2.10 Identity and Professions or Work Similarities Smyth (2006) argues: “...many of us find part of our identity in work...to the extent that we feel significant in our work; we take to give and reinforce identity”. Smyth continues to say: “Work is a particularly potent force in Anglo-Saxon culture, derived from the protestant work ethic” and this is “reflected in identity” to such an extent that one of the first questions we ask someone we are introduced to usually is: “What do you do?” People and groups have such a strong need to find or construct their identities via the use of “things” (material culture) and one such manifestation is the use of clothing to demonstrate not only “where I work” but also “what I do”. Jenkyn Jones (2002:20) argues: “People use clothing to differentiate and recognise profession…Occupational dress is an expression of authority and helps the wearer stand out in a crowd”. Examples are the uniforms of policemen and -women, soldiers, judges, various clerks, doctors and nurses.

2.2.11 Identity and Gender Popenoe (1980:168) refers to Freud (1965):

“that biological and social factors are

interrelated in a complex way in the formation of gender identities”. Popenoe continues (1980:170; 172) to mention:

“...contemporary social psychologists see problems of

gender identity as being rooted in particular cultural expectations and patterns of socialization” and “since expectations associated with gender are reinforced from the moment of birth into old age, they have a strong influence on the ways in which men and women are perceived by others and also on how they perceive themselves”.

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Brace (2003:124-125) adds an interesting point of view to the discussion of gender identities when she says: “Some identity formations become hegemonic, in other words, they come to dominate because they are constructed in such a way that their dominance seems like the natural order of things”. Thus a culture might state: women are mothers, nursing is a type of mothering, therefore all nurses should be women and therefore men who are nurses are “strange” and “unnatural”.

2.2.12 Identity and Taste According to Tate (1989:63), the word “taste” as it is used here, means “individual preference or inclination” and “a critical judgement, discernment, or appreciation” and “manner of aesthetical quality indicative of such discernment or appreciation”. Therefore, “a person develops a taste level 'critical judgement, discernment, or appreciation' by constant exposure to fine merchandise in stores, publications, and on the streets. Good taste is the ability to recognise that which will appeal to a specific segment of the market” (Tate, 1989:63).

The Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary (2001:1002) refers to

“taste” as “the ability to discern what is of good quality or of a high aesthetic standard”. Csikszentmihalyi (1995:127) says:

“In each culture…public taste develops as visual

qualities are eventually linked with values”. Taste not only refers to visual qualities, but also to how a person perceives flavour or an experience and it can simply refer to “a person's liking for something” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:1002). What is “fine” and what is “of good quality or of high aesthetic standard” is of course determined by the norms and values of a culture and when referred to in this frame, it is shaped by the culture that determines taste. Therefore, taste is normative and can be considered a product of power.

McDowell (1994:28-29) argues: “The concept of taste exists only within the concept of what is considered correct in fashion or behaviour at any one time” in a culture. McDowell (1994:28-29) also offers the following:

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Rules…lay down a standard. For centuries fashion existed within rules. To follow them led to good taste. To ignore them meant you had bad taste. Taste gave fashion a structure that even the swinging Sixties did not totally undermine. But the Eighties managed to knock it all down. There was the deliberate…ugliness of English art school fashion…the brief glorification of sleaze…sex club and transvestite fashion. In the early 1990‟s we had the grunge…all of these exercises…by previous standards, was bad taste… Now that there are no rules of dress to impose taste, it is argued by the old guard that there are no longer any standards of dress.

Taste can be identified with a specific social class, a culture or a community since these may lay down “rules” for fashion or behaviour. As argued above, taste is normative and can be considered a product of power, and these “rules” are supposed to lay down the “characteristic boundaries of who or what something is” (part of the definition for identity from the Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:478).

Therefore, taste is

determined by the development of public taste and public taste can be linked to social taste. One can also argue that the peripheries of some social classes are determined by taste since the members of such social classes lay down “rules” according to what they perceive as being tasteful. These “rules”, that are determining “good” or “superior” taste, are usually determined by dominant social groups that employ more social, economic or political power than others. Some “rules” about taste are also determined by majority groups whose interests are supported by political, economic and social institutions. Therefore, taste can be a key element in the formation of social, cultural and communal identities.

These were the dynamics involved in and that are related to identity formation. The discussion will continue to investigate how a sense of identity can occur/come about. The word “sense” as used in this context means “a definite but often vague awareness or impression” and “a discerning awareness and appreciation” (Webster's Dictionary, 1971: 789) and “sense” also refers to “a reasonable or comprehensible rationale” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:888). The dynamics involved in shaping and forming an identity are one thing, but without being driven by one's various senses for identity, the

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dynamics shaping and forming identities will not be manifested. “We are deeply driven by our sense of identity -- of who we are. “Many social theories are to do with creating or preserving our sense of identity…” (The need for: a sense of identity, S.a.) and the “discerning awareness and appreciation” is needed to create and preserve individual and group identities.

2.3 Sense of Identity

The first sense considered here is the sense of belonging which often manifests in the question “Do I fit in?” It has been suggested (Transformasia, S.a.) that: “...th(is) sense exists to better understand oneself and others, hence an increased ability to have a sense of belonging and recognition of common purpose”. A sense of belonging is increased when people are born in one country or when they are born in one country and live in another. They are aware of an increased sense of “holding together” which strengthens a sense of belonging. Also the family might strengthen a sense of belonging, even though many families may be far-flung and scattered all over the globe, which in turn results in the idea of 'family' rather being “imagined” (given Anderson, 2006:6-7) than fact. Workplace also strengthens a sense of belonging since work is a collaborate effort and the workplace involves teams working together to achieve common goals (Transformasia, S.a.).

The second sense is the awareness of value systems. The word “value” refers to “the regard that something is held to deserve” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001: 1084). It refers to issues, matters or principles of importance and worth. Personal values relates to “self hood”, meaning “the quality that constitutes one‟s individuality” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:885).

Different value systems exist in various

communities, societies, cultures and for most individuals. The sense of value systems contribute to our sense of identity since they lay down the ideas shared by the people in a

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community, society, culture and individuals about what is “good and bad, right and wrong, desirable and undesirable” (Kennedy 1995:11). The social spheres surrounding people (refer to Diagram 2.1, page 17) directly shape the value systems they live and function by. Díaz-Kommonen (2002:91) argues that “In order to have a community, it is necessary to have an already established set of internal parameters.

These parameters are like

concepts and values, implicitly accepted by the group throughout their interaction”. Seppälä and Vainio-Mattila (1999:19) quote Lourdes Arizipe (1993):

“Culture is a

dimension of the totality of social, political and economic relations”. They continue to argue: “The values that each of us lives by have been acquired through a process of socialization.

As we grow, we learn about the way things are done. We also learn

eventually that things are done differently by others and elsewhere, and we learn to make value judgments about the superiority of one way over the other”.

It is important to

acknowledge the primary influence an individual's direct outer peripheries, such as the family and friends (refer to Diagram 2.1, page 17), have on the shaping of that individual's value systems. These values a person learns and adopts from his/her society assist in the processes of value judgments about what is better or more acceptable or not. Values assist individuals in the negotiating process about what is socially/culturally acceptable and what not.

“It is important to understand how research is also an important tool in understanding the beliefs and values of... people in society” (Newgren, 1998:97). An example of one of these value systems is visual values that are shaped by the outer peripheries surrounding the individual (refer to Diagram 2.1, page 17). Csikszentmihalyi (1995:127) suggests: “Visual values are created by social consensus”.

As said before, the individual is

influenced and its identity is shaped by the outer peripheries in this diagram, but that individual also influences the outer peripheries since the individual is in the centre of these peripheries.

Csikszentmihalyi (1995:127) further suggests:

“Visual values can be

unanimous or contested, elite or popular, strong or vulnerable, depending on the

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integration of the culture” and the integration of all the outer peripheries surrounding the individual (refer to Diagram 2.1, page 17).

Visual values will become an important

discussion later in this dissertation, since the researcher/designer will consider how identity formation, and a designer‟s sense of identity (value) and subsequently visual and other values can or cannot shape an identity and or vice versa.

The third sense discussed here is the sense of safety and security. A sense of safety and security may be enhanced or threatened if a person feels familiar or unfamiliar with something, if a person feels protected or exposed in social situations or if a person experiences something he/she is more certain about when he/she experiences a crisis. A feeling of security usually refers to the level of self-assurance a person possesses. To explain this better, I want to use an example related to clothing and, therefore, refer to Koskennurmi-Sivonen (1998:261-262): Identification (e.g. with fashion) results in „feeling at home‟ in the dress, and it may even be linked with security in a subtle way which associates the style (of a dress) with early, familiar feelings. The security obtained with a dress may facilitate overcoming a crisis or facing a socially frightening position. A dress which is appropriate in social situations may also become a strategy for protecting one‟s identity in general. If a person can predict what will happen next, the risk or fear involved in an unknown situation is minimised. If we can predict what will happen next, we feel secure or selfassured. Therefore, dress and clothing can influence the notion of predictability since it can encourage a sense of security related to prediction.

More than that it can also

enhance the feeling of security (self-assurance) that emerges when a person dresses up or down to be more or less presentable, appear to be more or less affluent, appear to belong or not to belong to a certain culture or sub-culture and so forth.

The fourth sense refers to the sense of pride in our sameness or being different from someone else's sameness. This sense can for instance be strongly linked to sense of national or cultural pride. A person or a group may wish to enhance her/his/their sense of

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pride in being part of one nationality or cultural group or not.

Examples of how this

phenomena may manifest is when the collective identity of Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland as Scandinavian countries have successfully adopted foreign influences and mixed them with national strengths to come up with a new, successful and unique design tradition. Gramsci, as quoted by Aynsley (1993:42), mentions that “design pride” as was seen a century ago when the Scandinavian countries developed a strong and unique “design culture” or a “shared design idealism”, is a popular example of how a sense of pride can shape new identities.

Another sense discussed here, the fifth sense, is the sense of promise for the future. This sense is usually related to spirituality and individuals are becoming more and more interested in matters of the promise of a new enlightened era, a “new era of tranquillity and peace” and the adoption of the “psychology of the soul” that will become the basis of all future educational efforts (Creme, 2007). The anti-global movement that fights for humanity issues such as environmental sustainability, world health, non-violence, human rights, preservation of local cultures and global migration, the rights of indigenous people, urban planning, gender equality, access to shelter, food and water and education to name a few, are giving other people hope and purpose for life (Buckman, 2004:120). This currently popular newfound sense of promise for the future is a powerful source individuals and groups have discovered that assists them to cope with modern social situations and stress, but also to contribute to the construction of group and personal identities.

The sense of common origins is the sixth sense referring to common origins deriving from sharing the same cultural, societal, national or community backgrounds that all can contribute to a sense of identity. Origin from sharing the same, or having shared the same, geographical locations such as cities, towns, areas or countries can contribute to a

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sense of identity. Common origins deriving from sharing the same social classes can also contribute to a sense of identity.

The seventh sense, is the sense of easy communication. Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk (1997:279) note that “Communication is the bridge between consumers and their sociocultural environments” and “communication is the transmission of a message from a sender to a receiver via a medium of some sort”. They (Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk , 1997:286) continue to offer: “A person‟s demographics (e.g. age, gender, marital status, etc.), socio-cultural memberships (social class, race, religion), and lifestyle are all key determinants in how a message is interpreted”.

Put in another way, there is a

predictability of the accuracy of the communication within a community.

In certain

communities a phrase will be understood since the community have common key determinants in how the message is interpreted, while the same phrase will not be understood in another community where the common key determinants vary.

In

communities with common key determinants we can simply “say what we mean” and get it right.

The phenomena of globalization, the World Wide Web allows individuals to communicate “technically” fast and inexpensively. The sheer number of personal websites that exist on the World Wide Web is a testimony to the fact that people feel a desire to establish themselves on the net and the WWW offers them the opportunity to establish themselves on homepages that provide information on an individual for the “purpose of display” (Marshall, 2005). An individual may wish to establish her-/himself on the WWW in many various persona or identities on various homepages. “The personal homepage provides a locus for the electronic self/me” (Marshall, 2005). The questions “Who am I?” and “Who are we (various persona or identities)?” are the relevant questions that are asked nowadays, since individuals have so many homepage “faces” and identities. Chat rooms are usually not considered to be able to offer so many opportunities for altered identities,

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since it requires fast thinking and fast answers from the active parties. It is (usually) difficult to 'act' someone else under these circumstances (Marshall, 2005), since playing and acting different characters require special skills (fast, creative thinking and acting). Many people are developing these skills and are able to have various different web identities, even in chat rooms. The issue of easy communication is challenged by the WWW. Communication is fast and inexpensive, but not necessarily easy and efficient. People can get in touch with each other more easily, but the level of efficiency of this mode of communication is unreliable. Do people really understand what is going on? The technology eases, but the community of the sender and/or receiver limits accuracy and predictability.

The fact that so many people have various web identities also limits

accuracy and predictability.

The last sense discussed here, the eighth sense, is the sense of what sells – is it a mass market item I need to purchase/wear to be able to fit in or is it a couture garment that I need to purchase/wear that dresses me up as someone with unique taste? The market offerings and opportunities to purchase (almost) anything are vast, yet people are guided and want to be guided by international trends in order to “have the latest” and to “be in”. International competition is huge and in order to obtain advantage in the market, the focus lies on the following of trends. In order to follow the fast-moving global trends, design needs to be aided by new technologies that offer faster and more efficient production all the time.

2.4 Negotiation and Adaptation

Brace (2003:122) mentions: “(I)dentity is complex, fluid, dynamic and always in a state of flux”. Also Robertson and Richards (2003:16) say: “Identity is made and not given, it is in flux and not stable”.

Therefore, an identity is a condition, a situation, a set of

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circumstances or dynamics in which one find oneself (either as an individual or within a group) and in which one consciously or unconsciously agrees to be.

Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk (1997:279) argue: “Personality, attitudes, prior learning – all affect how a message (or process) is decoded.

Perception, based, as it is, on

expectations, motivation and past experience, certainly influences message (or process) interpretation”. Identity comes about because our various senses continuously guide the identity formation process according to individual or group perception. Our identities are negotiated by what has come before a given situation (sense of history) and what we think is important for the future and what everyone who shares our identity would want in the future (sense of belonging). Individuals are negotiating and adapting according to what their senses tell them in very personalised and unique ways. Every human being will therefore be guided by his/her senses in an individual manner. Therefore, every person is consciously or subconsciously negotiating and adapting according to their senses since the outer peripheries surrounding the individual (refer to Diagram 2.1, page 17) influence why the individual is negotiating and adapting in the way he/she does. The opposite is also true: the senses of the outer peripheries are consciously and/or subconsciously negotiating and adapting according to the individual in very unique ways. Since identities are “fluid, dynamic and in a state of flux” (because our senses are constantly adapting and negotiating to establish a sense of identity), personal objects and “things” play a key role in establishing identities, since objects and “things” better demonstrate identities.

It is important to remember that identities can also be

demonstrated through abstract “things” such as behaviour, attitudes, values and belief systems. Yet the means of demonstration may be manifested in more concrete “things”. Identity can only be distinguished once it is manifested. Comparing what Robertson and Richards (2003:16) say about creating landscapes, just so does fashion help to “picture” (dress/dress-up) identity.

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Bubolz Eicher , Pokornowski, Harris and Thieme (1985:4) offer a convincing statement to confirm the above when they say: “The social context of an individual‟s culture provides a fluid, non-visible meaning system within which an individual manipulates visible dress symbols. Analysis of dress in its broadest context contributes to the understanding of individuals, their socialization process, their self-identity and their roles in their society”.

Material culture (the manifestation of culture in user- and personal objects and “things” we surround ourselves with) is a key to this study since our identities are distinguished by it. Clothing forms part of this main element of culture (material culture). If clothing is used to manifest and distinguish identities, then fashion garments can also be considered to be representations of identity.

In fact, fashion garments are both objects of culture and

representations of identity. Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk (1997:408) offer a good example in the following quote: “T-shirts can furnish cultural meaning for wearers. T-shirts can also be used as a means of self-expression, which may provide wearers with the additional benefit of serving as a „topic‟ initiating social dialogue with others”. Yet, the statement that fashion garments can be considered to be representations of identity only then addresses how fashion shapes the identity of the consumer or the end user/wearer.

Fashion garments are not simply appearing from nowhere and are then used to construct the various identities of wearers, therefore reading as manifestations of culture. Fashion clothing is created by someone (individual or group) that is placed within a certain social structure or culture (outer peripheries indicated in Diagram 2.1, page 17).

Díaz-

Kommonen (2002:64) argues: “(T)o realize the object or outcome of the activity, the goals that motivate the community must work alongside those of the individual. In addition, the individual brings into the activity a body/mind that feels, thinks and acts. These equip the individual with the ability to shape, and transform the activity”. Therefore, the creator of fashion forms a key to how fashion garments are read as manifestations of culture.

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“Design and identity are broad issues; they need to be applied with a particular focus in order to avoid generalizations” warns Kathleen Connellan (1996).

SOCIAL CLASSIFICATION

GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION

RACE/ ETHNICITY

PROFESSION

COMMUNITY

GENDER

OBJECT RELIGION

INDIVIDUALITY

CULTURE

TASTE

NATIONALISM

HISTORY

Diagram 2.2 – The Object Wheel

If objects (“things”) are representations of identity, then the above diagram is a representation of how an object can be analysed to understand identities of individuals or groups. In order to do that one would look from the object, the centre of the object wheel to the outside dynamics that bring identities into play and in such a way an object can be analysed. What is a very interesting discovery though is that for a designer to design and create an object, it might be that the outside dynamics of the object wheel are coming into play. A designer will use the dynamics at the outside of the wheel to move to the centre of

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the wheel in order to design and create an object. Díaz-Kommonen (2002:12) argues: “As objects of knowledge, design artefacts not only operate as recipients of the ideas and the values of the community and culture that produces them, but also, as pointers”. In this statement Díaz-Kommonen points out the purpose of the object wheel (refer to page 46), as well as how it functions by indicating that the object is the “recipient of the ideas and values of the community and culture that produces them” but that the object also functions as a “pointer” to what is happening in the outside of the wheel.

In this study the objects (fashion garments) have been manufactured for the ELEVEN fashion exhibition and fashion show and therefore they exist and have to be used to analyse from the object, the centre of the wheel to the dynamics at the outside of the wheel in order to analyse identity. I am convinced that the dynamics (outside periphery of the object wheel, refer to page 46), have played a conscious and unconscious role in the designing process of the objects. Moholy-Nagy (1946), as quoted by Díaz-Kommonen (2002:35), further recognizes the designer to be the pivotal element as the source of tacit knowledge and the integrator of artistic and scientific elements through technology. According to the Reader‟s Digest Dictionary, “tacit” means “understood or implied without being stated” and “undeclared, implied”, derived from the Latin word “tacitus”, meaning “silent” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:996). Tacit knowledge refers to the undeclared knowledge designers include when working. Since a designer can be placed in the centre of the circle where the individual is placed in Diagram 2.1 (refer to page 17), one can argue that the designer is influenced by the outer peripheries as shown in the diagram and these outer peripheries shape and construct the identity of the designer. If the designer contains the tacit knowledge, then it can be argued that the outer peripheries also shape tacit knowledge. Therefore, tacit knowledge is shaped by identity. Polanyi (1966), as quoted by Díaz-Kommonen (2002:12) who quotes Smith (1983), explains tacit knowledge by saying: “We can do things without being able to articulate how we have

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done them … that which is difficult or unnecessary to express … what we just never get around to putting into words...”.

In this chapter I argued that there are certain dynamics at play that influence identity formation. I then continued to investigate how a sense of identity can come about and how the dynamics that are shaping identity influence the creation of an object and that at the same time these dynamics may be used to analyse the creation processes that involved the creation of the object. In the next chapter I will discuss design in general, fashion design and how a designer interfaces with identity. I conclude by discussing haute couture and its role in this study.

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CHAPTER 3

THE DESIGNER AND IDENTITY

The objective of the ELEVEN Fashion Show and Exhibition is to give credence to the premise that not only is fashion art, but that it is a living, vibrant, expressive and valid form of art which fulfils one of art‟s most important functions, namely to uplift and transport the viewer. Schoeman (press release, 2005)

In this chapter I discuss design and design dynamics and I place and discuss design in a social context. Then I discuss the phenomenon fashion, fashion design and the role and influence of identity on fashion and I investigate how fashion and self-identity relate to each other. Finally, I discuss haute couture and couture design and the role it plays in this study and the making of ELEVEN.

3.1 Design

The verb “design” refers to “a plan or to intend for a purpose” and the noun refers to “the art or action to produce such a plan to show the look and function of something before it is made or built” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:256). The Faculty of Arts of the Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) developed a working definition for design: “Design is the innovative conceptualization of the optimal and aesthetic use of given and/or developing materials to solve problems in society, reshape society and/or improve society. This conceptualization is presented in the form of an innovative, conceptualized blueprint with detailed instructions for manufacture” (Tshwane University of Technology, 2007, emphasis in the original).

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Terms and ideas (such as identity), abstract or concrete, are defined as much by what they are as by what they are not (Crang: 1998, Robertson and Richards: 2003, Halfacree: 2003, Brace: 2003. Refer to Chapter 2.1.1, pages 12-13). Thoughts generated by the TUT Faculty of Arts, are that design is “not replication, not manufacture and not for mere use”. Therefore, design is unique and not replicated or copied in mass-manufacturing ways or products that are intended for mere use. The TUT design definition continues to suggest that “Design is innovative, criteria driven, fit for purpose, the optimal use of materials, pushing the aesthetic, material and conceptual limits, experimentation by moving from the known to the unknown and testing it by experimentation, progressive, the opposite of replication, the step after the mastery of manufacture” (Tshwane University of Technology, 2007).

Therefore design introduces new ideas and methods, design is

principle or standard driven, design has a meaning or a purpose, design always seeks the most favourable use of materials or manifestation elements, design optimizes and drives the aesthetic and therefore design inevitably means the pressing on of inputs such as material and conceptual limitations. The only way to achieve the optimal limits is for design to involve itself with experimentation to seek these optimal limits and to test them. Design is therefore employed by the person/designer that seeks the innovative and optimal use of materials, pushing the material limits through experimentation.

The

designer pushes the aesthetic limits set by his/her outer peripheries as illustrated in Diagram 2.1 (refer to page 17) and does so by testing it through experimentation. The designer also pushes the concepts or “abstract ideas that publicise a commodity” (Reader's Digest Word Power, 2001:192) or publish for a community the abstract ideas developed through experimentation, thus embarking into new territories to inform the community. These abstract ideas are to a great extent shaped by tacit knowledge and therefore these ideas can be argued to be shaped by the identity of the designer. Finally, design does not replicate and it does not copy and the true designer does not seek to find solutions to problems through copying.

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An interesting saying taught to me by a colleague and art lecturer, Prof. François de Necker, is that “Design is not boring”. According to Crozier (1994:73), “people differ in their expressed interest in stimuli…Research concludes that judgments of interest and pleasingness are positively correlated and that both … have a … relationship with complexity and familiarity … people lose interest in objects that are too complicated … or too familiar”. This implies that a designer always has to search for creative solutions to problems that can be applied in the most non-complex way, yet if the solution is found to offer nothing to the imagination, design will fail since it will appear to be too usual.

My discussion on design will investigate three key terms related to design, namely art elements, science (technology) and society (communities). In this dissertation two terms will be very important, namely society and art elements. Firstly one has to understand that “design” is a multidisciplinary discipline in its own right that addresses aesthetic values (Csikszentmihalyi [1995:127] refers to “visual values”) and engages in activities of applying art principles.

Forty (1750) also called design “art” (as quoted by Díaz-

Kommonen, 2002:32). Therefore, applied art refers to the application of art elements in order to conceive a “design” for … (something). The subject of art has relevance to design and design research (Díaz-Kommonen, 2002:94). The contrast between art and design is that art occurs in the moment of manufacture and in design thorough planning precedes the process of manufacturing. Art and design share the same historical path since they share the same tools (art elements). In the case of design, the knowledge of the art elements provide the designer with knowledge about the process involved in the creation of form (Díaz-Kommonen, 2002:95). According to Csikszentmihalyi (1995:124127), “visual qualities obviously have a lot to do with how we react to an object or an environment…our actions are not direct „natural‟ responses to colour and form, they are responses to meanings attached to configurations of colour and form” and these “meanings” are informed by the outer peripheries surrounding the individual (refer to

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diagram 2.1, page 17) and that shape his/her identity and thus these “meanings” are steeped in identity. According to Crozier, (1994:163), ...designed objects … are specifically intended to engage the intellect and the emotions and the personification process here becomes particularly intense and multi-layered … (A)n object will succeed or fail to engage the viewer by the degree it appears to stimulate human discourse … When it does succeed the object seems to have a consciousness of its own, to be alive … The complexity of the information conveyed enables a kind of relationship that normally occurs only among human beings … In order to absorb this complexity the viewer has to deal with the object as though the information came from a conscious being. Crozier argues that an object will engage the viewer or stimulate the viewer to the extent that it engages with identity and the extent to which the viewer can identify with the object. When this object succeeds to engage the viewer, then it seems to have an identity of its own. The complexity of information conveyed by the object refers back to the object wheel (refer to Diagram 2.2, page 45) that illustrates the influence the multiple dynamics towards the outside of the object has on the object. Crozier warns that in order for the viewer to absorb this complexity, the viewer has to deal with the object in a conscious and intellectual manner.

“Design” also engages in activities of combining and applying art principles with science (technologies). When trying to determine whether design is art and whether design is science, the task seems to be equally difficult. According to Moholy-Nagy (1946) (as quoted by Díaz-Kommonen, 2002:35), “design ends up being the result of a dynamic relationship between art and science, revealed and materialized through technology”. Adrian Forty (1750) (as quoted by Díaz-Kommonen, 2002:32), clearly distinguished between those artefacts that are art objects and those that are the result of design and presenting an obvious element of planning or purpose.

Planning refers broadly to

manufacture and manufacturing technology that requires thorough planning of all the production steps and units it needs to pass on its path to completion. Planning also refers broadly to produce a product that fulfils its intended purpose.

According to Díaz-

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Kommonen (2002:32), Forty (1750) suggests that a designer is supposed to occupy a privileged role in production. Since production relates to technology and science, the designer is heading the planning of all the various phases in product production. Therefore, the designer should not only occupy a privileged role in production, the designer fulfils an essential role in planning the production and the purpose of the product.

The TUT design definition confirms the link between design, manufacture and technology by referring to “instructions for manufacture” (Tshwane University of Technology, 2007). According to Díaz-Kommonen (2002:28), Ken Friedman proposed a view that “design” is a discipline primarily related to planning, thinking and management. Furthermore she refers to the work of Giorgio Vasari who described in the 1568 edition of his work that “design” is the “depiction, through drawing, of concepts and ideas originating in the intellect”.

Díaz-Kommonen (2002:136) states that the designer is someone who is

“involved in producing a synthesis from diverse sources…someone who produces visualizations that translate the abstract into the concrete…a planner and producer, engaged and working in the world”. Design cannot exist if the element of planning is not interwoven in the process, since design manifests in a plan for a tangible or abstract product or service. Louridas (1999:530) mentions: “the designer proceeds by interpreting the effect his actions have on the situation. He tries to understand the effect of his materials and of his tools, to define their place in a structure. He wants to create a structure out of his means and the result of his actions”. According to Díaz-Kommonen (2002:145-146), a useful tool is “…transverse, or conceptual knowledge (knowledge in action) that occurs from the interaction of the designer with the matter to be designed…”. This quote resonates with the TUT design definition, namely that the designer needs to involve him/herself with finding the optimal solutions for aesthetic, material and conceptual challenges (Tshwane University of Technology, 2007).

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According to Newgren (1998:96), designers are constantly dealing with matters of the unknown and he also refers to the community (audience/clients) when he says “...designers are often dealing more with unknown possibilities and uncertainties than they are with their own knowledge, experience and perception of their audience and the expectations of their clients”. Design also engages in activities of “solving problems in society, reshaping society and/or improving society”. An important aspect to consider is that the community can contribute to the “mysteries of the unknown within the context of the design process” and designers should become comfortable with this aspect. The designer negotiates and adapts to a certain community. Artists and designers do not work isolated or alone, but within societies comprised of diverse communities that influence their practice (Díaz-Kommonen, 2002:95). According to Díaz-Kommonen (2002:145-146), “the designer strives to apprehend how different users understand and make use of the artefacts around them”.

Aynsley (1993:62) notes: “Aided by new technologies, design will take on new versions of cultural and ethnic identity to meet the diversity of markets in a worldwide context”. In other words, design (which is aided by new technologies such as production technologies) will become important in the shaping of new global and hybrid identities since it will become a popular and necessary tool for developing products that can meet the needs of the diverse global markets. Thus, design has a multiple function when products related to clothing (fashion design) are concerned: fashion design is a tool that can shape individual identities and design for the fashion industry. It is a tool for meeting the fast-changing needs of diverse global markets so that products can be produced that can/will be applied by individuals as identity construction tools. The designer‟s role in the fashion industry is not limited to only the development of new garment styles that will answer the need of an ever increasing market, but the role of the designer is also becoming of crucial importance in the development of suitable technology and production technology related to the fashion field. The designer's involvement in the production, management, marketing and

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distribution processes will ensure that suitable products will find their markets on time and in the best possible quality. Nowadays the designer's contribution to the development of suitable processes and technologies is recognised and valued.

3.2 Design Dynamics Explained in a Diagram

To better explain how design functions, I will refer to the model below. This model is developed by Eame (Newgren, 1998:97) and according to this model, a community (society) consists out of three basic components: people, ideas and things. Three basic interactions occur when these components overlap or are exposed to one another, namely behaviour occurs when things and people interact, continuous learning occurs when people and ideas interact and design occurs when things and ideas interact. Behaviour refers to how an individual or a group reacts to an object: how it is perceived, interpreted, accepted or rejected, used or abused and so on. Continuous learning refers to the interaction between people and ideas: how people perceive new ideas they are exposed to (learning) and how people give shape to new ideas (research) and theories. Design occurs as a result of the interaction between things, materials or objects and ideas. Ideas refer to the concepts and abstract thoughts that are transferred into concrete products during the process of designing. Eame uses this model as a foundation to illustrate the role values are playing in a community.

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IDEAS

CONTINUOUS LEARNING

PEOPLE

DESIGN

BEHAVIOR THINGS

Diagram 3.1 – Eame's Model

I will use Eame's model and base my discussion about design on the primary elements he selected, namely the three basic communal components. Later in this chapter I will also explain how design functions in a community, but for that I will use Sawyer's model that is based on design in the society. My adapted version of the Eame's model aims to explain how design functions instead of values (as in the original model).

This model also

consists out of the three basic communal components, namely people, ideas and things. When the core of this model is design, three basic interactions occur when these basic components overlap, namely new identities occur when things and people interact, new concepts occur when people and ideas interact and new products occur when things and ideas interact.

As mentioned before, the core or context of Eame‟s model Diagram 3.1, above), that which is binding, holding and merging all three basic components, namely people, ideas and things, is design. Therefore, in the context of design, new products, new concepts

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and new identities result from an ordered process and the application of planning, thinking and management. A visual artist, in contrast, creates art from an intuitive, instinctive and expressive reaction by experimenting, applying, moulding and shaping media.

In the

process of creation, consequently all the “new” and original follows. In the context of design this once more confirms that design does not refer to replication or copying.

IDEAS

NEW

CONCEPTS PEOPLE

DESIGN

NEW PRODUCTS

NEW IDENTITIES THINGS

Diagram 3.2 – Eame's Model Adapted

To further explain this model, the role of people (the individual and the society), the role of things (the medium) and the role of ideas (inspiration, thinking) is explained. Wilhelm Wundt explains the term “idea” as “conscious representation of some object or process of the external world” (Wundt, S.a.). For this study, all the three elements are important. Once these three elements are combined with each other, they influence an action and become dynamic (new concepts, new identities and new products). Design links the role people play in matters of innovation and the development of ideas and when people (individual/society) work and experiment with things (or different media) to develop ideas (or vice versa) and new concepts, new products and new identities are developed in the

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process. Therefore, it can be concluded that designers play a role in the development of new identities. This diagram explains how new concepts, products and identities can be created in a design process, for example the design process of ELEVEN, discussed in this study. Since ELEVEN was led by design (thinking, planning, management), a process that started to develop in the mind of the creator/designer/researcher, a new dynamic resulted when people (Schoeman and Harteveld Becker) experimented with things (different media from different subject areas such as photography and fashion) to develop ideas (collective inspiration). These new dynamics collectively resulted in ELEVEN: a new concept was created, namely FotoFashionFusion, that resulted in new products, the photographic portfolio of Schoeman and the couture collection of Harteveld Becker and finally these potentially contributed in the creation of new identities, or at least a part of a Namibian fashion identity and a Namibian photography identity.

In one of the later

chapters of this study (Chapter 5, Diagram 5.1, page 121-122) this diagram will be used to investigate, analyse and explain the making of ELEVEN, an initial intuitive process.

3.3 Design Explained in a Social Context

To further explain design it needs to be located in a social context. Sawyer (2006:123 et passim) developed a very useful diagram in which he explains how design functions in a social context. His diagram consists of the person, the field and the domain. The person is the individual, the creator, designer or artist, the source of the innovation or the innovator; the field comprises of the experts, intermediaries or 'gatekeepers' who pass the judgement on the innovation (and on what is to be accepted into the domain); the domain, or a controlled area, provides the stimuli and information of the domain to the creator, as well as the techniques, technologies, histories, methods, processes and procedures of the discipline or medium in which is being worked, therefore housing the innovation (Earle,

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2007). This diagram is very important in illustrating the structure, discipline and formality the design field has adopted and developed into.

Internalizes domain

DOMAIN

PERSON

Selects novelty to enter domain

FIELD Creates novelty

Diagram 3.3 – Model by R. Keith Sawyer (2006:123, adapted)

3.3.1 The Person The person referred to in Sawyer's diagram is the individual, creator, artist, and/or designer. The person refers to previous experience, subject knowledge, historical subject knowledge, knowledge of skills and materials, to name a few, from the domain that provides the inspiration to the person or creator. It also includes intuition and perhaps the “latent talent” of the individual. It also accesses the person‟s cultural identity, and all that goes with this, as argued in the previous chapter. Earle (2007) refers to Purto (2004) when he argues that “...a person today must be fluent in the history, language, and tools of the past; this specific knowledge is essential to creating in a domain”. This is important knowledge, which is also subject-specific, and will empower the person or creator in the creation and submission of new results or products to the domain.

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Earle (2007) explains the role of knowledge in the creation of new ideas when he argues: Any new idea actually comes from a person or creator's experience and understanding of what existed before, what had previously been known in a domain. Thus, if one is to make a new creative combination, there must be knowledge of what has gone before it. Thus, in order for something “new” to come into a domain, it must refer to something from the past, the “old”.

3.3.2 The Field The field Sawyer refers to comprises of all the knowledgeable people, experts, and other members from a social group of representatives from a certain field who practise in that field and eventually will agree or disagree on whether a product is novel or not. When the field ultimately decides the creative work is novel, the work is published and therefore handed back to the domain. Earle (2007) points out that: Before the creative end product can be seen in a domain, a field (a social organisation that serves as intermediaries) must review it and recognise its worth. This group must make a determination if the creative end product is appropriate and novel. These individuals are made up of individuals who practice or support the domain. Recognition by these members is based on their individual judgement. And, this subjective view is influenced by personal experience, training, biases, values, and idiosyncratic preferences (Csikszentmihalyi, 1999:314). Without the approval of these members of a field, the work is not seen, distributed to the domain. The acceptance by the field becomes a truth test of creativity. In the end creativity cannot be considered useful, valuable, and novel if these intermediaries do not recognise its value. The creator alone is not the sole determinant.

3.3.3 The Domain In the domain Sawyer refers not to a small social group of knowledgeable people who decides whether products or processes are accepted or rejected (this is the task of the field), but to how the products are made, how the medium is manipulated and how the processes are practiced within a much larger group that holds the subject knowledge. Earle (2007) points out: “...past performance can have a large influence on what creative work is accepted by gatekeepers for the future”. Earle continues to mention that the domain is ever changing its views on “what is” and “what is not” creative. Some accepted creative works might have been accepted, novel or appropriate once, but these may also become “stale”, out dated or simply “old”. Earle continues: “It (the domain) is never static

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because the content and conventions continually change over time”. These changes can be affected by processes of hybridization, power shifts, acceptance of new technologies and technological developments and global trends, and of course the “inhabitants” of the field as defined above, to name a few. Finally Earle points out that “...in some cases validation by intermediaries (the field) is not always immediate” and that “the views and opinions of a field are not permanent or fixed”. The domain reflects the social, political, artistic, economic and cultural powers of any given time. Therefore it can be argued that the domain hosts and reflects national, social, cultural and individual identity changes, constructions and reconstructions, but only within a specific subject field. It can also be argued that in many cases the field approves or disapproves these changes, constructions and reconstructions.

The individual directly attempts to shape these

changes, but the individual is also imbedded in the national, social, cultural and individual identity dynamics of his or her time.

In Chapter 5 of this study the Sawyer model (refer to Diagram 3.3, page 59) will be used to investigate, analyse and explain the making of ELEVEN, an initial intuitive process that was embedded in the diagram as explained above. In ELEVEN design also functioned in a social context that comprised of the person, the field and the domain, as shall be argued below. Furthermore, in this study there are other key terms to consider apart from identity and design. Two of these terms, both manifestations and representations of culture, are fashion and haute couture. First the study will interrogate and explain this key cultural manifestation and then a further discussion on fashion and identity will follow.

3.4 Clothing and the Fashion Phenomenon

McDowell (1994:3) says:

“All fashion is clothing although, clearly, not all clothing is

fashion”. The difference between “fashion design” and “clothing design” lie in the words: “clothing” – “items worn to cover the body” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:

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137, 348, 478) and “fashion” – “a popular trend, especially in dress” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:1045). Therefore the concept “trend” [“a general direction in which something is moving” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:1045 and Stephens Frings, 1987:111)] is the core difference between “clothing” and “fashion”. Referring then to clothing design, the ideas of “constant change” and “trends” are not essential. In the case of fashion design the following of trends and constant change are ingredients which motivates the existence of industry while in the case of clothing design these ingredients do not necessarily determine the continuation nor drive the sector.

Nevertheless, when referring to traditional clothing design, the concepts “change” and “trends” may not be neglected, since they do occur. The term (traditional clothing design) suggests that “constant change” and “general direction” are not defining factors, as in the case of fashion design. These two factors (constant change and general direction/trend) do exist in traditional clothing design, but they are not determining the exact nature of the term as in the case of the term fashion design.

Fashion design, in its nature, subtly reflects the general direction of and constant change in “the social, political, economic and artistic forces of any given time” (Stephens Frings, 1987:111). Wolfe (2006:1) mentions: …finding and defining originality in fashion is an extremely difficult if not impossible task. Fashion trends today follow our shifting society; they are not invented on a runway. The runway reflects what is happening in our world. Economics, politics, weather, media, celebrities, demographics, sex and science all influence trends. All designers feed off this same information and inspiration, and hopefully interpret it in their own unique way.

Whatever people use to adorn themselves with in a fashion context (linked to trends and constant changing and following of trends) reflects the happenings of a certain period of time in a certain environment. There are many examples in the history of fashion that can be linked to social, political, economic and artistic forces of a specific time and in a specific environment. The use of sombre colours and military-style fashion details for Western

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ladies wear in the World Wars is one of the typical examples since it reflects the mood and spirit of the times. This links to Jenkyn Jones (2002:146) statement: “Fashion expresses the Zeitgeist, or spirit of times, and therefore mirrors changes in society”. Mans (2002: 254) offers: “Seen within the broad perspective of social, economic and political relations, culture is a dimension that comprises the underlying codes of behaviour, values, and systems of knowledge of societies”. These quotes acknowledge the fact that fashion in itself is a culture or a subculture with followers or interests that vary from those of any larger culture.

The fashion market offers consumers a very wide variety of products. The global market for textiles, clothing and all fashionable accessories is casually referred to as the “rag trade” and the “rag trade” is one of the biggest global markets. The “rag trade” or fashion trade offers consumers ready-to-wear merchandise in various price and quality levels. There are the international prêt-a-porter (ready-to-wear) designers and fashion houses offering up-market and expensive merchandise to consumers (Prada, Gucci, Dolce & Gabbana, Louis Vuitton, Strenesse to name a few) and then there are all the other fashion designers and manufacturers who offer all the various price levels below up-market (from Hennes and Mauritz or H&M to Lacoste, Lindex and Daniel Hechter to name a few). In South Africa there are ready-to-wear upper market designers offering merchandise to consumers (Gavin Rajah Gold/Silver, Klûk, Habits, Abigail Betz, Catherine Moore and Hip Hop to name a few) and all the other fashion designers and manufacturers who offer all the other price levels below that (Truworths, Foschini, Inwear, Guess and Mr Price to name a few).

3.5 Fashion, Identity and Self-identity

“Dress is an important part of our daily lives. Through clothing, individuals establish their sense of self as well as their place in society. The connections between dress and both

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the individual and collective identities continue to be of interest to scholars and practitioners in the world of fashion and dress” (Defining culture through dress: individual and collective identities, 2007). In general, it seems as if many academics accept that clothing and fashion are considered to shape identities. Koskennurmi-Sivonen (1998:261) notes:

“Identification with the clothes supports the wearer‟s identity”.

Fashion is

considered a cultural and sub-cultural construct and it forms a part of every person's culture since fashion is part of the everyday “things” (material culture, one of the ingredients of culture) most people use on a daily basis, not only to cover the body, but also, amongst others, to illustrate their identity. Brace (2003:124) notes: “Fashion is an instrument of cultural power, a form of communication; it communicates aspects of identity and the power of some identities over others”. Whether individuals or social and cultural groups are following fashion trends or not, their clothing undoubtedly “speaks” for them. From the clothing a person wears you can “read” that person's identity and one can even go as far as to say one can read the “power of some identities over others”.

According to Sporoles (quoted by Jenkyn Jones, 2002:20), there are certain “functions of dress” that relate to formations of identities and a person‟s need to express their identity. Therefore, clothing and also fashionable clothing is an important aspect of self-expression. Even within a society, culture or tribe, the need to differentiate oneself from the “same” or “other” exists in most humans (Van Wolputte, 2003:165). What a person wears to cover up can speak of cultural grouping, social affiliation, symbolic differentiation, modesty or immodesty, modernism, geographical location, the career that person follows and many more (Jenkyn Jones, 2002:19-21). Fashion can “speak” about people, but fashion can also fulfil many other human needs such as psychological self-enhancement, the need to “fit in”, the need to be perceived as an individual and the need to construct an identity of the self within the larger group, and this can all be achieved through what a person wears. Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk (1997:398) refer to an ancient saying: “A Greek philosopher (Epictetus, Discourses: Second Century) once said, 'Know first who you are; and then

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adorn yourself accordingly'”. This quotation clearly refers to knowing who a person is, where he/she belongs and who and what the influencing forces are in their outer peripheries (refer to Diagram 2.1, page 17). All of these refer to identity-issues, such as “who am I” and “in which social class do I belong”. To support this statement, I refer to Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk (1997:398) who note: “…most people dress to fit their selfimages, which include their perceptions of their own social-class membership”. Individuals are constantly negotiating between the dynamics that influence the construction of an identity (as illustrated in the object wheel, Diagram 2.2, page 46). These dynamics have an influence on the individual, yet the individual also influences again the dynamics in the outer periphery of the object wheel.

Mcdowell (1995) as quoted by Jenkyn Jones (2002:21) notes: “All fashion is clothing, although clearly not all clothing is fashion...We need fashion, rather than clothes, not to cover our nakedness but to clothe our self-esteem”. McDowell go so far as to say that it is not the clothing we use to merely cover our nakedness, but that it is the fashion we use to fulfil the other human needs such as to construct an identity or psychological selfenhancement. I argue that the psychological needs are mostly met through fashion, but the need to create identities is met also through cultural clothing. It is important to notice that cultural clothing is becoming more and more dynamic since cultural clothing adopts new cultural “trends” that are followed eagerly by the younger generations and I will go as far as referring to these as cultural fashion, since cultural “trends” are becoming more dynamic because they are more and more becoming subject to change. The interesting thing about fashion is the more dynamic trends become in a community, the faster trends will change, and consequently the faster trends will be followed. Many of these examples exist in Namibia, but these are not relevant for this study at this stage.

In order to enhance self-esteem (and I would argue, also their perceived acceptance into a community and therefore their sense of identity), people need to alter their appearances

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through the assistance of not only fashion but all the other novelties the international fashion industry offers. According to Jenkyn Jones (2002:5), “…individuals will strive to assert their own personal identity through the use of make-up, hairstyling and accessories”, even though the mass market offers plenty of similar fashion apparel, one would rarely see persons wearing exactly the same garments stylised in exactly the same way. According to Schiffman and Lazar Kanuk (1997:138), Sometimes consumers wish to change themselves to become a different or „improved‟ self. Clothing, grooming aids, and all kinds of accessories (e.g. cosmetics, jewellery) offer consumers the opportunity to modify their appearances and thereby to alter their „selves‟. In using „self-altering products‟, consumers are frequently attempting to express their individualism or uniqueness. Therefore, it can be accepted that individuals attempt to adapt, change or distinguish their identity and express their “new” identities via these avenues. It is clear that adapting between the senses (as outlined in Chapter 2, pages 38-43) occurs and, again, the sense of negotiation is at play.

3.6 The Designer and Identity

To explain how model 2.2 (refer to page 46) applies to an identity construction process, one first has to remember Brace's quote stating that although identities are being thought of as something that can be created, identity formations do not always manifest out of free will. Individuals are constantly negotiating and adapting according to the dynamics that can influence the construction of an identity (as illustrated in the object wheel, Diagram 2.2, page 46). These dynamics have an influence on the individual, yet the individual also influences again the dynamics in the outer periphery of the object wheel. This not only applies to the individual, but any object and even phenomena. Then the individual's identity is also shaped by the various senses that influence the shaping and making of an identity.

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Fashion and haute couture (the term haute couture is defined later in this chapter in section 3.7, page 68) present interesting identity formation phenomena. I will explain this while referring to Diagram 3.2 (page 57). People (in this case the designer), play a role in matters of thinking, finding inspirational ideas for fashion and the haute couture. In the case of a designer who involves him/herself with the act of designing, this leads to the development of new concepts for the fashion domain. To implement new concepts, the designer usually marries ideas (thinking, inspiration) and things (the medium) to develop new products for the fashion field during the design process. In fashion design these new concepts are often criticised for being irrelevant and “to gape at, rather than to buy” (McDowell, 1994:23), yet they are results of the action of design that involves work and experimentation with different media. These concepts have been developed by fashion and couture designers to express their ideas and consequently these concepts will be created and manufactured into new products. It can be argued that when involved with the action of designing, the designer use ideas and inspiration and things or the medium to consciously or intuitively create new concepts that lead to the creation of new products and consequently these are used to create new identities.

These new products are all objects that can be placed in the centre of the object wheel (refer to Diagram 2.2, page 46) and that means that these objects are all representations of identity and also, vice versa, these objects are influencing and used to shape and construct identities.

The designer involves him/herself with the creation, making,

manufacturing or implementation of new products that are nothing other than representations of identity. The result of the interaction between the designer and things (the medium) may lead to the creation of new identities or at least to the making or manifestation of existing identities, reshaped or reformed by the designer.

Díaz-

Kommonen (2002:91) argues that “The structuring of mediated relationships between object and maker is dependant on how the process of interiorisation manifests itself externally”. This argument relates directly to identity issues involving the designer and it

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illustrates how identity or “the process of interiorisation” is expressed or manifested in the making of the product. People use things to illustrate their identity as was mentioned previously and especially in the case of fashion design certain subcultures are formed to answer to the various psychological needs people have to express their identities. It further can be argued that people (or a society) depend on the things (material culture, in this case fashion, couture or haute couture) that are created by it and that will represent the society's identity (a good example is the French society and Paris's fashion identity). A society also expects from the designers working in that society/culture/community to create the new concepts that will lead to new products that are representations of the society's identity and the society can utilise these new products to continue shaping their identities.

3.7 Haute Couture, Couture and Couture Design

Apart from the ready-to-wear fashion industry the custom-made fashion trade also exists. The custom-made clothing industry, centred in France, was the only manufacturing option for clothing for centuries. Fashion as it is known today, is a 20th-century phenomenon (Seeling, 2000:9). Ready-to-wear fashion is a product of the modern day technological revolution. Custom-made clothing manifested as couture when Charles Worth, during the late 1800's, was the first dressmaker who could put any price tag on an evening gown. He became the first dressmaker who signed his clothing and his gowns were so popular that he could choose his clients and eventually he designed gowns for only the best looking and richest of customers. Charles Worth popularised the idea of couture and he was followed by Poiret, Vionnet, Dior and Yves St Laurent, to name a few.

“Haute couture translates literally as 'high dressmaking‟ or in American usage as 'high fashion'” (Stephens Frings, 1987:111). Jenkyn Jones (2002:25) offers: “Haute Couture is the top end of the market, built on the prestige and success of made-to-measure, hand-

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stitched, one-off outfits sold to the affluent and socially mobile”. Koskennurmi-Sivonen (1998:52) argues “Couture captures the ideas of art, design and craft”. The term haute couture clearly distinguishes itself from the term couture by indicating that it is of a high(er) level, serves a high(er) purpose or even that it needs high(er) skills, experience and knowledge to be executed. Haute couture does not only involve the skill of dressmaking, but something more/high(er). Haute couture is the highest peak in fashion, the result of the harmony created between all necessary ingredients such as skill, experience knowledge and tacit knowledge, ideas, concepts, experimentation, art, drama, passion, personality, history, individualism, background, culture and taste. An essential part of the “result of the harmony created” is identity (as argued in the last paragraph of the previous section). Moritz (2003) argues: “…haute couture (is) the high profile marketing tool that lures fashion followers to the brands”. While many brands have prêt-a-porter lines as well as make-up and accessory lines that serve as the bread and butter of the luxury goods industry, haute couture is has become the marketing tool that adds the drama and “lures the fashion followers to the brands”. The use and application of the term haute couture poses some problems, as will be explained in the discussion that follows.

The couture industry that originated in France, soon realized they had to protect their reputation since too many “unqualified” designers and dress makers claimed to be couturiers.

The French government realized the potential of protecting the age-old

custom-made clothing tradition that originated in Paris, and the protecting body of the French couture was initiated, namely the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne. France and especially Paris is associated with haute couture and “high fashion” and since Paris remained the centre of high dressmaking and fashion over the centuries; it constructed a big part of the Paris international identity related to fashion and couture. The Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne is the foremost of the organizations that regulate the standards, quality and practice of the couture houses (Waddell, 2004:4). Other similar organisations followed the model that was based on the couture house set

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up by Charles Frederick Worth – the Incorporated Society of London Fashion Designers in London; the Camera Nazionale dell‟Alta Moda Italiana in Florence and Rome; the Fashion Group International and the Council of Fashion Designers of America in New York (Waddell, 2004:4).

The fashion industry in general objects to the uncontrolled use of the term “haute couture”. It would not be the correct term to use according to the international protection of the French haute couture, the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne (KoskennurmiSivonen, 1998:284-285 and Stephens Frings, 1987:111). This term should be used in a controlled manner and respected as in the case of protected trademarks. Many rules and regulations regarding the use of the term and who may claim to call him-/herself a “haute couturier” are laid down by the Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne. Jenkyn Jones (2002:24) summarizes some of these rules and regulations when she mentions: “There are stringent rules for qualification and acceptance of membership of the federation; the business must have an atelier or salon in Paris, employ at least twenty fulltime staff and stage two collection showings of at least seventy-five outfits twice a year, during the spring and autumn”. It cannot be denied that “haute couture” will keep on serving as relevant term when referring to high quality dressmaking - it essentially means “the highest form of dressmaking”.

To understand the relevance of couture in today‟s world where mass production markets have become dominant by offering a huge variety of quality apparel to individuals, one has to look at the historic background of couture to better understand it. The history of couture is summarized according to McDowell's (1994:17) arguments when he states: “True Haute Couture was clothing made to the exact measurement of the client and fitted at least three times to ensure perfection. Couture was largely a tailor‟s art..., essentially an understated art form that was only fully appreciated by those who had taken the trouble

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to understand how clothes were actually made”. This statement of McDowell is supported by Waddell (2004:1, words in brackets added) when he argues: Another area where couture differs from ready-to-wear (prêt-a-porter) is the quality of make – how well the garment is manufactured. In this respect the haute couture garment can be likened to a work of art where every stitch, seam, hem and binding is of superb quality – so perfect that the finished item transcends dressmaking and becomes true craftsmanship.

More interesting technical detail concerning haute couture is given by Waddell when he mentions: “Although made by hand, the couture garment will have all its major seams sewn together by machine, but the finishing – hems, inside seams and linings – are done by hand”.

According to McDowell's discussion, mature, elegant women were the clients for whom the great couturiers of the past created. Clientele like these expected their clothes to give them dignity and class, but suddenly this perception started to change as women‟s attitudes started to change in the late 1950's when Brigitte Bardot appeared on the film scene. What women were after then was to be young, sexy and it was chic not to be chic. In the late 70's Christian Lacroix appeared on the fashion scene, “who seemed to be fashion‟s Prince Charming but who subsequently appeared to be nearer its Jack the Ripper” (McDowell, 1994:23). Lacroix put couture back at the top of the fashion agenda, although opinions about his design abilities were divided. Important to mention is that Lacroix had an immense and far-reaching effect on couture, since “everybody” who created dramatically embellished gowns and added the word “couture” to their label were producing a potential money-spinner. Even Gianni Versace produced a range with the semantically contradictory label „Jeans-Couture‟.

Ironically, at the same time the

professionals in Paris were reviving the true haute couture. It can be argued that the new couture was more about the catwalk show, more about showing off garments on beauty, film and music stars, more about the photography of the garments and a possible chance to publish them in a glossy magazine, than the actual selling and wearing of the garments.

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Fashion has become show business and that is why the couturiers continue to create memorable looks for the show. Modern European high fashion is said to become more and more like modern art that is “inward-looking and elitist and, most damagingly of all, laughable” (McDowell, 1994:35).

Leopold (1992:103) give another opinion regarding haute couture:

“…Revolutionary

changes (such as the Fordist production line)...bypassed the clothing industry. The dominance of couturier design, therefore, can be viewed as perpetuating a retrograde orientation in production which permeated all layers of dressmaking”. Couture will always remain, only if to a certain extent, relevant, due to the fact that it offers individual and expensive, up-market options to women.

The fact that couture influences new

dressmaking technique and innovations in fashion production technology means that it will always “permeate all layers of dressmaking” (Leopold, 1992:103). Also, one first has to change the outlook of women (who to a certain extent will rather leave a party instead of wearing the same frock as another woman since it obliterates their individuality and violates their sense of security) before anyone can finally write off couture.

Finally,

couture, as the innovation leader in the fashion industry, has shown itself to be willing to allow itself to be “exploited” through copying in order to “trickle down in cheapened form” (Leopold, 1992:115).

McDowell (1994:6, emphasis in the original) also offers the following point of view: It (fashion) is an overcrowded world. There are too many designers producing far too many ideas for a market which is finite. Too many of these ideas are derivative, but this alone does not mean that they will not succeed. Most of them are conceived to be sterile, were expected to be still born and have little purpose other than to fill a catwalk, utilize a certain material or point up a new direction. They are not put into production because they were never designed to be sold and, if they cannot be sold, they have no life expectancy beyond their brief moment in the spotlight of the designer‟s show. But they help sustain the appearance of unbridled creativity, and, incidentally, of consumer choice and they make fashion seem much more volatile and inventive than its true, conservative nature.

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As mentioned before, haute couture originates from Paris and France and as a result of the haute couture, Paris was able to create its international fashion identity. Paris created an identity for itself for the highest level of dressmaking and elegant, stylish fashion. It is interesting to mention the other international fashion capitals such as London, Milan, Tokyo and New York also established their international identities as a result of their fashion industries. London is known for its wild street fashions (punk, grunge etc.) and tailoring; Milan is known for its stylish simplicity in tailoring and leather fashions; Tokyo is known for new, bold-cut fashions created on totally different standards of workmanship and electrifying new shapes and New-York is known for leisure and easy life-style fashions. Each of these fashion capitals also carry a distinct haute couture identity: Paris brings creativity and sophistication to the couture shows (with designers such as Givenchy, Dior, Lacroix and Chanel); Milan brings femininity and elegance to the couture shows (with designers such as Versace and Valentino); London brings creative and shocking new approaches to haute couture (with designers such as McQueen and Galliano); New York brings easy-living, glamorous simplicity to the couture shows (with designers such as Mugler, Blass and Wang) and Tokyo brings the same strikingly new cuts they adopted in ready-to-wear to their couture (with designers such as Kenzo, Miyake and Mori).

Alongside haute couture, couture has become a term used worldwide and seemingly without so many objections, since it literally refers to “dressmaking”. The term couture seems to offer much wider scope, since it is not submitted to the protection or definition offered or given by an organisation (Koskennurmi-Sivonen, 1998:284-285).

When

comparing the Finnish fashion house tradition to that of Southern Africa, the concept of couture rather exists than haute couture and the creation process differs from French traditions as far as “immediate contact between the couturier/couturiere and the client exists”, “the same design has never been replicated for another client” and “that the toile (the first sample garment, usually stitched in calico or muslin) of an entire garment has only exceptionally been used” (Koskennurmi-Sivonen, 1998:285). I, therefore, prefer the

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use of the term “couture design” when referring in the study to uniquely designed and manufactured pieces. The term “couturier design” has been used by others such as Ash and Wilson and VOGUE.

The term “couturier design” can be misleading since once

translated, it directly reads as “designer design”.

Yet, the term “couture design”

distinguishes itself from the term couture and indicates that the design element or function has been used or implemented in the development processes of the garment and that the garment was not only a result of the “dressmaking” skill, but also of original design.

In this study I will investigate the making of ELEVEN's couture collection and all the dynamics that played a role in shaping the processes involved in the making. Couture design was the approach selected by the designer.

Couture design is the preferred

production approach of the designer and much experience was collected during the past 15 years of work in the Namibian fashion field.

The collection was intended for this

specific market section since the designer was more interested in the creation of unique pieces that would express a conceptualised “Namibian” identity than ready-to-wear pieces intended for selling and wearing. Therefore, the total area of product marketability was excluded from the processes involved in the making of ELEVEN.

The designer also

realised that many intricate craft applications, creation processes and special materials would hinder the marketability of the garments, simply because they would be too costly for the Namibian market.

Certain products were intended to become results of

experimentation, like the felted garments.

The designer realised in advance that the

selected felting material, karakul wool, is not suitable concerning wearability. Yet, since karakul wool is so closely related to Namibia and because of its certain texture, the designer did not want to exclude this material from the process experimentations. These were all factors that contributed to the decision to select a couture design production method.

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In this chapter I investigated how fashion and self-identity relate to each other and how the designer can become part of an identity creation process. Then I discussed the role and influence of haute couture and couture design and the importance of couture design in this study. In the next chapter I will discuss the key terms “Namibia” and “Namibian fashion” and I will conclude by discussing what the distinct Namibian design elements might be argued to be.

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CHAPTER 4

THE MATERIAL HALLMARKS OF NAMIBIAN IDENTITY RELATED TO CLOTHING AND FASHION

The theme of ELEVEN would be essentially Namibian. It would go to the very roots of the country, and it would highlight those elements – the natural environment and the people – that define the Namibia of today. They believe that the theme ELEVEN achieves this, as it is the natural environment that gives Namibia its character, and it is the people that give it its heart. Schoeman (press release, 2005)

This chapter will investigate the content that can be used to develop a representation of Namibian identity.

4.1 The Hallmarks of Namibian Identity

The key terms in this chapter are “Namibia” and “Namibian fashion”. These terms will form part of the theoretical framework of the discussion in this chapter. The discussion attempts to investigate aspects related to identity construction and the Namibian history. I focus on the research work of Mans, who earned her PhD in the Performing Arts and a part of her study investigated identity construction processes related to Namibian music. This work explores the bulk of the argument that I wish to make here, is thorough-going and comprehensive. As such her work can be considered authoritative. Then I continue to discuss the Namibian fashion history as I experienced it (which implies that the argument is based on observation and experience, but may be challenged for its anecdotal nature – nevertheless, there are few if any documented sources available in

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this area) during my involvement in the Namibian fashion field (since independence in 1990 until 2008) and what the distinct Namibian design elements are, or at least appear to be.

4.1.1 Namibia Archaeological and historic evidence has proven that the Namibian region has witnessed numerous movement and resettlement of groups of people from one area to another over the past few centuries.

Groups interacted with others peacefully or through conflict,

resulting in integration or separation (Mans, 2002:253).

According to the Wikipedia

encyclopaedia (Herero, 2007): During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Herero migrated to what is today Namibia from the east and established themselves as herdsmen. In the beginning of the 19 th century, the Nama from South Africa, who already possessed some firearms, entered the land and were followed, in turn, by white merchants and German missionaries. At first, the Nama began displacing the Herero; this led to bitter warfare between the two groups which lasted the greater part of the 19th century, but later both peoples entered into a period of cultural exchange.

Malan (1998:42) also refers to the migration of the early Namibian people and he argues: “According to their cultural tradition and passing down of knowledge, the Okavango people, likewise their Ovambo neighbours, migrated from the big lakes in East Africa to the northern area of Namibia”.

Yet most importantly, these interactions resulted in cultural changes in the past and they continue to result in cultural changes in the present. Mans (2002:262) argues: “We know that the socio-cultural interactions of colonialism, resistance politics and mission outreaches had great impact upon cultural development in Namibia”. During the 19th century colonial (from Swedish, German, Finnish, British, Portuguese origin and some Afrikaans Dorsland Trekkers from Dutch and French Huguenot origin) adventurers, traders, missionaries and settlers moved ever deeper into the territories occupied at that

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time by diverse agro-pastoralists and influenced social systems and cultural changes. Mans (2002:253) adds: Increasing mission stations and missionary activities across the country created a cultural environment where on the one hand 'foreign' religious music was introduced and on the other hand many indigenous musical practices were frowned upon and branded pagan. To ensure the continuation of the cultural practices deemed important by members, actions were taken to discard, maintain, restore, revive, create, merge or synchronise these practices within changing cultural environments (19th century). The same argument can be made concerning clothing and traditional clothing with the result that many forms of new cultural costume were adopted by most of the Namibian ethnic communities1 such as the Ovambo, Herero, Nama and Damara cultures. One of the most obvious examples why cultural attire underwent changes was the fact that it was not considered “decent” (according to Christian customs and enforced upon African communities by the missionaries) for women to expose their breasts and Western clothes were introduced to cover some of the cultures‟ “nakedness”.

Mans (2002:254) continues to argue:

“In Namibia, the institutions and laws of the

dominant (ruling) culture have been used to subjugate other cultures in subtle and not so subtle ways”. According to Brace (2003:123), other academics argue that “presumed certainties” of certain cultural identities “never existed and that identities have always been forged out of power relations and conflicting identity claims”. This underlines the previous argument that identity is “created and recreated through social and cultural processes” (Robertson and Richards, 2003:16).

Identity never offered an individual “certainty”,

although that might have seemingly been the case for some individuals who lived in very

“The term 'tribe' has no consistent meaning since it carries misleading cultural and historical assumptions. At worst it perpetuates the idea that African identities and conflicts are in some way more 'primitive' than those in other parts of the world. As a description of a group, 'tribe' means almost anything, so it really means nothing. One could argue that with the idea of tribe is an intellectually lazy approach. Using the idea of tribe instead of real, specific information and analysis of African events has never served the truth well” (Lowe, C., Brimah, T., Marsh, P., Minter, W. & Muyangwa, M., 2008). Thus, the term “tribe” should be avoided since it has taken on a colonial sense of inferiority or perhaps “less civilized”. The term “community” is preferred since “community” not only refers to a specific locality or social network, it also refers to the “subjective meanings which people attach to the place itself and to the social relations of which they are a part” (Williamson, 1985:118 as quoted by Verwijnen, 2004:27). 1

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protected communities where change and new ideas were not easily accepted by the community. Identities were always changing and recreated due to social and cultural processes such as hybridization, economic change, technological developments, international trends and other dynamics outlined in Chapter 2 (refer to the object wheel, page 46). The dominant culture in Namibia influenced the existing identities of Namibians so that new identities were forged and eventually recreated out of these power relationships.

In the 20th century the apartheid system also influenced social systems and cultural changes. Apartheid had a huge cultural isolation effect and Mans (2002:265) continues her argument: …the „otherness‟ of people with different cultural practices was emphasised. Apartheid eliminated democratic process. Separateness was emphasized and people of different cultures and languages were settled in 'homelands' and educated in Afrikaans language and their own languages, but they were not encouraged to integrate with members of different language or ethnic groups. Separateness, in some instances, led to cultural isolation.

Namibian people and their cultures retained that which was in existence, with little cultural integration of anything from outside the borders of the homelands. Ironically, the result was that these groups retained and developed many artistic qualities unique to their culture.

The cultural isolation varied from “complete stasis and closure to partial

restriction” (Mans 2002:265). This separateness was particularly evident in educational and social areas, but there was a mingling in the workplace, especially in the urban areas and industrial sectors such as the fisheries, mining and agricultural sectors, which became magnets for seeking employment. Mingling with other Namibian cultures in the work place resulted in the influencing of identities through the exposure to other or “new” influences from the dominant cultures.

The colonialists that came to Namibia during the later 19th century “escaped” from mainly Europe because of post-war political powers, the need for “Lebensraum” (space for living)

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and the pursuit of wealth. Their ascendants who later became Namibians due to the fact that they were born in Namibia (origin of birth), remained in the country and accepted Namibia as their home country, and were influenced by the numerous other Namibian cultures that are living in the Namibian geographical area. Kline Silverman (1999:52) [referring to Gewertz and Errington (1991) and Schmid (1990)] argues: ethnicity...alters local identity”.

“...national

This quotation explains the shift of power relations in

Namibia and due to Apartheid, power relations forged the creation of non-white Namibian identities.

After independence, when the SWAPO (South West African People's

Organisation) party gained power in the country and became the ruling party, identities were altered due to new or different power relations. These processes of hybridization in the Namibian society, resulting from political power shifts, demonstrate that a person or a society is never completely excluded from these power relationships that forge, alter and reshape identities.

Kline Silverman (1999:62) also argues:

“In traditional societies,

according to Igor Kopytoff (1986:89), persons and things have social identities and biographies; in complex societies their identities and biographies are highly individualised and unique”. I would argue that this is the case in the Namibian society where a complex history and many variations of cultures, social classes, geographical locations, ethnicities, communities and individuals exist.

4.1.2 Namibian Ethnicity vs Namibian Nationality

Namibia gained its independence on 21 March 1990. Malan (1998:13) argues: “After three years of attempting to build a nation with the aim to establish a mutual Namibian identity, several culturally driven claims for land and the establishing of kingdoms were raised”. Malan (1998:16) mentions that a conference was called to be held in Windhoek from 15-17 October 1993 to open the public debate on the theme “Ethnicity, the building of a nation and democracy in Namibia”, organised by the Namibia Institute for Democracy

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and the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung. According to Malan, the Namibian Prime Minister at the time, Hage Geingob, criticised ethnicity as a prejudicial and dividing factor in the Namibian community. In his speech the Prime Minister (Malan, 1998:17-18) continued to argue (and I quote extensively, as the argument is succinct and covers the problem well): Ethnicity is one of the most misleading and misinterpreted concepts of our times. Its urge to dominate races and tribes, minorities or racial and linguistic groups is evitable. Whatever the periphery of this term might be, most nations are aware that ethnic differences are shaping the character of a nation and at the same time ethnic differences conceal and carry the seeds of misunderstanding, disagreement and dispute and tragedy. History witnessed this tragedy on various continents and eras. Unfortunately the evidence is present that centrifugal forces are working to separate the Namibian nation. These forces attempt to separate people on ethnical grounds. Yet, tribalism is an international occurrence and all people need affiliation with others and the need to belong to a local community. Yet it does not mean that Namibia needs kingdoms. What Namibia needs is affiliation within a social and cultural context. The essential concept to affiliate with a nation, does not contradict the necessity to affiliate with a culture. Therefore, one can be a Herero and a Namibian or an Ovambo and a Namibian or a Nama and a Namibian. I myself am proud to be Damara and Namibian. The conflict is created when these two concepts become separating forces. ...for too long we have considered ourselves Hereros, Namas, Afrikaaner, Germans, Ovambo. Now we have to see ourselves as Namibians. This emphasis must become evident in political as well as economic domains. If we do not start to think accordingly, we will submerge this nation into political and economic chaos. ...this requires a national identity that puts an end to all other identities. Therefore, we have to guard against the emphasis on ethnicity that will undermine national identity, the most important of all.

The challenge after Namibian independence is clearly how to forge the disparate ethnic groups within the region into a nation-state in which citizens would identify as Namibians. Thus, the call is for Namibians to identify with the nation as well as with their respective individual ethnic groups. Many Namibians nowadays trace their family heritage to more than one Namibian ethnic group and many Namibians live not only within but beyond their ethnic and cultural boundaries. In order to achieve this, identities have to coexist at different levels and identities have to be flexible and able to change. On the other hand identities can also be forged and changed through these intricate social systems where different identities have to coexist. In order to associate with the self a person is often forced into a social system where split allegiances are the order of the day. Associating with the self also means that a person has split allegiances between all the identitybuilding forces such as age, religion, culture, community and so on (refer to the object

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wheel in Diagram 2.2, page 46). Our identities are constantly changed and reconstructed through different social processes and therefore our identities are constantly on the move, changing, negotiating and adapting (Brace 2003:122). In order for Namibians to have split allegiances between being a Namibian and a Herero or being Namibian and an Ovambo, identities need to be “fluid, dynamic and always in a state of flux”. This inevitably will lead to hybridization and a person's identity guides that person's tacit knowledge on how to accomplish being for example a Namibian and a Herero or a Namibian and an Ovambo and so on.

4.1.3 The Namibian Attitude towards “Modern” Material Culture

The statement of Jenkyn Jones (2002:21) is relevant for Namibia history of clothing when she says: “Dress can be used to express modernity.

Our acceptance of

modernity...serves as an indicator of our creativity, adjustment and preparation for the future”. Cohodas (1999:145) quotes Richard Wilk (1991:3): ... the modernization paradigm, (is) a polar opposition of the modern (characterised by technology, progress, capitalist commerce, industrialization, alienation from nature, materialism) and the premodern or primitive (characterized by precapitalist forms of production and change, adherence to tradition, closeness to nature, spiritualism). The paradigm constructed temporal gaps, dividing the contemporaneous lifestyles and practices of the world's peoples into categories relevant either to the past (premodern) or to the future (modern). Namibians were adopting “modern” European-colonial practices such as religion, food, technology and clothing. In Namibia the men's absence from the cultural household, due to labour contracts on farms, mines and factories, resulted in the fact that women were forced to accept stronger roles in agricultural and household activities, the running of dayto-day affairs and women even became involved in “local governance and economic selfmanagement” (Mans 2002:264). Men working away from home were exposed to men and women from other cultures and this also resulted in diverse changes of cultural and social profiles, hence resulting in the recreation of identities through hybridization. Hybridization and the effect subjugation by the dominant culture had on other Namibian

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communities brought about the production of hybridized material culture. Ruth B. Philips (1999:46) argues: “...to portray their own ethnicity in ways that coincided with the views of the dominant society, the 'submissive societies'...have been able to produce their ethnicity in terms that were acceptable to the politically dominant classes and at the same time made sense in their own eyes”.

If the modern creates a “progressive, globalization” dynamic while the premodern creates a “conservative, inward-looking” dynamic, then the decisions made in the hybridization process are affected accordingly.

If diagram 2.1 (refer to page 17) is once more

considered, then the outer peripheries of the socio-cultural model are exposing the individual to new ideas, concepts and objects. These new ideas, concepts and objects are at this stage “foreign” to the individual and therefore it is “modern”. These new ideas, concepts and objects are trickling through all the layers and peripheries of the sociocultural model, where it finally reaches the individual. If the individual has a personal modern or premodern approach, the idea will either be accepted or rejected, depending on how the individual can use and apply the ideas, concepts and objects to assist in the shaping of that particular individual's identity. Individuals can also choose to accept some parts of these new ideas, concepts and objects and apply it in a hybridized manner so that it portrays their own identity “in ways that coincided with the views of the dominant society (outer peripheries)” and builds their individual identities in terms that are acceptable to their outer peripheries (dominant society) and at the same time makes sense to them as individuals with personal identity needs. The opposite is also true where the process is reversed and the new ideas, concepts and objects are introduced by the individual and these then trickle through all the peripheries where they reach the outside layers of the socio-cultural model, namely the own culture and even other cultures.

Similar

hybridization processes will be followed as discussed above.

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“When men returned home periodically and usually after long periods of absence they brought gifts with them that effected changes in the form of material goods – homelands came in contact with new material cultures since new and different objects were introduced to the family and local community” (Mans 2002:264). These material goods that were brought to the homelands as gifts were usually objects from Western cultures such as radios, household objects, clothing, shoes and accessories. Since there was “status attached to returning home with cash money and new objects”, usually considered luxury items, “the objects was imbued with added status and being more 'now', and more fashionable” (Mans, 2002:264). Western clothing in Namibia is believed to be suggesting “development” as much as brick houses suggest development above the mud houses, especially in the rural areas. Namibians‟ apparent interest in attaining good quality and expensive Western and cultural clothing, attire and fashion, as well as other Westerninfluenced modern novelties and devices is surprising once the true current social realities (unemployment, poverty, HIV/AIDS infection rates) of Namibians become clear.

This

statement is clarified and explained further by the statement of Jauch (2002:27) when he mentions:

“Although reliable data is scarce, indications are that an average of 5-8

dependants rely on each worker's wage for their survival” -- though this phenomenon is seen rather in the urban areas, the rural settlements are quick to follow these trends. Although resources seem to be scarce in many Namibian households, Namibians tend to be interested in attaining expensive Western and cultural clothing.

Presently Namibians (and as I move closer to the consideration of the design project ELEVEN I include myself inevitably in the argument on more and more overt ways, as I am a Namibian) experience the subtle reflection or even intense effects of globalization, the worldwide media and the travel industry on economic, political and cultural practices within the region (Mans, 2002:253). Once again, the exposure to new cultural, social, political and even economic changes will have an influence on the creation or recreation of identities in Namibia. Talavera (2002:333) adds:

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Large scale behavioural change has taken place in Namibia over the past few decades. Starting in the 1980's with the struggle for independence, it gained momentum with the New Dispensation and finally with the emergence of the newly formed republic. The first wave of change provided many new opportunities for travelling and interacting with people who had previously been confined to certain areas.

These will result in processes of hybridization since Namibian cultures, previously confined to certain areas, now have the opportunity to meet other Namibian cultures.

The clothing design changes (usually slowly) of Namibian cultures came about as a result of the seemingly overpowering pursuit by the dominant culture and the changing perceptions of what is to be considered as “modern” in a particular ethnic group. An example is the Herero cultural attire of the 1850‟s -- resembling the Himba cultural attire – which was dramatically different from what became “modern” Herero dress some 50 years later when Herero women adapted their dresses to western influences.

The Herero

imitated their cultural costume (fitted bodices, full gathered skirts and leg-o‟-mutton sleeves) from the Victorian style dresses of the missionary women who came to Namibia in the late 19th and early 20th century (Bannister and Johnson, 1978:113; 210).

Since then, Herero cultural attire hasn‟t undergone dramatic change. A century after changing to the Victorian-inspired attire, only minor changes occurred. Slight changes occurred in the width of the skirts since they became fuller over the time and nowadays Herero women wear six layers of petticoats under their dresses.

The style lines of

bodices became more structured and sleeve patterns and details are changed regularly. Sleeves also became fuller and larger to balance the dramatic width of the full skirts and accessories like headgear are adapted according to “trends”. The headgear used to be a cloth covering the head and tied in a particular way, but as from the last half of the twentieth century it was changed to resemble the horns of cattle. The basic silhouette of the Herero cultural attire remained the same, yet it became slightly more dramatic and voluminous as time has passed. It may be argued that the Herero cultural dresses of the

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later twentieth century depict a more “Victorian” dress style because of the full skirts and sleeves, yet the cinched and belted waist remained part of the Herero cultural dress silhouette.

With no past textile tradition like for example weaving (referring to cloth only - basketry is a well-known Namibian craft) and batik as practiced in West Africa, Namibian ethnic groups initially, since origins, used a by-product of animal husbandry, namely leather, to produce cultural attire and clothing. With the introduction of woven cloth in the Namibian tribes by Portuguese traders and European-imported woven textiles by the missionaries and other Westerners as from the last half of the nineteenth century, interest in clothing produced from woven textiles developed. With a keen interest to decorate, enhance and accessorise, Namibian ethnic groups mainly use available natural materials - ostrich egg shell, bone, seeds and other – to create adornments.

To name only a few examples, the Ovambo culture uses hand dyed, pink ostrich beads (Hoberman, 1999:47-48; 89) and Portuguese-imported pin-stripe cotton cloth as part of their contemporary cultural attire. The Himba use “otjise” (red ochre) to colour their calf and goat skin clothes (Blauer, 1999:7; 162). “Otjise” mixed with milk fat also adorns and protects the skin of the Himba (Schoeman, 2003:4; 6).

Depending on availability of

textiles and second-hand clothing, the Nama use old European clothes and cotton cloth (usually printed with fine floral motifs, especially for Nama ladies and girls), and with the colourful “laslappie” (patch work) and embroidery techniques, they create Nama cultural attire (Schoeman, 2003:4; 6). Herero women also use the patchwork technique to create their colourful traditional dresses, as well as fragrant natural beads to create accessories like necklaces (Hoberman, 1999:47-48; 89). The San use colourful beadwork on leather, ostrich eggshell and seeds to make their cultural attire and accessories (Bannister and Johnson, 1978:113; 210). The San obtained their colourful plastic beads from Portuguese traders.

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These natural materials have been used since documentation of these traditional cultural clothing details commenced and are still used today as part of the cultural attire of the Namibian tribes. These changes and trends occurring in all the different Namibian cultural attire are part of the traditional clothing design elements that exist in Namibia, a valuable ingredient of Namibian material culture.

4.2 Namibian Fashion

I will continue to discuss Namibian fashion to provide a solid overview of this area. This will allow me to better place the ELEVEN couture design collection within this framework. Since “National style does not evolve around a single designer‟s intention to portray a certain countries traditions” (Aynsley 1993:31-32), it is very important to offer an objective view of past Namibian fashion design and the fashion design efforts of knowledgeable Namibian fashion designers of the past. Since 1995, and even earlier, some Namibian fashion designers experienced the need to express a “new” reconciled “Namibian” fashion identity. Fashion provides the opportunity to individuals to demonstrate and express their identity. After independence in 1990, it became a fundamental need for Namibians to express a new Namibian identity in order to express the self within a new reconciling social system. Fashion design not only offers the end user/consumer an opportunity to express the self, but it also offered Namibian fashion designers the opportunity to experiment and find a new “Namibian” fashion design identity that could be adopted and used by Namibians to express the self within a Namibian context.

The African fashion design renaissance of the mid-nineties swept from South and West Africa to other African countries and abroad: also to Namibia. In a growing process, with the participation of the media and via the beauty contest M-NET Face of Africa, the fashion extravaganza FIMA (Festival International de la Mode Africaine), South African Fashion Week (SAFW), Cape Town Fashion Week (CTFW), the Miss Namibia Pageant

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and many other designer competitions and fashion fairs, the establishment of a Namibian fashion domain was encouraged.

Since 1995, a number of Namibian designers (myself included), working somewhat isolated from each other, slowly started to build what seemed to be a certain “new” identity in fashion design. Although Namibian designers were not operating in well-established Namibian-owned couture houses, this new focus on the creation of what one may call a Namibian fashion design identity (deriving mainly from the cultural heritage and rich material culture of Namibia) steered the pursuit of a market in the clothing industry. This market cannot be identified as mass production clothing, but rather as a couture design market. The reason for that is because no Namibian designer manufactures fashionable clothing in mass quantities. Some small- to medium-sized factories exist, but they do not liaise with Namibian designers but manufacture mostly for South African companies or they produce school and other uniforms and protective clothing.

From past couture design collections created it is evident that the strong influence of Namibian material culture is an important source of inspiration for Namibian and other fashion designers.

Examples are the efforts of established and upcoming fashion

designers who have contributed to the process of “defining” the Namibian fashion of today, such as the work of Mikael Kra with his Pearls of the Kalahari Collection (2003); Wilmien Chamberlain with her Himba-inspired CTFW Collection (2004); Maria Caley with her Kavango-inspired Collection (2004) and my own works such as the FIMA collection (1998), African Mosaique Collection (1999), Kalahari Wild Silk Collection (2005) and Nokia CTFW Collection (2005).

During the period 2006 until 2008, the Pambili Association, a craft design association with the objective (Pambili Mission Statement, 2007) to create capacity building and marketing opportunities for young Namibian designers and craft producing communities, initiated the

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participation of Namibian young designers in the Finnish fashion trade fair Muoti. This coincided with the Finnish Embassy in Namibia's drive for the promotion of their campaign “Aid to Trade”. The Finnish Embassy in Namibia, also the primary donor to the Pambili Association, was the donor for this capacity building and marketing initiative. This initiative strengthened the position of existing young Namibian fashion designers such as Maria Caley, but it also brought about the emergence of new young Namibian fashion designers such as Chakirra Claasen and Jacques Guto.

4.3 Elements in Defining the Namibian Fashion Design Identity

Design elements are defined globally in different ways. According to Oei and De Kegel (2002:7), the elements of design are: colour, texture, form and shape. Stephens Frings (1987:111) refers to elements of design as: colour, fabric, line, shape and detail. Other sources add function to the list of design elements.

From the interviews conducted with knowledgeable people about the distinct Namibian design elements, it is clear the more natural colours, textures, fabrics and details are the elements distinctively contributing to the creation of a Namibian design identity. The manner in which Namibian designers combine and apply these elements by using their own experiences, skills and learning in the application process additionally contributes to the creation of a Namibian design identity. In the interviews, elements line, form, shape and function were elements not critically discussed by the interviewees (knowledgeable Namibian designers).

The Namibian Tourism Board (NTB) published a booklet titled Branding Namibia - A Practical Guide (Advantage McCann, 2005). Research has been conducted by the NTB and visitors from Namibia's primary markets and Namibian stakeholders have been

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interviewed during 2004. Interestingly, the outcome of the NTB research revealed that the "elements" colour and texture were also chosen/identified as the two primary elements that contribute to the "Namibian mood" (Advantage McCann, 2005, section 07).

4.3.1 Colour The individual quotes derive from the interviews conducted in July 2005 at the National Art Gallery of Namibia with the knowledgeable people in the Namibian fashion and textile domains. These interviews will be referred to collectively and have been captured on tape and are in the researcher‟s possession. One of the most identified design elements in all the interviews is colour. Sources for colour references used by designers are mainly Namibian cultural attire (e.g. Himba, Herero, Nama, Kavango and others) and the Namibian environment (e.g. landscapes, deserts, rocks, ocean, water, sunsets, fauna and flora).

Says Sweetness Ndwandwa-Mubita (2005):

“Elements…the colours, natural

colours that compliment Namibia as a country”. Lizl Louw (2005) added: “…colours like orange, olive and lime green, sandstone and rich burgundy red…”.

Namibian young

designer Maria Caley (2005) added: “Elements are colour…natural colours…not bright colours yellow, pink and orange.

Colours that go with the desert in Namibia…”.

Schimming (2005) also adds: “We (referring to practicing Namibian fashion designers) all are inspired by the Namibian sunsets and the dunes”. The colours relating to the sunsets vary through pinks, blues, oranges, yellows and silver and gold. The Namibian designers referred to sand, beige (nude), corn yellow, white, orange, burnt orange, brick, stone, terracotta, burgundy red, blue, olive and lime green and purple.

From my work

experience in the Namibian fashion field and domain, colours black, turquoise, cream, ochre and browns have to be added to the list of “Namibian” colours. These colours (as mentioned above) belong to the colour categories referred to as primary, natural and earthy colours.

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Image 4.1 (“A lone Oryx antelope”-- A Windows Vista sample picture)

Image 4.2 (Photograph by the author)

In Image 4.1 and 4.2 the Namibian deserts and sunsets offer the viewer colours such as rich terra cotta, orange, burnt orange, clay orange, slate purple and copper.

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Image 4.3 (Photograph by the author) In Image 4.3 the autumn Mopane forest offer the viewer plenty of colours such as ochre, orange, brown, terra cotta, forest and olive green.

Image 4.4 (Photograph by the author) In Image 4.4 the sunset at a traditional Ovambo homestead offers colours such as black set off against burnt orange, pastel orange, slate purple and grey-blue.

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Image 4.5 (Photograph by the author) In Image 4.5 the Makalani palms set off against a soft pink and blue late afternoon sky offers viewers various pastel hues such as beige, ivory, corn yellow, sage green and pastel olive green, pink, grey and blue.

Image 4.6 (Photograph by the author) In Image 4.6 the Oshanas (clay pans gathering water in summer time) in late summer offer viewers colours such as beige, sage green, pastel grey-blue, olive and forest green, ochre, pastel blue and periwinkle blue.

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4.3.2 Texture (fabric) and detail Textures in fashion design and other design areas would “generally” refer to the raw materials and the technique used in the manufacturing/production of the product and also the visual effect created and reflected by the outer surface of the product. Therefore textiles, fibres and other raw materials and the techniques for using them would be important references when discussing texture in fashion design.

Namibian designers referred to goat and cow skin, leather, ondelela (striped cotton textile used by the Ovambo culture in their traditional attire), Shwe-shwe (cotton printed fabric – white and yellow prints on primary red, blue, and brown – traded to Namibians via the Portuguese traders) feathers, ostrich eggshell, porcupine quills, beads and local seeds as “Namibian” raw materials. These materials have been used in the collections produced by Namibian designers since 1995 and are the raw materials that inspire most of the Namibian fashion designers. It is clear that the same sources for colour references are applicable for textures, deriving from the Namibian cultures and the Namibian environment.

Textiles used by designers should be added to this discussion.

Referring to the

interviews conducted in this research, Wilmien Chamberlain (2005) mentions: “Textiles inspire us…the playfulness of the material”. Louw (2005) referred to sheer, see-through textiles that remind her of water, a source of inspiration for her CTFW collection of 2003. Says Caley (2005): “How you feel about the landscape has to tell you what textiles you would use….the „feel‟ plays a role…you would use a soft textile if you look at the desert”. Cynthia Schimming (2005) referred to my Kalahari Wild Silk Collection (2005) when saying:

“It is very Namibian…also the colours (natural/earthy) you chose are totally

Namibian” (Kalahari Wild Silk is wild silk spun from the cocoons of the “brandwurm” and woven into a textile with a unique appearance).

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During the interview conducted with Caley (in July 2005) she stresses the importance of hand-dyed/-painted/-printed textiles to create uniquely Namibian textiles, a method she uses when creating her Kavango-inspired collections.

Her pattern references are

obtained from Kavango basketry, woodwork and pottery. Referring to her prints Caley (2005) says: “I try to simplify it so that people want to buy it; I try to westernise it”. She adds: “Hand painting is like putting a signature on the textile…it is unique because it is like hand writing…I do it with my own hands…if someone tries to copy it, it would not look the same”. I also started experimenting with textile decoration techniques since early 2004 and I find this is a way of adding Namibian-inspired elements into a textile. A fashion designer can create the textile he/she needs in the process of creating a garment related to a specific identity. By doing so a designer can add his/her own experiences, skills and learning (as well as his/her identity) in the creation process of the textile and finally also the garment.

This also assists in finding ways around what cannot be

purchased or otherwise obtained textile-wise.

Leather is the textile mentioned by all designers. Most designers have used some form of leather in a collection produced since 1995. Says Schimming (2005): “Inspired from the Himba people I used natural cow and goatskin, but not refined – even with holes in it”. Chamberlain also used plenty of natural and dyed goatskin in her CTFW collection (2004). Other examples are the collections from Louw for CTFW (2004) in which she used goat and cow leather, and my African Mosaique collection (1999) in which I used goat, seal and ostrich leather. In all these applications, the designers preferred using the “more rugged look” or the “not so refined” look.

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Image 4.7

Image 4.9

Image 4.8

Image 4.10

In Images 4.7, 4.8, 4.9 and 4.10 the Namibian landscapes offer the viewer a broad variety of textures and details as seen in the images above. Textures vary from smooth textures such as seen in the water, almost “liquid” sky, smooth clay and desert sand to the rough textures offered by the silt, dry mud, thatch, rock, stone, wood, foliage and dried grass. (All photographs by the author)

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Also important to discuss is how other raw materials are used to change the surface of a textile, therefore adding to the unique texture of a garment. Raw materials like glass, natural and ostrich eggshell beads, feathers, sea shells and more have been used to create unique textured effects.

Also porcupine quills have been used in various

applications. I developed a quite recognizable embroidery technique in which I utilised all abovementioned raw materials to add texture and detail to my collections.

Says

Ndwandwa-Mubita (2005) about my works: “You use a unique beading technique, for example the use of eggshell beads and feathers – it is not popular in South Africa, and in Europe they have not seen anything like that”. Caley (2005) and Schimming (2005) also refer in the interviews to my technique as “unique” and “Namibian”.

In this chapter the elements line, form, shape and function have not been discussed. This is a direct result of the research conducted in this study and it is worthy to mention that none of the candidates interviewed referred to other elements apart from colour, texture and detail. There may be various reasons for this outcome and further research may reveal what the reasons for this outcome were. A logical explanation is certainly that the elements colour, texture and detail are the most prominent “Namibian” elements applied by the Namibian designers. These three elements are the most prominent elements used by knowledgeable Namibian fashion designers to shape a Namibian fashion identity. In Chapter 6.1 and 6.2 (refer to pages 135-138) I explain how the other elements line, form and shape are present in Namibian design, depending on the application by the designer. Although it seems that Namibian designers are using and applying only three elements (colour, fabric and detail), “hybrid elements” result in the coexistence of the other “absent” elements (line, form and shape). This occurrence is interrogated in chapter 6.

In this chapter I discuss Namibian history that relates to identity formation and the history of Namibian fashion as I experienced it during my involvement in the Namibian fashion field (since independence in 1990 until 2008) and I continued the discussion by looking at

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what the distinct Namibian design elements are. In the next chapter I will discuss the photography and fashion/couture design project of Amy Schoeman and myself, and I will demonstrate how the design diagrams of Chapter 3 (Diagrams 3.2, page 57 and 3.3, page 59) applied to the creation of ELEVEN.

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CHAPTER 5

ELEVEN – FROM LANDSCAPE TO COUTURE DESIGN

The ELEVEN project is a fusion of fashion design and photographic images aimed at creating a modern interpretation of Namibia‟s eleven cultural groups. Each group is represented by an environmental image comprising different combinations of sand, rock, water, cloud and sky. Schoeman (press release, 2005)

In this chapter I will consider the notion of the landscape (in general) and then demonstrate how ELEVEN and landscapes interface. I will outline what landscapes are, how they relate to identity shaping and how landscapes can serve as inspiration for couture design. Finally I will discuss the process of design, with specific reference to ELEVEN that resulted from this knowledge and I will investigate the dynamics that influenced the identity shaping of the ELEVEN couture collection.

5.1 Landscapes

A discussion on how landscapes relate to culture and identity is needed before the selection of the ELEVEN photographic images of Schoeman and the creation of the couture collection of Harteveld Becker can be discussed. To clarify the term “landscapes”, a thorough explanation of the different meanings of the term must be given. One source mentions: “Landscapes are experienced open spaces. In the case of 'landscape' the various dictionaries usually state variations of the following: (a) the landforms of a region in the aggregate surface; (b) a portion of territory that can be viewed at one time from one place and (c) an expanse of scenery that can be seen in a single view” (About a definition

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of landscape, S.a.). The Morris' Word Detective offers the following: “Landscape come to us from the Dutch word 'landschap'. ...'landschap' was originally, and still is, a painting term, meaning a picture of scenery.

The English 'landscape' also first described a

painting, and only in the 17th century came to mean the countryside itself” (About a definition of landscape, S.a.). The dictionary denotes many meanings to the word, namely that a “landscape” is (a) “all the visible features of an area of land”; (b) “a picture representing an area of countryside”; (c) “the distinctive features of a sphere of intellectual activity;” (d) “denoting a format of printed matter that is wider than it is high” and (e) [verb] “improve the appearance of a piece of land by changing its contours, planting trees and shrubs” and so forth (Readers Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:542).

In this

discussion I will consider only the meaning of (a) and (b).

The word “landscape” refers to two fundamentally different, but interrelated things. The “visible features of an area of land” [definition (a)] may be what we would refer to as physical nature with rocks, sand, dust and vegetation which a person can experience physically when one drive through it, observe it or when one steps out of a car to “step into” it. Miettinen (2007b:256) argues that: “...visuality is the most embodied sense. What we see depends on our position. Pictures of the Namibian landscape concern not only glancing at the landscape from the privacy and protection of a car but stepping into the landscape...”. The physical landscape hosts the community and the power relations, hidden or obvious, of and from that community.

It may further be argued that a

community thus draws its identity from the landscape with its related power structures. In this dissertation I will refer to the physical landscape as landscape-nature where there might be some semantic or referential confusion from the context of the sentence.

On the other hand landscapes refer to the “picture representing an area of countryside” [definition (b)], usually a two-dimensional artistic representation of a landscape or a “view”.

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This “view” that is represented in an artistic two-dimensional work has been “filtered” in a selection process by the artist and consequently it has been manipulated by paint brushes, lenses, filters and so on. It may further be argued that the artist‟s identity plays a role in the selection, filtering and, consequently, the manipulation processes involved in the creation of the landscape. In this dissertation I will refer to the artistic representation of a landscape as landscape-art where there might be some referential confusion.

To continue the discourse on landscapes, Brace (2003:121) touches on the next relevant point when she argues, one “...cannot privilege material landscape as being more important and meaningful than landscapes depicted in works of art or on film...All these are important when we come to think about how people make sense of who they are and the social relations that structure their lives”. It is very important to mention that material landscapes and artist representations of those landscapes are equally relevant and they are all important to illustrate the social relations that structure people's lives. Miettinen (2007:255) offers the following on physical landscapes (nature): “Cultural narration is always included in a landscape”. This refers to the cultural information that a landscape (nature) offers or stories it “tells”, including all the hidden information such as the “social relations that structure” members of that culture's lives. The members of a culture are embedded in and embed a landscape in nature. The landscape assists the members of the culture to “make sense of who they are” and this is exactly part of the information the landscape narrates, namely who the members are that forms part of that specific culture.

Berlo also (1999:179) offers a relative point of view when he says: “There is no one truth, only multiple points of view that shift as rapidly as artistic and social situations shift”. The relevance of this statement in this discussion is that various points of view are represented by a landscape (both nature and art). These include the hidden relationships of power that are lurking in a landscape and how they were interpreted by the artist who created the

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landscape (art) or by the viewer who perceives the landscape (both nature and art) as relevant or irrelevant, according to “how artistic and social situations shift”. Brace (2003: 125) also adds an interesting point of view when she argues that “Landscape is not neutral but is coded as feminine, as is nature”. This is an important characteristic of landscapes (both nature and art) since it is an important “hidden” element that was present in the making of the ELEVEN couture collection.

Robertson and Richards (2003:4) offer the following on landscapes (art): Landscapes projects and communicates that view (of the way in which the world should be organized) to the remainder of the society who accept that view as natural – one of the ways this is done is thorough symbols written into the landscapes. Landscapes then, reveal, represent and symbolize the relationships of power and control out of which they have emerged and the human processes which have transformed them. And landscapes are cultural images that often hide the processes that have made them – social, political, economic, spiritual – behind a placid and familiar surface.

This means that landscapes (art) projects and communicates the view of how the artist feels the world should be organized to the society who accepts this representation of the landscape (art) as “natural” and therefore relates or identifies with it. The artist uses symbols that are written into the landscape (art) to project this view.

Therefore,

landscapes (art) reveal, symbolize and represent the relationships of power and control that formed the background of their (landscapes-art) creation.

Landscapes (art) also

reveal the human processes that were involved in their creation (via the assistance of brushes, filters or lenses) and these also refer to relationships of power and control. However, landscapes (art) are cultural images or products that attempt to hide the processes that contributed to their shaping and making. Robertson and Richards (2003:3) also refer to Williams who offered that “all landscapes are cultural products”. Behind the natural and familiar surface of landscapes (art), or cultural objects or products, processes of social, political, economic and spiritual constructs are lurking.

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Rose (2003:167) continues to say: “...spectators bring their own subjectivities, histories and geographies to a landscape, and it is their viewings of it that gives it its significance (or, indeed, irrelevance)”. Thus one can conclude from that people experience and view landscapes (both nature and art), whether in the material sense or as in art or captured on film, in an individual and personal way.

This view is shaped by past and present

experiences as named by Rose above. It is how we experience landscape (both nature and art) that makes the landscapes significant.

According to Robertson and Richards (2003:3-4) the view initiated by Raymond Williams is that all landscapes can be viewed as cultural products.

Therefore, the eleven

photographic images selected by Schoeman to be used in ELEVEN can be viewed as cultural products. The photographic images selected were not only “cultural products”; they are landscapes that each represent a specific ethnicity that is part of Namibia (referring to the eleven ethnic groups).

In summarising landscapes (both nature and art), one has to understand that landscapes are cultural products in which certain power relations (social, political, economic, spiritual) are embedded, no matter whether they are material landscapes or landscapes that have been captured in an art work.

Language also suggests (perhaps contentiously) that

landscapes also represent feminine characteristics such as nature does. How individuals interpret landscapes has to do with how they experience the landscape and consequently how they interpret the landscape according to artistic and social situations.

5.2 The Relationship between an Identity Creation Process, Landscapes and Schoeman's Photography

The discourse on landscapes (art) is continued when Mitchell (quoted by Brace 2003:

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123) considers a landscape (art) a “process by which social and subjective identities are formed” and Brace (2003:121) also shares this view when she says: “Landscapes are not passive but operate as part of the intricacies of social relations, including identity formation”. As mentioned, landscapes are viewed as cultural products. These cultural products are not passive, but active processes that lead to social and subjective identity formations. Robertson and Richards (2003:16) add: “Landscapes also help to 'picture' identity”. Therefore, landscapes (art) refer to the visual manifestation of identities that can be viewed as cultural, social or subjective.

Brace (2003:128) continues to say: “Landscapes are undoubtedly very important to the construction of national identity: They 'give shape to the imagined community of the nation' (quoting Daniels, 1993)”. This notion of the “imagined community” resonates with the argument rehearsed above as stimulated by the concepts of Benedict Anderson (see Chapter 2.2.3, page 24). Therefore, Schoeman's abstract photographic images of the Namibian landscapes can be viewed as cultural products that “shape the identity of the imagined community”.

Already the photographic body of work comprising the eleven

Namibian landscapes (art) of the ELEVEN exhibition was the representation of a Namibian identity. Schoeman herself, through the artworks, was constructing a Namibian identity by photographing and transforming Namibian landscapes (nature) into contemporary art. She was also revealing her own notions of such a Namibian identity.

In Chapter 4.3.1 and 4.3.2 (refer to pages 90-97), I referred to the influence the Namibian nature and landscape (nature) have on Namibian fashion designers, as was confirmed by the interviewees of this study. Many interviewees mentioned how Namibian landscapes (nature) are employed as important sources of information that assist them to identify with Namibia. The Namibian landscape (nature) provides specific information to the designers such as colour and texture combinations and even shapes such as the flowing and

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curving shapes of the Namib dunes to be used as sources of inspiration to the designers. Therefore, many of the strong Namibian fashion design elements that have been identified in this study are deriving from the Namibian landscape (nature). The Namibian landscape (nature) is the source of inspiration for the use of these elements (colour, texture and detail). The Namibian landscape (nature) strengthens these elements (assisting them to become so prominent in Namibian design) and gives these elements their “Namibian” identity.

By way of a parallel situation Koskennurmi-Sivonen (1998:130) refers to

examples from Regina Backberg‟s collection in which the “idea of the collection was to promote Finnish culture” and particularly Finnish craft abroad for example hand woven woolen fabrics. She continues to say that “Finnish nature was featured in the colours as well as in the names of the dresses and coats” (emphasis added). It can therefore be argued that this collection of Backberg's not only promoted Finnish culture, but that it also portrayed a Finnish identity.

The photographic images of Schoeman are abstract and all derive directly from the Namibian landscape that Schoeman captured on film. The photographic artist captured these eleven images from the specific areas or landscapes that has been designated to the cultural groups as they are traditionally accepted by these cultures and/or generally familiar to Namibians. On the other hand these images have been created by a selection process through the lens of Schoeman's camera. I want to continue to argue that the identity of the artist (Schoeman) played a role in determining what would be selected or rejected. The identity of the artist has as much to do with the outcome of the photographic landscapes (art), as the source of the image, or Namibian landscape has. The third dimension is of course that Schoeman herself is embedded in and claims a Namibian identity.

The photographic images were selected by Schoeman from her Ephemera portfolio and the selection was discussed by both the artist/photographer and the designer. The reason

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for that was that both individuals had to agree that the selected photographic image for each Namibian cultural group related well to that specific group.

Once again, this

selection process was a result of negotiating and adapting between the individuals (the two artists), the media (in this case the photography), and the Namibian society with its eleven (or more) cultural groups.

The identities (and lived experiences, artistic

background and concepts of artistic value – the “individual, field and domain” argument of Sawyer, as outlined in Chapter 3.3, pages 58-60) of both Schoeman and myself dictated the outcome of the selection process once more.

To explain how an identity and landscape relate to each other, one first has to implement Mitchell's (1994) notion as quoted by Brace (2003:123, emphasis in the original): ...we can only understand the relationships between landscape and identity if we change the word landscape from a noun to a verb – an 'object' word to a 'doing' word. This makes us ask not just what landscape is or means but what it does. It stops us from seeing landscape as an object or text, and makes us see it as a 'process by which social and subjective identities are formed'.

Brace (2003:123) adds: “This is quite a conceptual leap but, once made, it opens up all kinds of possibilities”. To only look at or view a landscape (art) will not make a person understand the landscape (art) as well as when it is perceived as an action, whether the landscape is material or an artistic representation. One has to go further by trying to understand the processes by which social and subjective identities are formed that are hidden in the landscape (art). Schoeman (2005), referring to her images, argues that “...their relevance (is) not what they literally are, but what the viewer sees in them...” and this also includes what the fashion designer sees in them. I did not only 'glance' at the photographic images as if looking at a landscape (nature). I 'stepped out' of a 'protected environment', where I was the 'viewer in the car' or the viewer of two dimensional landscapes in a gallery, into the pro-active position. This means that I involved myself with the photography on a deeper level since a creation process was started from what I saw.

I had to go further by trying to understand the processes by which social and

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subjective identities were formed that were hidden in the landscapes or photographic images of Schoeman. That is also why the process can be considered dynamic and not stagnant.

One might suggest that this is a process of “landscaping meaning” or

“landscaping possible artistic implications”. The designer is not only experiencing and enjoying through viewing but really experiencing through understanding the hidden processes and then taking action, doing and eventually creating the new (couture collection). How I saw the photographic images also depended on my position, the power relations I understood to be “hidden” in the photographic images and I understood them according to what made sense to me and how I could identify with them. Therefore my identity (which included my artistic and designer identity) dictated what I wanted to understand from them. These photographic images might narrate a different meaning to another fashion designer. However, one might argue that a selection of viewers from a similar identity might generate similar meanings or responses to the photographic landscapes. Indeed, should these viewers come from landscape (nature) depicted in the photograph, they, in turn would bring a different set of interpretations, based on lived experience, to the photograph. Yet, for all Namibians, there would be similarities in the interpretations, a product, perhaps, of identity formation.

Brace (2003:128) adds yet another interesting point of view when she says:

“The

appearance of a homogeneous, unquestioned and unquestionable national identity is achieved by a process of inclusion of ideas or images that give credence to a particular version of national identity and omission of ideas or images that challenge it”.

The

Namibian society cannot be viewed as homogeneous. Namibia as a nationality hosts up to eleven or more different cultures and many more sub-cultures and “foreign” cultures, but Schoeman selected photographic images that represent the Namibian landscape to give credence to a particular version of national identity.

The ELEVEN photographic

collection and couture collections aim to give credence to a particular (inevitably) version of a Namibian national identity and consequently, excluding ideas or images that will

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challenge it. Furthermore, it can be argued that, although there are differences between the eleven groups, the search for representation of Namibian identity that embraces (besides individuality) some shared characteristics or goals can be found in the photographs and in the designs. Perhaps contentiously it can be argued that the shared identity can be found in the Namibian landscapes, and these landscapes were the source of the inspiration and conceptualization of both the photographs and the designs.

With taking on ELEVEN as a body of work, both Schoeman and myself, again either consciously or subconsciously, contributed to the “need for social reconstruction” with the emphasis on the strengthening of national pride and to “identify characteristics of Namibian-ness” (Mans, 2002:266). This fact also contributed to the inclusion or exclusion of certain elements that have been selected and applied according to the artist's and designer's value and thought systems in order to strengthen the “need for social reconstruction”.

Also, the ELEVEN couture collection rather attempted to underline

Mans‟s (2002:266) statement:

“Since independence in 1990, the need for social

reconstruction has contributed to the understanding that new emphasis must be placed on cultural pride, on identifying characteristics of 'Namibian-ness'”.

The fashion designer reacted to both the responses of her understanding of Namibia and to Schoeman's understanding of and aesthetic responses to Namibia, namely the photographic images that depicted Namibian landscapes (art).

This study does not

involve itself with investigating the authenticity of Schoeman's views on whether the landscapes she photographed represented a “true” Namibian identity or not. This study also does not investigate in what specific way Schoeman's own vision “intruded” on or enhanced the image of the landscape as an authentically Namibian landscape.

The

fashion designer involved Schoeman's photographic images of Namibian landscapes (art) to serve as sources of inspiration for her couture collection and the fashion designer

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rather viewed these images as Namibian cultural products. It may be argued that the fashion designer and the photographic artist moved away from the “truth of the landscape” in pursuit of their own aesthetical values. Nevertheless, following Sawyer, these values were still embedded in “Namibian- ness” (imagined or otherwise).

5.3 The Relationship between Art, Photography and Fashion in General – Was it done before?

In the past art has often influenced the work of fashion designers/haute couturiers and popular examples exist. Various art forms have influenced fashion and haute couture collections in the past such as various visual arts (fine art, comics, Pop Art, type etc.) and performing arts (music, theatre, movies, etc.). Yves St. Laurent's designs were influenced by the art of Matisse, Warhol, Picasso, Mondrian and Wesselman and his designs “always took the form of independent homage to the respective artist” (Seeling, 2000:359). Art provided inspiration for his work and his Pop Art collection of 1966 is a popular synthesis between art and fashion.

His “celebrated Mondrian dress introduced St. Laurent's

interpretation of modern art into haute couture” (Seeling, 2000:362).

An interesting

phenomenon was that, once more, the Yves St. Laurent men's wear collection of Fall (Autumn) 2008 was strongly influenced by the Andy Warhol era. The collection was not designed by St. Laurent himself since he retired already in 2002 (Kelso, 2002) and passed away in June 2008.

The collection was named Casual Extravagance and it was

“highlighted by the colours of Warholian history in time, crushed velvets, plaids and the way the blazers and pants were cut” (Dexie, 2008). Although the collection was not directly influenced by Andy Warhol art, the fact that it was influenced by the “Warholian history in time”, illustrates how closely era-related artistic influences are to fashion and couture design.

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Image 5.1

Image 5.2

Image 5.1 and 5.2 shows the Yves Saint Laurent Fall 2008 Collection – Warhol-inspired (Dexie, 2008).

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Image 5.3

Image 5.3 shows the famous Mondrian-inspired Yves Saint Laurent couture dress. “The celebrated Mondrian dress introduced Saint Laurent’s interpretation of modern art into haute couture” (Seeling, 2000:362).

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Another fashion designer/haute couturier whose work was frequently inspired by art was Jean-Paul Gaultier. His Spring/Summer collection of 1990, titled The Rap Sisters, was inspired by the painter Richard Lindner. Lindner‟s graphic style and bold colours inspired the creation of a very anti-baroque, graphic and structured fashion collection.

His

Autumn/Winter collection of 1992/1993, titled The Fanatics of Photography, paid a tribute to the image of photo. The collection was a mixture of traditionalism and modernism (Bio of Gaultier, S.a.). Gaultier‟s Spring/Summer 2007 haute couture collection is inspired by religious art. His creations depicts Byzantine elements such as the “halos” above and around the model‟s heads, which are clear borrowings from early depictions of Christian art and stained glass windows from ancient cathedrals (Sweet, 2007).

Image 5.4 Image 5.4 shows an example of the early Christian art, depicting the Madonna and Child, that clearly inspired Gaultier's 2007 Spring/Summer haute couture collection (Sweet, 2007).

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Image 5.5

Image 5.6

Image 5.5 and 5.6 show examples of the Christian art-inspired Gaultier 2007 Spring/Summer haute couture collection. On the left the model is wearing a “Madonna” ensemble and on the right the model wears a dress that is clearly inspired by the ancient cathedral stained glass windows (Sweet, 2007).

In all the above examples it is demonstrated how the activity design (in this case fashion design) and the decisions made and actions taken by the designer (people) leads to new concepts and new identities. In this case the activity design is supported by ideas and things which are embedded in the culture and culture serves as part of the inspiration used to create new concepts and new identities. This process can be further explained by the object wheel of Chapter 2 (refer to Diagram 2.2, page 46) where the object, or the final

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product of the designer (e.g. the couture ensembles in the above examples), is inspired by the outside dynamics of the object wheel, resulting in new concepts and new identities.

5.4 The ELEVEN Process – Schoeman's Photographs as Inspiration

In the previous section the work of St. Laurent and Gaultier were mentioned as examples of fashion designers/haute couturiers whose work has been inspired by art and photography. What is inspiration and how does it apply to design? In answering this question, one has to refer back to Diagram 3.2 (page 57) and 3.3 (page 59).

The

importance of inspiration to a designer will now be further investigated.

Diagram 3.2 (refer to page 57) indicates that new concepts are the result of the interaction between people (also referring to designers) and ideas (also referring to knowledge, inspiration, thinking). In order for a designer to deliver original (opposite of replication) work, the designer will need thinking, knowledge and inspiration in able to find the new concepts. New concepts are crucial for the work of the designer, also the fashion or couture designer. International couture houses have to develop up to 4 new fashion (couture and prêt-a-porter) collections per annum. For the development of each of these collections the process as illustrated in Diagram 3.2 (refer to page 57) and discussed above, has to be followed. How can new inspiration be found? Designers develop and follow certain habits of how they best find new inspiration. Many designers do visual research and some designers do people watching, visit art galleries, visit theatre, watch movies, visit museums and historic places, study architecture, study nature, read, search for new raw materials and techniques that offer new design problems and possibilities by way of a short list. Finding inspiration is mostly a personal process, yet seeking new knowledge and thinking form a crucial part of the process, since it adds the element of excitement and drives the inquisitiveness of the designer to solve the design problem. As mentioned in Chapter 3 (refer to pages 57-58), the new concepts may also lead to new

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products should the designer continue the process by implementing the activity of design (planning, thinking, management) to ideas (also referring to knowledge, inspiration, thinking) and things (medium, materials).

This designer‟s creative process was ignited by the inspiration collected from Schoeman's photographic images.

The photographed landscapes served as primary source of

inspiration when the fashion designer conducted the “visual research” (seeking for visual stimulation) for the project. Ruth B. Phillips (1999:33) describes her approach towards analysing folklore crafts when she says: “My purpose ... is to examine these objects as visual texts that produced ethnicity not simply by reflecting imposed stereotypes but by actively negotiating and contesting them”. This means that she examined these crafts as if they were “visual texts”, seemingly hiding ethnic, social and subjective identities and “by actively negotiating and contesting” them, Phillips could investigate and understand them. In order for the Schoeman photography to have become a primary source of inspiration, the fashion designer had to follow Phillip's approach by examining the photography as “visual texts” and seek for ethnic, social and subjective identities and then “actively negotiating and contesting” them so as to move this process towards the design process. As said before, the fashion designer also “stepped into the landscape” by actively going further to understand the processes by which the hidden identities are formed and then collecting new design inspiration from them as depicted in the photographic landscapes.

The inspiration deriving from these eleven photographic images were well blended with the Namibian cultural tacit knowledge of the fashion designer. The point of view of the fashion designer influenced and shaped this process of interpretation. The process of interpretation was driven by a selection process during which the designer had to choose or eliminate certain elements that have been selected and applied according to the artist's and designer's value and thought systems in order to strengthen the “need for social

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reconstruction”. This selection process was a result of negotiating and adapting between the individual, the media (in this case the photography as inspiration and the fashion as media), and the Namibian society with its eleven (or more) cultural groups.

The trajectory of the process entailed holding on to the eleven photographed landscapes (art) during the process of finding inspiration by interpreting the photographic images, developing the new concepts for the couture collection and then, applying the design discipline or activity by sketching the new concepts. This approach offered the opportunity to aim for the new, since the fashion designer did not intend to seek other visual inspiration such as images from fashion magazines, new trends and styles, and so forth. The fashion designer only worked from Schoeman's photographic images and from tacit knowledge. It also offered the opportunity to engage with the historic and cultural aspects of Namibian clothing by incorporating traditional Namibian clothing elements.

5.5 The ELEVEN Process – The Designing of the ELEVEN Couture Collection

Since the designer was working in the Namibian fashion industry at the time the design process started and continued, the tacit knowledge deriving from the continuous visual research the domain expects and the visual stimulation the fashion domain offers, subsequently had an influence on the outcome of the couture collection. The investigation on inspiration and tacit knowledge continues and Diagram 3.3 (refer to page 59) will be applied in the discussion to analyse the design process of the ELEVEN couture collection.

In Diagram 3.3 (Sawyer, 2006:123; refer to page 59 in this dissertation) the person (designer) creates the novelty that will either be accepted by the field (gatekeepers or knowledgeable people who select and ratify the novelty) to pass on to or enter the domain (referring to the bigger group hosting a specific subject knowledge) and the person or the designer again makes this part (the knowledge provided by the domain, also certain

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inspiration) of his/her nature “by learning or unconscious assimilation” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001:506).

In the design process of the ELEVEN couture

collection, the fashion designer used and applied by (un)conscious assimilation the tacit knowledge deriving from the domain (the domain reflects the social, political, artistic, economic and cultural powers of any given time, within a specific subject field and yields the design demands and strategies of the discipline). The domain in this case is the bigger fashion field that hosts the subject knowledge and that even is considered to host various areas of inspiration linked to material or medium knowledge and the solving of design problems through technique and other knowledge.

In this study, the field specifically comprises of the knowledgeable professionals (and other gatekeepers) that were interviewed such as the five Namibian fashion designers and young

designer

(Wilmien

Chamberlain,

Sweetness

Ndwandwa-Mubita,

Cynthia

Schimming, Lizl Louw, Maria Caley) and the five knowledgeable textile and craft designers (Cathy McRoberts, Karin le Roux, Satu Miettinen, Anne Ramdohr, Heidi von Hase). The “knowledgeable professionals” had to have a minimum qualification of a 2-year diploma level obtained at a formal training institution and/or at least 5 years of experience in their particular field which is either fashion design or textile and craft design. These individuals were specifically invited to view the couture collection that was created by the fashion designer (person). They were interviewed and all of the interviewees agreed that the couture collection reflected a distinct Namibian identity. Therefore, these individuals can be considered the field that selected and passed the novelty (ELEVEN couture collection) on to the domain.

As mentioned, ELEVEN existed of two bodies of work: the abstract photographic images and the couture collection. The first point of departure for starting the process of creating the couture collection was the collection of inspiration from the photographs – the photographic images were studied by the fashion designer and used as primary sources

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of visual inspiration.

During the process of collecting inspiration from Schoeman's

photographic images, it is clear that once again the selection process was a result of negotiating and adapting between the individual (the fashion designer), the media (in this case the photography as inspiration and fashion as the media) and the Namibian society (comprising of eleven or more cultural groups). The second point of departure was the “Eleven Groups” document that was written by Schoeman (Refer to Annexure A, page 200) and tacit knowledge collected over a period of 35 years living as part of the Namibian population and the 10 years of working in the fashion design field. Therefore, a big part of the tacit knowledge derives from the domain, the fashion design field. Another part of the tacit knowledge the designer used derived from the interpretation of the identity creation aspects in Schoeman's photographic images of each of the eleven Namibian cultural groups. Both parts of tacit knowledge assisted to shape the design process involved in the creation of the couture collection.

The fashion designer adopted a specific method for seeking and selecting visual information that would lead to design inspiration since her early years of studying as a fashion student. I would take hours paging through various sources that would offer me visual stimulation such as books, magazines, films and so on. At that stage I would never start “copying” ideas directly from visual sources, but I would rather allow all the art elements from images and designs such as shapes, textures, detail, colours, line, and other elements of design mingle in my conscious and subconscious mind. Only after some indefinite time I would sit down and commence with a new fashion design collection by doing design sketches. These sketches can then be viewed as a result or outcome of my existing tacit knowledge combined with the inspiration collected from the fresh information (both deriving from or partly from the domain) that was gathered in my (sub)conscious mind. Of course these processes cannot be measured scientifically, but are reported here heuristically.

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5.6 The ELEVEN Process – Inspiration to Design Sketches

The same approach was followed for creating the ELEVEN design sketches. After the photographic images were studied, some indefinite time was allowed to pass before the illustration process of the 34 garments started. Each cultural group was represented in ELEVEN by one photographic image and three garments (a fashion collection trio). One garment was designed for a man and two were designed for women. An extra dress was designed as title dress that was used as the Grande Finale in the fashion show. The designer “read” the photographs for what they were to her, what she could recognize from them and how she was able to relate to them and identify with them. Various elements from the photographic images were used to design the couturier collection.

The

illustrations were completed over a relatively short period of time. The pencil sketching (line sketches) of the total collection was completed in about four hours.

Some re-

sketching was done here and there, but the bigger part of the collection was illustrated easily and the design ideas were seemed literally to be “flowing from the pen”. Afterwards, the rendering of the illustrations of the total collection in colour pencil took up approximately 9,5 hours.

The colours selected were directly matched to the set of

photographic prints (200mm x 200mm) the designer had in front of her and which served as colour references.

Apart from the two points of departure discussed previously, there are other influences on the design process to be discussed. These influences also derived directly from the domain, since these were the experiences the fashion designer collected over ten years of working in the fashion design field. These were the positive experiences, successes and best practices which the designer has passed onto the field, which has been selected by the field and passed back to the domain.

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It can be argued that a designer's personal design style is shaped by this process of passing novelty on to the field, which has been selected by the field and then passed to the domain to be taken up by it. The general design style of the designer had a dominant influence on the outcome of the couture collection. I would describe my personal design preference and style to be feminine (“having qualities traditionally associated with women, especially delicacy and prettiness” - Reader‟s Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2001: 353) and detailed. In most of my previous 36 fashion collections I used layers of soft textiles, soft, curvy, feminine line and craft details such as embroidery, felting, knitting, sun dying and Nuno (needle felting). These elements usually form part of the non-custom made collections I do for public presentations such as fashion shows. I expected that these preferences for femininity, flair and detail (usually applications of various craft techniques I'm familiar with) in my creations, which are design elements that has been selected by the field and has been passed on to the domain and which my work has received recognition for in the past, would influence also this collection. Also, while designing for each cultural group, the fact that I had a tall, slim Namibian woman and man in mind (model figures – size 32 ladies and size 40 men) who would wear my garments during the fashion show, obviously had an influence on my design decisions.

To be able to write the press releases, Schoeman interviewed the fashion designer to collect information about the couture design process. This happened in the early stages of the ELEVEN process before the fashion designer travelled to India for textile purchase purposes. The interview with Schoeman provided interesting information concerning the thoughts of the designer at that stage of the process and therefore it will be included in the next chapter. A discussion about the inspiration and influences on the design process and the first phase of the design process, a discussion about the design sketches, will also follow in the next chapter.

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The creative process applied in the making of the ELEVEN couture collection is explained below:

PEOPLE

(The designer) Tacit knowledge from the DOMAIN (fashion domain) (previous novelty selected by the FIELD, the gatekeepers and passed on to the domain, now forming part of best practices and experience) Existing identity structures Mindset/Position

IDEAS Visuality inspiration from the Schoeman photographic collection – visuality inspiration from identity creation aspects/dynamics – identity result NEW CONCEPT – ELEVEN

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DESIGN ACTIVITY Action Using NEW CONCEPTS Negotiating and adapting to the Namibian society and aspects of Namibian identity construction

NEW PRODUCTS (ELEVEN couture collection) novelty selected by the FIELD (selected Namibian knowledgeable people) and passed on to the DOMAIN (fashion domain)

DESIGN ACTIVITY THINGS (new products) interact with PEOPLE (designer) result (of Namibian couture design) NEW IDENTITIES

Diagram 5.1 – The Creative Development Process of the ELEVEN Couture Collection.

Diagram 5.1 explains the start of the creative process (referred to as phase 1). In this process it is clear that both Diagrams 3.2 (page 57) and 3.3 (page 59) came into play in this creative process, as summarised in Diagram 5.1 (page 121-122).

The fashion

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designer's creative process was started by the combination of tacit knowledge from the domain, combined with identity structures which influenced the designer's 'position' or 'mindset'. Viewing, analysing, “reading”, “stepping into” and the drive of experiencing at a deeper level, to become active and to take action, ignited inspiration (ideas) that resulted from the photographic landscapes (art), combined with the (un)conscious inspiration deriving from identity creation aspects/dynamics. This resulted in the materialising of the new concept for the ELEVEN couture collection. Action was taken by using the new concepts and developing them into new products by negotiating and adapting to the Namibian society and aspects of identity construction. The new products that have been created, the ELEVEN couture collection, are the things that via design processes are interacting with people (the fashion designer) and that result in new identities. That is why ELEVEN can be considered a process involved with the creation of new identities or a new identity. Which identity structures and identity shaping dynamics were at play in the creative development of the ELEVEN couture collection, have to be investigated further. Also, what exactly this new identity is has to be further investigated.

It is clear that the designer had to juxtapose the tacit knowledge deriving from the domain with the existing identity structures in order to develop new concepts in the design process. Then the designer also had to juxtapose or contrast ideas deriving from the inspiration received from the photographic images and the inspiration deriving from the identity creation aspects/dynamics of the eleven Namibian cultures. Thus, there was a process of contrasting visuality and identity in order to develop new concepts, new products and new identities in a process of naturalization [“alter(ation) so that it conforms more closely to” (Reader's Digest Word Power Dictionary, 2002:644)]. These processes may, again rather controversially, be referred to as processes of hybridization. The total creative process adopted and applied by the designer in the ELEVEN couture collection contrasts Diagram 3.2 (refer to page 57) and Diagram 3.3 (refer to page 59) and it

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becomes one total process of negotiation, adaptation and juxtaposition.

5.7 The ELEVEN Couture Collection as the “Object”

White-Namibian, upper-middle social class classification

Geological location - whole of Namibia Considering all Namibian ethnicities

Profession – fashion designer

Namibian arts community

Gender - female

ELEVEN

Couture Religion or spiritualism

Collection

WesternNamibian culture

Individuality – that of the designer

Personal taste

Namibian Nationalism

Personal & Namibian History

(“Personal” refers to the fashion designer.) Diagram 5.2 – The Adapted Object Wheel

To better explain the identity shaping process that occurred in the creative process of the ELEVEN couture collection, I want to refer to the object wheel (diagram 5.2, above) as originally discussed in Chapter 2 (refer to page 46). I will place the ELEVEN couture collection in the centre of the wheel as the “object”. The ELEVEN couture collection is

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then influenced by the dynamics surrounding it in the diagram such as culture, nationalism, race/ethnicity, gender, geographical location, social classification, religion, community, history, profession, the individual and taste, but it is also true that the ELEVEN couture collection will influence all these twelve dynamics, perhaps for future design as well. These dynamics are discussed below.

5.7.1 Culture The essence of ELEVEN is that it is reflecting the eleven Namibian cultures in a contemporary way. Since there is a clear focus on each culture in both bodies of work (photography and couture design), the eleven Namibian cultures were occupying the thoughts and inspired the creative processes of fashion designer. A sincere interest in and sensitivity for Namibian-related cultural and other issues is essential when a theme such as ELEVEN is participated in. All eleven Namibian cultures form an integral part of the identity of ELEVEN couture collection.

The photographic images are cultural

manifestations of a Namibian identity in their own artistic and contemporary way, since landscapes (natural and art) are cultural representations. The cultural landscapes, or photographic images, contributed to the shaping of the ELEVEN couture collection's identity.

It also needs to be considered that ELEVEN was produced by the fashion

designer who belongs to the white cultural group of Namibia. Objectively considered, ELEVEN is then also a product of that specific cultural group's views, customs, influences and this cultural background contributed to the shaping of the ELEVEN couture collection's identity.

5.7.2 Nationalism Although the fashion designer considers herself to be of Namibian nationalism, the influence of her cultural background played a dominant role in the interpretation of the

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inspiration she drew from while creating the ELEVEN couture collection.

The strong

subconscious drive found in many Namibians to define “Namibian-ism” after independence in 1990 also influenced the incubation of ELEVEN as discussed previously in this chapter. This was one of the main objectives and driving forces also for this project. The drive to strengthen the Namibian nationalism via a fashion identity became one of the identity-shaping dynamics of the couture collection for the fashion designer.

5.7.3 Race/Ethnicity ELEVEN was an attempt to address the modern Namibian taste. Therefore, the attempt to redefine “Namibian-ism” as a modern, homogeneous culture was a difficult task in the sense that Namibians in general have proud and tight links to their various Namibian traditional cultures, ethnicities and races that the collective Namibian culture comprises of. The eleven Namibian races/ethnicities formed the backbone of the rationale for the total ELEVEN body of work, thus all the Namibian races/ethnicities were dynamics at play in the shaping of the couture collection's identity. The own race and ethnicity of the fashion designer (White-Namibian) played a dominant role in the creation, outcome and ultimately the identity of the ELEVEN couture collection.

5.7.4 Gender ELEVEN focused on both genders compared to the Five Seasons exhibition which primarily focused on women since the essence of the Five Seasons body of work addressed the five seasons of a woman's life. ELEVEN was created by two women and the inspiration for the total ELEVEN body of work was interpreted from a female's point of view. The fashion designer allowed herself to incorporate the very feminine design style her previous work is known for; therefore, a feminine gender dynamic has strongly influenced the outcome and ultimately the identity of the ELEVEN couture collection.

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Landscapes (nature an art) are also perceived as feminine and it may be argued that since the photographic images, selected and created by Schoeman, a female, from Namibian landscapes (art), feminine, are also feminine and consequently influenced the creation of the couture collection and the fashion designer on a subconscious level.

5.7.5 Geographical Location Amy Schoeman's photographic images derive from the eleven areas in Namibia. She used images deriving from the specific areas designated to the cultural groups as they are traditionally or generally accepted by Namibians. Geographical location therefore was one of the important dynamics that shaped the identity of the total ELEVEN body of work. The fashion designer applied three-dimensional influences, deriving from the Namibian landscapes (nature) and geographical locations as pictured in Schoeman's photography, to give shape to the couture collection. This will be better explained in the Chapter 6.

5.7.6 Social Classification No specific social classification was adhered to.

Although couture design is usually

identified with the more upper-income social classes, ELEVEN rather attempted to address Namibians from all possible social classes. In general a national identity will not be acknowledged by only the upper-income social classes, but by all classes. This will also be the case for the Namibian. Both the photographic artist and the fashion designer were very aware of the fact that a national identity is determined by all classes in that nationality and therefore ELEVEN does not address a specific social class. Objectively considered, ELEVEN will address the Namibian with a more contemporary outlook on life. Yet, couture design is associated with the upper social and economic classes. From the fashion designer's work experience in the Namibian fashion domain, it was interesting to notice that most Namibians would invest in couture design for special events such as

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wedding ceremonies and matriculation (an academic qualification which occurs at the end of secondary schooling training) farewell dinners.

Therefore, to accept that wearing

couture design only is a privilege meant for the upper classes does injustice to this market sector since it is enjoyed by many social classes as the case is in Namibia. Another consideration is the fact that the fashion designer belongs to the upper-middle social class and this inevitably played a role in the outcome of the couture collection. Therefore, social class was one of the dynamics that shaped the identity of the couture collection.

5.7.7 Religion The overall accepted Namibian religion is Christianity. Although religion did not play a direct, specific or integral role in the identity formation of the ELEVEN couture collection, it has to be considered that spirituality played a role in the shaping of the couture collection's identity.

5.7.8 Community The Namibian community is very uniquely constituted since it exists out of more than eleven cultural groups or, for the sake of this sub-section, “communities”. This cultural richness of the Namibia community played a role in the shaping of the identity of the ELEVEN as a total body of work, including the couture collection. The Namibian cultural richness forms an essential ingredient of ELEVEN as a total body of work and was one of the driving forces behind the project. The eleven cultural groups that shape the Namibian identity as such inspired the title of the project.

5.7.9 History The biggest Namibian historic event that motivated and influenced ELEVEN was the independence of Namibia, which was gained in 1990 and the fact that many people and

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institutions seek a future of reconciliation. The Namibian independence played an integral role in the identity formation of ELEVEN as a total body of work, including the couture collection. Personal work-related histories of both the photography artists and the fashion designer also played a role in the development of the creative processes involved in the production of ELEVEN.

5.7.10 Profession The ELEVEN body of work is a product of the professions followed by the photographic artist and the fashion designer. The past professional experiences of both the artist and the designer will influence the total body of work. These experiences, intuitive knowledge and unconscious assimilation from both the art/photographic domain and the fashion domain, shaped the identity of ELEVEN as a total body of work. The fashion domain directly shaped the identity of the couture collection, while the art/photographic domain more indirectly (as inspiration) shaped the identity of the couture collection.

5.7.11 The Individual The individual personalities of the artist and the designer played a key role in the selection processes that happened in the planning process or rather the design of the ELEVEN concept that resulted in the total body of work. The individuality also played a role in the selection of the inspiration, materials and methods applied in the creation process in of the total body of work. This is a result, once more, of unconscious assimilation, passed on to the individual by the domain. These decision making processes (negotiation, adaptation, and juxtaposition) consequently shaped the creation process of ELEVEN as a body of work and in the end the identity of the ELEVEN couture collection.

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5.7.12 Taste Taste is linked to individuality and has much to do with the individual choices both designers made in the creation process of ELEVEN.

The individual taste of the

photographic artist influenced the choices she made in the taking, making and selection of the photographic landscape images.

The individual taste of the fashion designer

influenced the choices she made in the creation of the couture collection. Again, taste was certainly one of the important dynamics that shaped the identity of the ELEVEN couture collection.

In this chapter I have discussed the total creative development process that was applied in the development of the ELEVEN couture collection from the photographic landscapes (art), inspiration and design to design sketches. I continued by arguing that the creative development process of the ELEVEN couture collection was a result of negotiation, adoption and juxtaposition of the two design processes as discussed in Chapter 3 (Diagram 3.2, refer to page 57 and Diagram 3.3, page 59). This creative development process is summarised in Diagram 5.1 (refer to page 121-122).

ELEVEN can be

considered as a dynamic identity creation process, but my discussion about how the identity-shaping dynamics came into play in the ELEVEN couture collection is explained in Diagram 5.2 (refer page 124) and the discussion that follows. I also investigated the dynamics that influenced the identity shaping of the ELEVEN couture collection. In the next chapter I will explain how I applied the photographic images as sources of inspiration in the development of the couture collection. Then I will continue to explain how the Namibian design elements colour and texture/fabric/detail have been applied in the ELEVEN couture collection and finally I will conclude by explaining why ELEVEN can be considered a dynamic identity-building process contributing to defining Namibian couture design.

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CHAPTER 6

ELEVEN – A PROCESS CREATING NAMIBIAN COUTURE DESIGN

Drawing on the colours, contours and textures of the images, using silk, organza, chiffon, raw-fibre karakul and piece-spun yarn, and techniques such as felting, nuno, knitting, tie-dying, fabric painting and wire beading, the designer has fashioned a highly imaginative collection of spectacular ensembles that will transport the viewer into a world of sheer fantasy. The garments are not going to replicate a traditional or tribal dress or style. The models will not appear on the ramp wearing the onguwo yomakupa (skirts made of black ox hide worn by Wambo women and girls), or an otjikaeva (the Herero woman‟s headscarf suggesting cattle horns) or an ekori (the leather three-pointed headdresses worn by Himba and Herero women).

The

garments will be very much of the here and now, couture design creations for the Namibian man and woman of today. Schoeman (press release, 2005)

In this chapter I will interrogate the application of design elements by designers and how these design elements can demonstrate hybridity. I will also explain how I applied the photographic images as sources of inspiration in the development of the couture collection. Then I will continue to explain how the Namibian design elements colour and texture/fabric/detail have been applied in the ELEVEN couture collection.

In the previous chapter I argued that as a designer I had to juxtapose and contrast ideas deriving from the inspiration received from the photographic images and the inspiration deriving from the identity creation aspects/dynamics of the eleven Namibian cultures and my own vision or interpretation of these, I had to juxtapose visuality and identity and finally

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I was able to develop new concepts, new products and “new” identities in a process of naturalization or hybridisation. The total creative process adopted and applied can be described as one total process of negotiation, adaptation and juxtaposition in order to naturalise new identities. Therefore, I can argue that when designers' work result in the creation of new identities, a process of negotiation and adapting is initiated that results in naturalization (a process of altering so that it conforms to the demands of the field but which might also be referred to as a process of hybridisation) and juxtaposition. The process of negotiation and adapting has to be considered in all the levels and layers of the total creative process in order to achieve juxtaposition and naturalization of elements that will lead to new concepts, new products and new identities. This chapter will aim to further investigate and analyse all those layers and levels of the total creative process that resulted in the juxtaposition and naturalization of elements that resulted in new identities. I shall use the actual designs as the point of reference.

6.1 “Hybrid” Elements: Colour and Texture

The application (what and how) of elements in garments are planned, managed and driven by the designer when he/she utilises things and ideas in the design activity. In the design process of the ELEVEN couture collection, the fashion designer realised that the three dominant Namibian elements (specific colours, fabrication/texture and detail) contributed to the presence of other design elements in the garments. The element of colour can co-create texture, line and detail in a garment while the element of fabrication/texture can co-create shape, line and detail. The element of detail can cocreate line, texture and colour. Therefore, design elements can demonstrate hybridity, depending on their application. The designer can juxtapose design elements not only to create new design applications or design principles, but also to co-create other design elements. Later in this chapter the application of these “hybrid” elements in each of the

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ELEVEN couture collection's eleven ensemble trios will be discussed.

Surely, a

conceptual thing such as a design element cannot be or become “hybrid”. In essence the hybridity does not lie in the element itself (since they are generic) but in the way the selected concrete things or materials have been applied that can result in hybridity. It is the “choice from a range of possibilities in line” that can demonstrate a hybrid approach to design.

In this study, the results of the research conducted (interviews) indicated that the “authentic” Namibian design elements are natural colours related to the Namibian landscapes, coarse textures (fabrication) combined with soft, flowing textures and textured embroidery detail. In the creative process of the development of the ELEVEN couture collection, all these specific elements have been applied. The fashion designer realized that these specific design elements may become “new” or “other” elements through a process of naturalization, hybridization or juxtaposition. This happens in a process of interchanging characteristics. The design elements are then usually referring to design principles, which refer to how the elements have been applied in the product. An example is when the element “fabric” changes characteristics to also represent elements such as shape, form or texture. Fabric texture (indicating the “hold” or “feel” of the fabric) can determine the shape, also referred to as the silhouette of a garment, depending on the fabric's softness or crispness. The softer the fabric, the more flowing and tubular the shape/silhouette, and the crisper the fabric the more voluminous the shape/silhouette becomes (bell-shape or A-line shape, inverted A-line shape, X-shape or box-shape).

The dominating elements that have been identified as “authentically” Namibian were certain colours, texture, fabric and detail. The design elements that are accepted and used in the fashion industry are presented in Chapter 4 (refer to page 89):

colour,

fabrication/texture, line, shape and detail. The two dominant “authentic” Namibian design

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elements of colour and fabrication formed part of the dominant elements of the ELEVEN couture design collection. Later in this chapter the application of these elements in each of the ELEVEN couture collection's eleven ensemble trios will be discussed.

According to Stephens Frings (1987:129), “...a designer must incorporate in each garment a pleasing combination of all the elements of good design...these ingredients are essential to every art form, but they alone are not a recipe for success, and they cannot substitute for experience”. Design elements are the building materials or the essential ingredients that designers carefully plan and use in order to create good design and pleasing results. These elements remain meaningless without the interference of an artist/designer who involves him-/herself with the design activity and who will use things (or design elements) and ideas to create new products when referring to diagram 3.2 (refer to page 57). A designer's experience plays a dominant part in the manner how these things (design elements) and ideas will be applied in new products.

Stephens Frings (1987:137) continues to argue that, “Whether design elements are used successfully depends on their relationship to one another within the garment.

The

principles of design serve as guidelines for combining elements”. These principles are balance, repetition, emphasis, proportion and, the ultimate goal when all elements are applied in a pleasing manner, harmony. Therefore, the principles of design serve to guide the application of the elements in a design. Thus, when referring to diagram 3.2 (refer to page 57), the design elements form a part of the things (what is applied) that are used with ideas to create new products, while design principles form a part of the ideas (how is it applied) that are used with the things to create new products.

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6.2 Juxtaposition of design elements

6.2.1 Colour According to Stephens Frings (1987:129): “It is the first element to which consumers respond. People relate personally to colour, usually selecting or rejecting a garment...”.

Table 6.1 TEXTURE

LINE

DETAIL

How?

How?

How?

The variation of colour, Contrasting or tone-on-tone Colour can add detail to a whether it is the use of colour-application can result garment tone-on-tone

or in the creation of line in especially

contrasting colours, may design. The varying colours colours

or if are

a

textile,

contrasting used.

This

result in the intensification that are placed next to each usually results in a dramatic of the surface interest of a other automatically result in effect. Tone-on-tone colour garment

or

a

textile, the creation of a line since variation usually results in

depending on the chosen the eye draws a dividing line more subtle detail effects. application.

between

the

colours

to

distinguish them.

6.2.2 Fabrication/Texture According to Stephens Frings (1987:131): “Fabrication is the selection or creation of an appropriate style for a fabric – or the reverse; the selection of the right fabric for a design. Fabrics are the designer's artistic medium...”.

Table 6.2 SHAPE

LINE

DETAIL

How?

How?

How?

The crispness or softness Depending

on

the When smooth textiles are

of a fabrication has a application, fabrication can predominantly applied in a

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direct

impact

silhouette,

on

or

the create

outside when

line the

for

example garment,

techniques pleating

of created

shape, of a garment. The draping

or

silhouette will be more applied.

The folds in the materials

detail via

can

the

be

use

of

are textured trims or textured to

add

more

rigid if a crisp fabrication fabrication create shadows interest to the garment. is applied, against a more or lines. soft and flowy silhouette when a soft textile is applied.

6.2.3 Detail According to Stephens Frings (1987:137): “The finishing touches that a designer adds to a garment are the details. These include every seam, topstitch, button, trim, etc.”.

Table 6.3 TEXTURE

LINE

COLOUR

How?

How?

How?

The application of different Application of detail can be By using the same basis details, trims and finishing used to create line, such as colour, application of detail touches

can

create embroidery

applications, can result in tone-on-tone

texture variations.

Detail felting

is

create techniques, embossing, top- basis colour, thus creating a

applied

contrast

to

and

and

Nuno shading that relates to the

interest. stitching, application of trims three-dimensional effect.

Therefore,

many

techniques

involve

application

of

detail and the like. the

different

texture, even though the basis colour may remain similar.

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6.3 ELEVEN – The Total Body of Work

ELEVEN was exhibited at the National Art Gallery of Namibia on 2-13 August 2005. The exhibition partly consisted of the “Ephemera Portfolio of environmental imagery celebrating the continual ebb and flow of the forces of nature – sand, water, wind, cloud, sky and sun – their relevance being not what they literally are, but what the viewer sees in them” (Schoeman, press release 2005). The photographic images are reproduced as eleven large colour posters, with a printed quotation at the bottom pertaining to the population group that they represent. They are approximately 1.20 m x 1.50 m and block framed.

The other part of the ELEVEN exhibition consisted of a couture fashion collection of 34 (33 garments that were part of eleven smaller collection trios and one [1] title garment) garments and the designer drew on the following two points of departure: 1. The eleven images of the Ephemera Portfolio, for colour, texture and form. 2. The cultural aspects of each of the eleven population groups, not portrayed literally, but symbolically.

The photographic body of work of ELEVEN consisted of twelve images: eleven images represented the eleven Namibian cultural groups and one image was used as the title image. Each image had a title and Schoeman selected a characteristic that best suited and described the culture from her point of view and they were:

Title of the Image

Characteristic

Cultural Group

Oshana Silk

Flexibility

Ovambo

Desert Disk

Mysticism

San

Sperrgebiet

Ingenuity

White

Marble mosaic

Hope & optimism

Baster

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Textured trinity

Joy/happiness

Tswana

Lace Agate

Pride/courage

Herero

Liquid Sky

Celebration

Kavango

Shades of Velvet

Humour/dance

Coloured

Pregnant Sand

Perseverance

Nama

Rock Diva

Adaptability

Damara

Water Taffeta

Creativity

Caprivian

The eleven trio collections that formed the total ELEVEN couture collection will now be discussed. The discussion will be done while referring to the photographic images and it will be explained how the fashion designer applied them as sources of inspiration. This section will only aim to indicate the thoughts that ignited new ideas for applying the design elements and all these ideas manifested as vague images that were taking shape in the mind of the fashion designer. This section will describe how the photographic images were interpreted; therefore the very first ideas the fashion designer collected from the images will be discussed to illustrate how the photographic images served as sources of inspiration for the fashion designer and how she combined them with the tacit knowledge deriving from the fashion domain.

The interview Schoeman conducted with me, which happened very early in the design and sketching process, will be included in this chapter since it illustrates the very early and intuitive thoughts of the fashion designer and her reaction to the photographic images when she first involved herself with the process.

Following that, the inspiration and

influences deriving from the photographic images will be discussed and finally the design sketches will be discussed, mentioning the accumulation of knowledge from the various sources (tacit knowledge from the domain and inspiration), resulting in products such as design sketches.

In the concluding chapter of this study I shall make an attempt to

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consider whether the process led to an better understanding of Namibian identity – although there will be some tangential reference to this chapter, the primary function of the chapter is to demonstrate and discuss the designs of the garments only.

6.4 The ELEVEN Couture Collection

The designs of the ELEVEN couture collection will be discussed under various headings. Under these headings I explain the thinking and decision making processes I followed in the design process. I start by documenting the interview Schoeman conducted with me in 2004 at her photographic studio (as documented by Schoeman) and the sections are indicated by the heading “Interview with Schoeman”. To clarify this section further, these documented paragraphs are my personal thoughts and how I personally interpreted her photographs.

I then continue to explain the inspiration I collected from Schoeman‟s

photographic images and various other sources of inspiration. Then I explain the thinking and development processes that took on shape during the illustration process. I continue to investigate the most dominant Namibian elements in my collection trio (colour, fabrication/texture and detail) and finally I demonstrate the hybridity of the elements used in the ELEVEN couture collection.

All photographs of the ELEVEN couture collection are used with the courtesy of Thunda.com (as indicated by the Thunda.com logo) and Thorsten Koehler.

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6.4.1 Oshana Silk – The Ovambo – Flexibility

Image 6.1.1 – Oshana Silk (Photograph Amy Schoeman)

Image 6.1.2 (Oshana Silk Ladies)

Image 6.1.3 (Oshana Silk Man)

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6.4.1.1 Interview with Schoeman “This is a collage of silk layers stitched on top of each other. The whole series is soft and this collection trio excites me a lot. All will be silk and beading. It reflects the silkiness of the water from the Oshanas. The technique used for the structuring of the layers as in the image will be very free and rough. The layers as seen in the water inspired the designs and the development of the technique. There should be a subtle and gentle flow of texture and colour into each other. Colours such as aquamarine, forest greens, tobacco brown and warm bronze.”

6.4.1.2 Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences The photographic image shows layers of colours flowing into one another.

A three-

dimensional effect is created by these layers, since they represent depth.

This

photographic image immediately inspired the idea of using layers of fabric overlapping and flowing into one another when I saw it for the first time. The “frayed edges” around the green and brown edges in the photograph inspired the idea of using a de-constructed, frayed technique when layering the textiles. This photographic image shows rich contrast in colours which served as a source of inspiration. The little green spots in the brown inspired the use of beaded detail on top of the frayed, de-constructed layers. The flow and rhythm in the image inspired the use of soft layers. The flow and rhythm in the photographic image also relates very well to the history of the Ovambo culture with its seven main tribes. The Ovambo people had to be adaptable and flexible to be able to survive as a culture, due to the fact that the Ovambo people sub-divided in seven smaller groups/clans but kept their Ovambo identity and due to the independence war that was to a great extent executed in their traditional homeland area.

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6.4.1.3 Sketches

Illustration 6.2.1 The sketches show how the designer worked with layers of colours and layers of soft flowing textile, especially in the hemlines of the two dresses.

The sketches clearly

indicate softness, especially in the use of layers and in the use of curvy style lines as seen in the two bodices and the waistcoat of the man. The layering creates repetition as in the image. Colour use is true to the colours in the image and the use of warm coppers and browns with cool blues create contrast and interest.

The asymmetry in the designs

corresponds with the asymmetry in the image. The interest in the image and in the designs is a result of tension that is created due to the use of contrasting colours and asymmetry.

6.4.1.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and detail Clearly reflecting the Oshana landscape (art), these designs include all three the dominant Namibian elements such as Namibian earthy colours:

browns, beiges, greens, olive

greens and aqua greens as well as turquoise. The fabrication represents softness and flow and the detail is rich and directly inspired by the Namibian landscape (nature). The Oshana landscape (art) is represented through the use of colour layering and it is finished

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off and enriched with a beading technique, also a Namibian element (detail).

6.4.1.5 Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity The detail (layering of colours and beading) co-creates the elements of line and texture in these designs. Line is usually created by the use of style lines, but here it is created through the application of the element detail, both layering and beading. Since no style lines were used to create the flowing lines, the layers and the beadings, as well as the subtle to strong contrasts in colour, assist to create the flowing lines and the texture in these designs. The softness of the fabrication used in these designs creates the soft, flowing silhouette or shape of these garments. The sheen of the textile adds to the texture in these designs.

6.4.2 Desert Disc – The San – Mysticism

Image 6.1.4 – Desert Disc (Photograph Amy Schoeman)

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Image 6.1.5 (Desert Disc Ladies)

6.4.2.1 Interview with Schoeman “I can envision the use of Namibian raw fibre karakul which is felted into various shapes and then also the shapes of solar disks cut into the felt. Disks cut into felt will make the garment appear lighter. The traditional beading techniques the San crafts are popular for needs to be incorporated somehow. The mistiness of the image can be reflected through the use of organza. I can also envision the use of matka silk and raw silk.”

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6.4.2.2 Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences Desert Disc shows very soft, natural colours. To me this photographic image is extremely feminine since the haziness of the image reminds me of softness. This photographic image inspired the use of felting since the hazy image and soft colours reminded me of the woolly texture and soft, natural colours of Karakul wool. The round shape of the moon/sun in Desert Disk inspired the idea of using round/circular shapes as detail in the garments. I immediately thought of possibilities to cut round shapes in the felted areas or to embroider discs on certain areas of the garments. This image relates very well to the mysticism surrounding the San people who are considered to be the “shamans” of Africa.

6.4.2.3 Sketches

Illustration 6.2.2 The feminine disc shape is used in the total trio since it is the focal point in the image. The solar disc also creates the mood of mysticism in the image. The feminine curved lines, asymmetrical lines and use of layers and soft colours corresponds well with the softness and haziness seen in the image.

The asymmetry created by the contrast

between the light intensity in the image is also reflected in the asymmetry of the designs. The suggested use of felted wool corresponds with the softness and colours of the

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mistiness in the image. The suggested use of the solar disc and the gold and silver glass beads borrows from the cultural costume details of the San, yet, none of the San crafts are literally copied in these designs.

6.4.2.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and detail These designs include all three the dominant Namibian elements such as Namibian earthy colours, fabrication that represents softness and flow (chiffon, organza and stretch netting), fabrication that is rough and earthy (felted karakul wool), and detail such as the rich beading that represents the mystic moon and directly relates to the bead work the San people use in their craft. The circular shapes and embroidery technique borrows from a technique the San use to embroider colourful beads on leather. Circles are popular shapes in many of the Namibian cultures since it represents the Omba, the big circular shell button jewellery piece that symbolizes wealth and is passed on from generation to generation, usually from grandmother to granddaughter.

The circular shape also

represents the circular holy fire, a ritual where family leaders communicate with the ancestors and it also reflects the shape of the solar disc.

6.4.2.5 Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity The element fabrication/texture co-creates the soft flowing line in the two women‟s garments and it also creates the shape of the garments, namely the soft, flowing silhouette. Surprisingly, the heavy karakul wool does not interfere with the softness and flow of the designs. The element detail (rich circular beading) co-creates texture. The soft colour contrast of the karakul wool in the felted fabrication co-creates texture.

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6.4.3 Sperrgebiet – The Whites – Ingenuity

Image 6.1.6 – Sperrgebiet (Photograph Amy Schoeman)

Image 6.1.7 (Sperrgebiet Lady)

Image 6.1.8 (Sperrgebiet Lady)

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6.4.3.1 Interview with Schoeman “I envision felted textiles and the use of wire and diamante on top of felting. The filminess or haziness in the image can be represented through the use of layers of glitter chiffon, organza, or gauze and it will also reflect the glitziness of the mica flake. I envisage the use of colours such as black, charcoal & silver grey. I can also envisage the use of black leather, rough felt and leather, in contrast with the purity of the diamonds which represents total beauty.”

6.4.3.2 Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences This photographic image was interpreted as “powerful”.

I usually associate the

combination of black and white images with strength, probably because the contrast between black and white is generally considered to be strong and striking.

In this

photographic image there is not a very strong direct contrast between black and white and therefore there must be more to the photographic image that relates to power other than the fact that it is a black/white print.

The mica glitter of the sand reminded me of

diamonds lying on the sand and I immediately connected it to the history of the diamond mining industry of Namibia. Kolmanskop is a historic diamond mining town, today only a ghost town in the Namib Desert close to Lüderitz, and is situated in the “Sperrgebiet”, where foreigners, mostly Germans, mined diamonds in the early 20th century.

This

connection to Kolmanskop directly relates to wealth and wealth relates to power. This again relates to the history of Namibia where mainly whites and foreigners had the position of wealth and power in previous political regimes. The association of the Whites, who initiated the karakul farming in Namibia and the fact that the Karakul is called the “black diamond” of Namibia, influenced the use of grey felt. I opted for combining black, grey and white and the use of diamante and glass beads to decorate the garments, which would reflect the glittering effect of the mica sand. The ripple texture interested me at the time and I represent this effect in one of the female garments. It must be pointed out that

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the use of black and white in the designs was not meant literally to portray potential race tensions in the area.

6.4.3.3 Sketches

Illustration 6.2.3 The line between the dune and the rippled sand creates tension in the photographic image. The shape of the edge was predominantly used in the necklines, hemlines and other style lines of the designs. The layered hemlines suggest the ripple effect of the photographic image.

The use of dark grey felted karakul wool corresponds with the

texture and colours of the photographic image.

The use of silver sequins and glass

beads, shimmer/glitter gauze, and so forth, corresponds with the shimmer of the mica and refers to the glamorous diamond industry of Namibia. The sketches show the gradual change in hues in a vertical position as from top to bottom and this change in hue also corresponds to the image. This creates horizontal tension while the vertical tension is created by the mica line in the image. The use of grey and platinum colours suggests wealth and power since grey is associated with urban corporate clothing.

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6.4.3.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and detail The colours are from the neutral colour group: greys, silver-grey, blue-grey, black and offwhite. The neutral colours that are similar to sand tones and black are included in the group “authentic” Namibian colour that was a result of this study.

The colours of

Sperrgebiet are the greys and black. Various greys are also part of the vast natural colour variety of the karakul wool shades and the karakul (farming industry and products such as the pelt, Swakara and the wool) is considered to be part of the Namibian identity. Therefore, the felted karakul fabrication used in this collection can be considered “authentically” Namibian. The shape of this fabrication was “shapeless” and undefined, since the piece felted for the male garment was used as is. The felt was not re-cut according to a pattern.

I attempted to apply the felted pieces in the same way the

Namibian people would use leather for their cultural clothing – little of the leather is reshaped or re-cut according to specific patterns.

Leather is rather used in its natural

shape; therefore, showing off the natural beauty of the prepared skins such as is evident in the San and the Himba costumes. Detail added to the lace and net fabrications was Nuno felting, finished and enriched with the beading technique.

6.4.3.5 Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity The detail applied in this collection is the beading technique that co-creates the element line and texture. The fabrication exists out of hand-felted fabrics, net and lace textiles with strips/areas of karakul wool that was felted onto the fabrics to further enrich their textures. The rich fabrication co-creates detail and the soft chiffons, tulle and lace co-creates a soft, feminine garment silhouette or shape. The embroidery detail co-creates the element of line and texture, while the subtle tone-on-tone colour variations of the fabrics co-create soft lines and enhances the rich texture and detail of the garments.

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6.4.4 Marble Mosaic – The Basters – Hope and Optimism

Image 6.1.9 – Marble Masaic (Photograph Amy Schoeman)

Image 6.1.10 (Marble Mosaic Trio)

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6.4.4.1 Interview with Schoeman “I envisage a bold combination and application of colour. A loose hand-knitted technique can be used to knit pieces ranging in colour from aqua to teal to royal blue which reflect the texture of the marbled water. Again, the use of layers will portray the fluidity of water. Layered organza with its lightness, see-through and transparentness, reflects the feel of glass and water. The layers of organza will replicate the movement in water. I envisage the use of glass beads, since glass provides a reflection just as water does.”

6.4.4.2 Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences Marble Mosaic immediately reminded me of a crochet texture and the idea to use this craft technique in the garments was quite dominant. The beautiful tones of the different blues were also a very dominant source of inspiration. This image reminded me of water or some glassy surface; therefore I knew that I would opt for using organza when designing this collection since organza has a glassy feel and shine to it. Organza is also a very crisp textured textile that relates well to the idea of glass. The Rehoboth area, the traditional home of the Basters, is a very water-rich area and natural wells used to be very common in the area and these are to be found from time to time after good rainy seasons. Water also symbolizes hope and optimism in a semi-arid country such as Namibia that is “held” by two deserts, the Namib in the West and the Kalahari in the east.

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6.4.4.3 Sketches

Illustration 6.2.4 The marble pattern and texture are represented in the knitted pieces. Some style lines are asymmetrical as seen in the waistcoat of the male design and the knitted hip piece of the right hand female design. All other style lines are symmetrical. The tension created between the symmetrical and the asymmetrical style lines is a result of trying to indicate the movement seen in the “water” (referring to the texture in the photographic image that reminds of/appears to be water). The suggested use of sheer layers (organza) indicates the flow/movement of the “water” and the see-through or glassiness the “water” portrays. Colour use is true to that of the photographic image.

6.4.4.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and detail The colours used in the collection trio are all cool, aqua colours that remind of water and the sea. Water is one of Namibia's most valuable resources due to the fact that it is mainly a semi-arid country and hosts two deserts. Water availability is one of Namibia's biggest development issues and the Namibian government prioritises the provision of water, one of the very basic human rights, for the Namibian communities.

In the

interviews conducted in this study, colours relating to water were identified as “authentic”

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Namibian. Also, primary blue is one of the colours that are used in the Namibian flag. The combination of primary blue with the aqua-related colours makes this colour combination even more “authentic”. The Namibian element, embroidery detail, is also present in this collection trio. The hand-knitted and soft, flowing fabrications reflect the flow and reflection of the water. Water has been identified as an important source of inspiration to Namibian fashion designers.

6.4.4.5 Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity The element fabrication is the strongest element in this collection since it reflects the glass-like appearance portrayed in the photographic image and the knitted fabrication represents the texture that is portrayed in the photographic image.

The element

fabrication co-creates strong slanted lines in this collection trio, especially the knitted fabrication. The soft fabrication used for this collection again co-creates the soft, flowing silhouette or element shape. The element colour enhances the asymmetrical or slanted and vertical lines which enhances the idea of movement or flow of the “water”. The embroidery detail co-creates the element texture. The embroidery detail does not cocreate the element line, yet it enhances the style lines.

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6.4.5 Textured Trinity – The Tswana – Joy/Happiness

Image 6.1.11 – Textured Trinity (Photograph Amy Schoeman)

Image 6.1.12

Image 6.1.13

Image 6.1.14

(Textured Trinity felt and beading – image 6.1.12; Lady front view – image 6.1.13 and lady back view – image 6.1.14)

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6.4.5.1 Interview with Schoeman “The three-dimensional aspect of this image interests me. I envisage the use of felting since it replicates the texture and I can even envisage spun yarn laid into the felt to enhance the texture even more. I also envisage the use of a lot of soft textures such as chiffon and organza to provide the movement as it is reflected in the sand. The contrast between the sand, represented as soft layers of chiffon, and the roughly textured felt pieces over it, should match the strong contrast in textures as in the image. I envisage the use of sand colours, gold, taupe and rich cream. The contrast between the shades and light should be stressed.”

6.4.5.2 Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences The texture in this photographic image interested and excited me intensely. The texture created with the organic materials or “drift wood” down the lower centre of the photographic image is strong and interesting and it appears as if I can “feel” the texture. This image inspired the use of a “rough” beading technique that would represent the organic feeling. The use of organic beading material would be an option to create an organic feel. This was the photographic image that strongly inspired the application of a craft technique in order to enhance the texture represented in the photographic image. The Tswana traditional area is to the central and southern western part of Namibia, close to the Botswana border and the colours and textures in this photographic image relates very closely to the natural beauty of the area. The texture of the dried clay was also captivating. This inspired the idea to use small broken clay-like panels that would be created with interesting style lines in the bodices and cleverly-cut layers in the hemlines of the women's garments. Although this photographic image is very textured and “rough” it has a strong feminine connotation because of the soft, flowing sand in the background. This also inspired the use of soft layers in the hemlines. The soft layers in the hemlines enhance movement to portray the joy and happiness of the Tswana culture.

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6.4.5.3 Sketches

Illustration 6.2.5 Style lines are feminine, soft and flowing and soft curvy lines are used in the female bodices. The focal points are created through the use of textured details in asymmetrical, slanted line. Texture is directing the designs as much as it is dominant in the image. Yet, the use of asymmetrical style lines as used in the layers and other garment detail, soften the designs as the soft flowing sand softens the rough texture of the organic material in the image. Colours used are mostly soft, sandy hues and the alternate use of darker natural browns and black adds interest to the soft hues and natural tones.

6.4.5.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and detail The colours used in this collection trio are all “authentic” Namibian such as sand, soft gold, rich cream, beige and tobacco brown hues that remind of the desert sand. The textures are very soft combined with very rough and crisp hand felted fabrications. The rough detail portrayed in the photographic image is enhanced by the raw fibre wool inlays and the beading technique applied on the hand felted fabrications and the female bodices. The felted pieces are once again used in their “natural” state, meaning that no pattern-

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cutting has been applied to them – they were applied in the shape they were in after the felting and, as mentioned before, this relates to the way in which Namibian cultures applied natural leather in their cultural costumes.

6.4.5.5 Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity The element fabrication co-creates detail and shape.

The soft silhouettes or shapes

caused by the use of the soft chiffons, silks and satin, beautifully contrasts with the crisp A-line silhouettes of the heavy felted pieces that are draped over the soft skirts. The felted piece added to the men's jacket also strengthens the tubular silhouette of the classic male silhouette, since the felt and the crisp silk appears to enhance the crispiness related to men's suits. The felt fabrications add most of the detail to the male and female garments due to the raw fibre wool inlays and the embroidery technique. The element detail co-creates and reflects the line and texture that is seen in the photographic image, both in the lines and texture that appear to result from “moving sand” and the “drift wood”. The element colour co-creates texture and detail in the felted fabrications, since various colour fibres enhance the rough texture of the felted fabrics, and the soft colour contrasts seen in the hemlines of the skirts also co-create and enhance the texture of the women's garments, which depict the texture of the broken clay.

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6.4.6 Lace Agate – The Herero – Pride/Courage

Image 6.1.15 – Lace Agate (Photograph Amy Schoeman)

Image 6.1.16 (Textured Trinity Lady)

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Image 6.1.17 (Lace Agate Trio in action)

6.4.6.1 Interview with Schoeman “The contrast between the red and green shades in this image interests me. It reminds me of the intensified green of drying plankton and garnet shingle. The use of organza and silks that are shot woven will be ideal, since, depending on how the light falls onto the textile, the warp and the weft will change from green to wine-red. The image inspires the application of soft frills and folds that will indicate the movement or feminine curves of the image. I read the suggestion of a Namibian yin & yang in the image.”

6.4.6.2 Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences The flow of the curve in Lace Agate is very strong, yet feminine. This relates to the strong and feminine cultural Herero dress that was influenced by the Victorian dresses of the European missionaries that lived in Namibia during the later 1800 and early 1900 centuries (as seen in Die Voelker Namibias by Malan, 1998:80). The interesting texture

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that represents lace has a strong connotation to the short stole/shawl or “otjikeriva”, usually made of lace (or any other fancy textile) and wrapped around the shoulders. The “otjikeriva” is a very important element of the Herero female cultural costume. The striking undertones of green and red in the agate, as seen in the photographic image, made an impression on me since I found it awesome that these contrasting colours (complimentary colours on the colour wheel are generally considered contrasting) were found in natural stone. I find that these contrasting colours are livening up the natural beige tones of the stone. I also realized that by applying the same principle, I could liven up garments that are beige by using beige together with contrasting colours when designing the garments for this collection trio. The Herero women are very elegant and they even move in a particular way when they wear their cultural costumes.

The way in which they walk

(swaying movement) display the fullness of the hemlines of their cultural dresses.

6.4.6.3 Sketches

Illustration 6.2.6 The style lines created by the frills represent the strong, curvy yin and yang as seen in the image. The contrast between the smoothness and texture of certain areas in the image is

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represented in the suggested use of smooth textile such as silk for the skirts and the added contrasting, textured ruffles. Style lines are soft and feminine, although the jackets suggest a sense of formality, true to the way in which a Herero woman would carry herself.

The tacit knowledge related to the Herero traditional Victorian style dresses

therefore influenced the design choices. Tension is created in the use of the contrasting colour combination of red and green.

6.4.6.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and detail The use of the strong contrasting colours red and green relates to the courageousness of the Herero people, since it is courageous to combine red and green in a garment, due to the strong contrast created between the two colours. Also, the two main Herero tribes use primary red (the Herero, mostly settled in the central regions of Namibia) and primary green (the Mbanderu, mostly settled in the eastern region of Namibia and Botswana) as their cultural colours or what they consider the “union of the red flag” and the “union of the green flag” (Malan, 1998:85). The fabrication once more is very soft, feminine and flowing and it does not relate very well with the hardness of the Agate. Yet, the Herero people are courageous and strong as the agate, but especially their female cultural costumes are very feminine and therefore feminine behaviour is synonymous with Herero women. The fabrication relates well to the Herero cultural colours green and red since the shot silk and taffeta used in this collection trio is constructed through combining a red warp and a green weft in the weaving process.

Detail enhances and enriches this collection trio and

embroidery is used to highlight the details.

6.4.6.5 Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity The element detail, as mentioned, is very important in this collection trio since it cocreates many elements such as texture, colour and line. Texture is co-created via the

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adding of silk squares that are embroidered onto the Yin female jacket (left in photographic image 6.1.15, page 159). This technique borrowed from the ripple/shadow effect in Schoeman's image (left side of the curve in photographic image 6.1.15, page 159). The element colour is co-created by the three-dimensional technique and is clear to see (photographic image 6.1.15, page 159) how the tone-on-tone shadows are changing the red to deeper or brighter reds, depending how the detail catches the light. element line is co-created or enhanced by the embroidery technique.

The

The chosen

fabrication co-creates the silhouettes of the female garments, especially the bell shapes at the bottom half of the skirts and the sleeves of one of the female garments. The Yang female jacket is constructed out of a beige smooth-textured silk fabric which relates to the “smoother” Yang shape (right side of the curve in photographic image 6.1.15, page 159). The element colour co-creates texture, since the shot fabrications change their tones and shades constantly, depending on how they catch the light. This result in shine and tone depth that create contrasts in colour.

6.4.7 Liquid Sky – The Kavango - Celebration

Image 2.1.18 – Liquid Sky (Photograph Amy Schoeman)

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Image 6.1.19

Image 6.1.20

(Liquid Sky Lady – Image 6.1.19 and Liquid Sky Wirework Collar – Image 6.1.20)

6.4.7.1 Interview with Schoeman “This image has a crisp, glassy feel. I immediately envisage the use of glass beads. The rigid pattern suggested by the water ripples inspired the use of a dye technique that will suggest a zigzag pattern. The contrast in the colours is interesting and it ranges from violet and periwinkle to cream. This suggests softness and crispness. The use of silk chiffon and raw silk textile will be good for the dye technique. I envisage the use of silver, cream, gold and blue glass beading with feathers and layers of very soft & flowing silk chiffon to suggest „cloudiness‟.”

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6.4.7.2 Inspiration from Schoeman’s photography and other influences This photographic image was once more extremely feminine since it shows softness, flow and curves. The colours in this photographic image were of primary interest to me. The crisp white colour was flowing into golden beiges and even soft yellows and the blues varied from bright periwinkle to deep royal blue.

The pattern and colours in this

photographic image inspired the use of the sun dye technique since it would beautifully recreate the pattern in the photographic image. Naturally, I would opt for chiffon due to the softness or femininity represented in the photographic image. The Kavango people have a strong culture of rituals and celebrations and that is why the characteristic Schoeman connected to the Kavango people was “celebration”. The photographic image inspired the idea to “celebrate” femininity and to use the idea of “wrapping” the female models into soft, flowing, “liquid” layers of soft chiffon.

It will relate well to the soft

“cloudiness” of the photographic image.

6.4.7.3 Sketches

Illustration 6.2.7

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A contrast exists between the heaviness of the male coat and the lightness of the female dresses, which appear to be “cloudy” and almost “airy”. It appears as if the male design “grounds” the female designs. This relates to the contrast between the dark, heavy blues and the light creamy, white and golden hues as seen in the image. The feminine, short dresses are decorated with “airy” wire and bead shoulder detail that rises into the air, suggesting lightness. All style lines are symmetrical, yet the hand dyed/painted patterns on the textiles relates to the asymmetry of the clouds in the image. Both female designs are layered, soft and feminine which relates to the softness of the clouds in the image. The heaviness is contrasting the lightness in the image and it creates an interesting tension in the image and in the designs.

6.4.7.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and detail In Namibia the rain is associated with joy and celebration due to the fact that the country is semi-arid.

Therefore, this image relates well to this aspect of the Kavango people

(celebration), which Schoeman chose to highlight. This image highlights the importance of water and rain for Namibians and once more the colours used in this collection trio relate to water, but also to clouds. These colours are ivory, yellow, gold, aqua blues, bluegrey and strong navy blue. The soft fabrications chosen for the female garments relate to the softness and lightness of the clouds and stress femininity. These feminine fabrics form a pleasant contrast with the male garment that consisted of a hand painted A-line Matka silk (heavy quality) jacket. The technique used to construct the shoulder detail of one of the female garments and the jewellery of the male garment was wirework covered with beading. Wirework is a well-known Southern-African craft technique. Yet, the beads and ostrich feathers added to the wirework and the manner in which the wirework detail is designed and added to the garment, makes this wirework detail unique.

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6.4.7.5 Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity The element detail co-creates the element texture, especially in the shoulder and jewellery wire-beading detail of the collection trio. texture.

The element colour co-creates the element

The interesting shapes and distribution of colour reminds of the scattered

arrangement of the clouds in the photographic image resulting from the sun-dye technique. The element fabrication co-creates the bell and A-line shaped silhouettes of the female and male garments. The soft, voluminous bell-shaped silhouette created in the female garments reminds of clouds while the A-line shape of the male silhouette is strong and more “ridged”, “grounding” or giving hold to the lightness of the female designs.

6.4.8 Shades of Velvet – The Coloureds – Humor/Dance

Image 6.1.21 – Shades of Velvet (Photograph Amy Schoeman)

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Image 6.1.22 (Shades of Velvet Lady)

6.4.8.1 Interview with Schoeman “The curvaceous dunes remind me of female shapes and form and it inspired the idea of using feminine drapery around the hip area. To emphasize the curvaceous dunes, I envisage the use of feminine cut bodices with curved necklines overlapping each other. The rippling effects in the image will be reflected in the draping. I envisage the use of lace and lots of textures and layers. I can envisage the felting of karakul wool on lacy net. I will use colours such as coppers, creams and even deep claret as seen in the shadows.”

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6.4.8.2 Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences This photographic image is lively and dynamic. It relates well to the humour and dance characteristic Schoeman linked to the Coloureds. The lively curves, depth, shadows and patches of wavy texture left me with many opportunities to play with such as style lines, texture, colour and detail. I instinctively wanted to transfer the dynamics I sensed in the photographic image to the garments. The photographic image inspired the use of soft draping in the garments and again the use of karakul wool since the ripple-like texture reminded me of the natural Karakul pelt Swakara. The curves inspired the use of very feminine-cut bodices that would be considered trendy in fashion terms, as many of the young Namibian Coloureds dress in a very trendy way.

6.4.8.3 Sketches

Illustration 6.2.8 The use of feminine style lines and bodice necklines, hip drapery, layers and interesting texture in contrast with vivid asymmetrical balance, creates significance in the designs which corresponds with the attractive feminine curves, asymmetrical lines, texture and depth seen in the photographic image.

The colour contrasts created by the depth

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between the “dunes” and the “water” to the right of the image are represented in the colour choices made by the designer. Although colours are natural, the colour combination is contrasting and therefore exciting and lively. The texture as seen in the photographic image is reflected in the top layers of the skirts and they suggest the use of karakul wool felted on top of lace.

6.4.8.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and detail This collection trio is inspired by all the sand tints and tones the Namibian soil has to offer: soft ivory and beige, warm cream, soft orange-browns, dark and soft red-browns, golden peach-brown, subtle ochre-browns, tobacco browns and even dirty purples (found on certain beach areas in Namibia). This symbolizes the diversity of origin of the Namibian Coloureds.

Sand tones are considered “authentic” Namibian colours, therefore this

collection trio intends to stress the diversity of the Namibian sand colours. The fabrication is soft and feminine and reminds of the soft folds and shapes of the Namibian dune sand. The karakul wool that was hand felted onto the fancy lace added an “authentic” Namibian element to the fabrication and the dresses. The beading detail is created from a mixture of beads with all the various sand tones that have been used in the collection trio. This technique adds subtle glamour to the dresses, yet the colour combination of the beads strengthens the identity of the technique so that it can be considered “custom-made for Namibia”.

6.4.8.5 Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity The element detail co-creates the element line as seen in the draping detail on the waist and hip areas of the dresses and the draped tie-belt of the male garment. collection trio the beading detail co-creates texture.

In this

The beading used in the male

garment strengthens the style lines of the male garment as seen on the neckline and side

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seams of the trousers (borrowed from silk trims that are used on classic tuxedo trousers). The textured fabrication in the skirt sections of the dresses are a result of karakul raw fibre that has been felted onto decorative lace. This fabrication, and the way it gently drapes on the figure in soft, vertical folds, reflects the ripple texture in the photographic image and it co-creates beautiful and rich detail in both the dresses. The supple, flowing fabrication co-creates the feminine, flowing, yet slender silhouette or shape in this collection trio. The element colour co-creates the element line, especially in the draping detail and skirt sections of the dresses. In illustration 6.2.8 (page 169), the draping details creates strong asymmetrical or slanted lines, while the contrast in colour between the layer of felted lace and the soft beige chiffon layers beneath it, creates a strong vertical line. The tension between the symmetry and asymmetry and between the vertical and slanted line that is created on both the dresses, as well as the interesting textures that are present in all the garments, add significance to this collection trio.

6.4.9 Pregnant Sand – The Nama – Perseverance

Image 6.1.23 – Pregnant Sand (Photograph Amy Schoeman)

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Image 6.1.24 (Pregnant Sand Lady)

6.4.9.1 Interview with Schoeman “What inspired me most were the strong stylised lines in the photograph. The cleanliness and simplicity of the line is what makes this image so strong and the design of the garment should depict how strong, powerful, yet simple a line can be. The use of wire trim can add detail to the garments if necessary. Raw silks in black, browns and sand colours should be used and absolute clean lines should be employed in the design.”

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6.4.9.2 Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences I perceived Pregnant Sand as the most powerful image next to Sperrgebiet. The strong, simplistic line in the image inspired the use of very strong lines to create tall, slim and striking silhouettes. The challenge for me was to use line so that it would be as powerful as in the picture. The use of strong line relates to the strength and perseverance of the Nama culture that lived in the desert and semi-desert areas of southern Namibia where they had to fight for the co-existence of their culture during German and South-African colonial rule, as well as the early Herero invasion into their territory and the fight for grazing pastures for their live stock and essential open water sources (Herero, 2007). The image inspired the use of contrasting black, sand tone/dark beige and cream.

6.4.9.3 Sketches

Illustration 6.2.9 The image shows powerful tension in the vertical lines of the image. The vertical lines are dominating the designs and are represented in the simplistic use of vertical style lines in the dresses, dress collars and jacket. The colours are earthy, sandy golden hues such as sand brown, rich cream and black. The designs are striking and simplistic. The use of

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smooth textile such as dupion silk is suggested to reflect the smoothness portrayed in Schoeman's image.

6.4.9.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and detail The colours used in this collection trio can be considered “authentic” Namibian since the three colours used were the “Namibian” colours that have been identified in this study: sand brown, rich cream and black. The texture of the fabric used is smooth and reminds of the smooth desert sand of the Namib desert. The wirework covered with beading and the natural feathers added to this detail can be considered “authentic” Namibian detail.

6.4.9.5 Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity The smooth texture portrayed in the image is replicated in the choice of finely woven, high quality dupion silk. In this collection trio the crisp dupion silk fabrication co-creates the element form – a slender, sleek silhouette, borrowed from Schoeman's photographic image. Fabrication does not co-create other elements since the portrayal of a smooth texture is vital in this collection trio. This allows the designer to strengthen the style lines in the garment designs. The other essential “Namibian” element colour also does not cocreate other design elements, but it does strengthen the style lines in the garment designs via the various subtle and very strong contrasts between the sand brown, rich cream and black. The beading detail also enhances the style lines in the garments. All the elements work together to enhance the style lines in order to achieve the strength the lines of photographic image portray. The element detail co-creates the texture, as seen in the textured shapes in the photographic image and it is replicated in the form of soft draping applied in one of the dresses of the garment trio. Towards the left of Schoeman's image one can see a textured “feather” shape. This is reflected in the use of matching natural coloured feathers applied on the wire-and-bead shoulder detail that is used in the two

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dresses and therefore the beading detail also co-creates texture.

6.4.10 Rock Diva – The Damara - Adaptability

Image 6.1.25 – Rock Diva (Photograph Amy Schoeman)

Image 6.1.26

Image 6.1.27

(Rock Diva Lady – Image 6.1.26 and Rock Diva Trio – Image 6.1.27)

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6.4.10 Interview with Schoeman “I envisage a bold Nuno application (use a felting needle and felt through the organza) on organza with karakul wool to create the wonderful textures in the image.

The very

textured, warm volcanic colours combined with the rough karakul wool on sheer organza (organza & mottled wool) will represent the textures in the photographic image well. The image reminds me of magma or lava. I envisage the use of layers that will symbolise the layered eruptions of a volcano.

The use of textures over textures in colours rust,

burgundy, burnt orange, ochre and maybe the warm touch of black will be suitable colours.”

6.4.10.2 Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences The Damara are also known as the “stone masons” of Namibia. The Damara people live in the rocky, mountainous area of Khorixas and Twyfelfontein where hardship is a common ingredient of daily life. The adaptability of the Damara is necessary to be able to survive in their natural surroundings and circumstances.

Again, the rich contrasts in

colour and texture in the photographic image was the main source of inspiration for the designs. The strength of the Damara people and the strength in the photographic image marry well. This photographic image also offered a challenge to me since my design style is naturally feminine and soft and I had to solve the problem of meeting the strengths of the photographic image.

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6.4.10.3 Sketches

Illustration 6.2.10 The designs suggest femininity, especially in the female designs. The skirts show layers of organza with Nuno detail, all in warm tones of orange, brick and copper. The rough piece-spun karakul yarn applied with the Nuno technique, relates well to the rough stone surface as seen in the image and the layers in the skirts relate to the layered rock as seen in the image. The simplistic, rigid boned corsets and the slight boxy shape and mandarin collar of the male jacket relate well to the strength of the rock. Indicating strength was difficult to overcome as a design problem. I started out by using design elements, such as the mandarin collar used in Moa jackets, “rigid” boning and boxy, rigid shapes often used in men‟s fashion design, that can be associated with “strength” and “male”, the sex that is perceived to be “stronger”, at least physically. “Strong” elements such as the boning, mandarin collar and boxy shape have been used in an attempt to “strengthen” the designs, but all these elements have been “feminised” throughout fashion history, the most feminine women of all, the Geisha wears a mandarin collar and boning is used in one of the most feminine garments, namely the corset. Even Jacky Kennedy “feminised” the little boxy “Jacky O‟” jacket.

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6.4.10.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and detail The fabrication used in this garment trio is a very strong combination of soft, crushed and flowing organza against the crisper texture of the hand woven Raw Silk and the heavy mock suede/suede imitation. The mock suede adds many of the strong characteristics of leather to the dresses. Leather has been identified as an “authentic” Namibian fabrication, especially when it is used in its raw shape. In this garment trio the use of mock suede aims to add strength to the collection in order to meet the strength of the photographic image, as well as the strength that is portrayed by the rock. The strength of the mock suede is contrasted by the soft layers and volume of the organza. The collection trio reflects the strength of Namibian rock as well as the softness of Namibian sand. The beaded detail is directly inspired by the Namibian rock texture while the colours of the Namibian rock inspired the selection of the burnt oranges, deep rust reds, tobacco browns and copper browns. These colours are all considered “authentic” Namibian since they represent the colours identified in this study, such as sand and rock colours.

6.4.10.5 Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity The element detail co-creates texture as seen in the textured beading technique and the Nuno technique applied on the glass and crushed organza.

The beading technique

imitates the texture of the image in a more subtle way against the strong Nuno technique, which creates a very eye-catching effect on the organza. The beaded wire shoulder detail is also interesting due to the texture the bead application adds to it.

The element

fabrication also co-creates the A-line silhouettes or shape seen in the dresses.

The

voluminous fabric layers of the skirt and over skirts create full, flowing hemlines. The volume of the large shawls balances this hemline volume. The detail of the scarves, once more via the application of the Nuno technique, adds to the texture of the garment. The element colour does not co-create other elements, but the colour combination is very harmonious. This study does not investigate design principles, yet many of the design

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principles are present in this garment trio, especially the principle of harmony.

6.4.11 Water Taffeta – The Caprivian – Creativity

Image 6.1.28 – Water Taffeta (Photograph Amy Schoeman)

Image 6.1.29

Image 6.1.30

(Water Taffeta Lady – Image 6.1.29 and Water Taffeta Lady – Image 6.1.30)

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6.4.11.1 Interview with Schoeman “This image reminds me of the purity of water, air and light as seen in the soft shimmering of light touching the edges of the darkness in the image. I envisage layers of hand-dyed (sun dye technique) silk chiffon and the use of glass beads. I envisage the use of colours such as black, dirty pinks, silver, azure blue and purples. The formality of the black inspires a tailored, classic cut to garments which will be softened by style lines reflecting the zigzag pattern in the image.”

6.4.11.2 Inspiration from Schoeman's photography and other influences The photographic image Water Taffeta has strong elements of rhythm and contrast. I personally can relate to this image since I find the combination of black and soft feminine colours contrasting and therefore interesting. This inspired the use of black with soft feminine colours such as purple, blue and pink. The rigid, sharp edges in the pattern inspired the use of strong, sharp-edged style lines in the garments. The rhythm created by the pattern in the photographic image inspired the use of the sun dye technique. To recreate the pattern and colours would be a challenge since I find that the sun dye technique is difficult to control.

Yet, this technique appeals to me since it offers the

freedom I need to find the correct solution to this challenge. The characteristic Schoeman associated with the Caprivians is “creativity” since the Caprivians are known for their creative crafts such as basket weaving and woodcarving. I perceived this photographic image as feminine and again the layered effect in the colours inspired the use of layers.

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6.4.11.3 Sketches

Illustration 6.2.11 The design sketches show energetic necklines inspired by the zigzag pattern as seen in the image. The soft, flounced layers imitate the flow/movement in the image. Rhythm is created by repeating the sharp edges of the necklines and the flowing skirts. The colour contrast is strong because of the use of strict black with soft feminine colours such as pinks, purple and azure blue.

The use of glass beading on the sharp edges of the

necklines reflects the silver shine seen on the edges of the zigzag pattern. The formal tailored styling as seen in the male suit and the princess line, fitted dresses add to the formality depicted in the image (a result of the dominant black in the image) but it is softened by the use of the soft colours and layers of the female designs.

6.4.11.4 Dominant Namibian elements: colour, fabrication/texture and detail The colours in this collection trio, apart from the black, are mostly natural purples and pinks such as grey-purple, sky blue, old rose pink and deep red-pink. These colours are all present in the Namibian nature, as well as the Caprivian water rich area. The black adds drama and contrast to the soft tones of the natural purples and pinks. Due to their

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link with the Namibian nature, these colours may also be considered to be part of the “authentic” Namibian colours. These colours, natural purples and pinks also remind of the Namibian sunsets, and this even strengthens their position as “authentic” Namibian colours. The soft flowing fabrication reminds of the “flow” or “movement” depicted in Schoeman's photographic image and soft textures are considered to be “authentic” Namibian according to the research conducted in this study. The embroidery detail is also linked to the decoration techniques of some Namibian cultures and has also been identified as “authentic” Namibian in this study.

6.4.11.5 Elements of ELEVEN that demonstrate hybridity The element texture is co-created by the beading detail and this detail also enhances the energetic lines in this collection trio. The soft flowing chiffon fabrication co-creates the element shape since it defines the silhouette of the dresses. The crisp silk fabrication creates a tubular, slender silhouette or shape. The shot chiffon fabrication (soft blue warp and purple weft) co-creates colour due to the tone-on-tone shades and tints that are created depending on the movement of the textile and the manner in which the soft folds catch the light. The element colour co-creates line due to the contrasting and over-lapping layers of the bottom part of the dresses. The varying hemlines of these layers also cocreate interesting line that constantly changes as the wearer moves.

6.5 Prominent Design Elements of ELEVEN The following design elements were dominant in the designs:  Natural colours borrowed from various Namibian landscapes (nature) and Schoeman's landscapes (art): sandy colours such as rich creams, beige, sand, brown and the like, gold, silver and copper metallic colours, natural pinks, blues, greens and black.

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 Soft, feminine shape and volume created by soft flowing layers.  Soft, smooth, sheer textures contrasted with crisp, rough, organic and rich textures.  Crafted detail such as embroidery, wirework, felting, Nuno, sun dye and others.

Therefore, it is evident that these elements relate very closely to the three “authentic” Namibian fashion design elements identified in this study, namely: 1. Natural colours related to the Namibian landscapes (nature) such as sand, beige (nude), corn yellow, white, orange, burnt orange, brick, stone, terracotta, burgundy red, blue, olive and lime green and purple. 2. Course textures (such as leather and other natural fibres) that relate to rock, contrasted with soft, feminine textures that relate to soft sand, dunes, the desert and water. 3. Embroidery detail where materials such as glass, natural and ostrich eggshell beads, feathers, seashells and more are used. The ELEVEN couture collection employs all the above mentioned “authentic” Namibian elements and may therefore arguably be considered as an identity shaping body of work. The ELEVEN couture collection was considered to be portraying a Namibian couture design identity by all the knowledgeable people (the field) who were interviewed in this study.

The comments from the interviewees regarding the ELEVEN couture collection during the follow-up interview sessions were very interesting.

Says Schimming:

“This is true

Namibian design and the Namibian elements are evident in your designs”. She continues to say: “You went very close to the Namibian nature – the colours of the rock, the water,

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the sky, the sunset and the moon. You brought out texture and manipulated materials to add volume, thus moving away from the South African designers”. Miettinen mentioned: “The different textures are visualizing the natural landscapes of Namibia; therefore the fashion garments are visualizing the material landscape of Namibia and in that way I could say that it is defining Namibian couture design. According to my visual perception of Namibia the textures and colours are defining a Namibian identity”.

McRoberts commented positively on the question whether the ELEVEN couture collection reflects a true Namibian couture identity. Her comments were: “Yes, because you made a real effort to contextualize what you have done and what you have set out to do and this is really wearable, attractive and original. It can be seen as a good Namibian expression and what I like to see is that you work with Namibian materials”. Caley also commented positively on the question whether the ELEVEN couture collection reflects a true Namibian couture identity. Her comments were: “Definitely – the way you are going from the photographs and landscapes as inspiration to design couture shows what a shocking (in a positive way) effect this combination (photography and fashion) can create. It also shows couture can be done in Namibia”. Chamberlain commented: “I thought about what you wanted to do in this collection after I attended the fashion show and I came to realise you wanted to create a cultural dress sense, especially for the Namibian woman, by merging various influences such as colour, race, ethnicity, religion and many more – it is evident that this collection portrays a message that these garments are coming from a country where people are free to be individuals”.

In this chapter I investigated the dynamics that influenced the identity shaping of the ELEVEN couture collection and I explained how I applied the photographic images as sources of inspiration in the development of the couture collection. Then I explain how the Namibian design elements colour and texture/fabric/detail have been applied in the

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ELEVEN couture collection. In the following chapter I will conclude the study by looking at the research summary, the research results, the shortfalls of this research and finally I will indicate future research possibilities related to this study.

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CHAPTER 7

THE CONCLUSION

In the previous chapter I discussed the creative development of the ELEVEN couture collection.

I also discussed the specific elements and hybrid elements that played a

dominant role in the development of the collection and the formation of its identity. Since the collection was shaped by similar dominant elements that have been identified as being “authentically” Namibian in this study, it has been concluded that the identity of the ELEVEN couture collection is also Namibian. This result has been confirmed by all the interviewees of this study. In this chapter I will draw some conclusions from this study in terms of what the research set out to do and intended to achieve, what the results of the research have been, what the shortfalls of this research are and what future possibilities for related areas of research might be.

7.1 The Research Summary

This research set out firstly to investigate what identity is and how identities are shaped and created. In essence, the research attempted to describe what the forces are and how these forces come into play to result in identity formations. The purpose of this was to develop a basis for decisions that would be made in attempting to create a fashion series that would reflect a particular identity, namely the Namibian one. Consequently (and secondly), the study intended to investigate design and design-related issues, as they would impact on the fashion series for identity formation. Thus, the study described what design is and what the dynamics are that influence a design process so that these dynamics result in identity formations in a designed presentation. The research then investigated how fashion design contributes to identity formations and how fashion design

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and couture design might relate to the process of forming identities. Once the theoretical groundwork had been laid, the research turned to the focus of the study, namely the development and justification of a possible Namibian couture collection that spoke to the demands of identity building.

The argument engaged with the forces at play that

formulate and create Namibian identities.

Following on from this the dissertation

interrogated how fashion design could be one of the forces that assist in the creation of certain Namibian identities. Having assumed and argued that that it could, the study proceeded to investigate what the fashion design elements were that contributed to the development of a Namibian fashion design identity, concentrating on the years 1995 to 2005.

The study paralleled the development of the perception of the Namibian identity by arguing that, if the garments were to be designed, and then the creative process would play a further dominant part in the process. In this sense, inspiration would come from one source, but the selection and moulding (that is the design) process would be embedded in the act of creativity to develop the ELEVEN couture collection. Thus, the design process and how the designer implemented the process to achieve certain results were outlined. It was accepted that ELEVEN was not just an intuitive process that a photographic artist and a fashion designer involved themselves with but that it did have specific meaning and content. Therefore, the creative development process, the choices, negotiations and adaptations that the designer involved herself with were described, and then drawn through to the nature of new identity formations. The impact of the concepts of Domain, Field and Individual (or the Personal) (Sawyer, 2006:123) was outlined, to demonstrate the dynamics at play in the design process. The study used these concepts to interrogate closely how the designer worked and how the process developed and this process was measured against the basic design theories as outlined in the relevant chapters in this dissertation.

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Part of the process is inevitably the interaction of design elements and therefore, the role of design elements were investigated. These elements were specific design elements used in fashion design. Once these were in place, the study interrogated how they might contribute to the shaping of new identities. The study then pursued the application of the elements and the creativity in the identity shaping aspects and design element aspects of the ELEVEN couture collection. Finally the study investigated how these design elements (both generic and specific) related to the specific Namibian design element aspects in an attempt to see whether the ELEVEN couture collection contributed to “defining Namibian couturier design”. The apex of the study, therefore, was the use of identified generic and specific design elements, manifested in colour, fabrication, texture and detail selected from the Namibian photographs of Schoeman, and resonating with the landscape and peoples of Namibia, in the development and justification of the garment designs that went into the ELEVEN couture collection.

7.2 The Research Results

The research firstly results in explaining what identity is, what the dynamics are that shape identity – such as culture, nationality, history, community, religion, gender, individuality, taste, profession, social classification, geographical location and race/ethnicity – and what the senses are that drive the shaping or formations of identities – such as the sense of belonging, the sense of the awareness of value systems, the sense of safety and security, the sense of pride, the sense of promise for the future, the sense of common origins, the sense of easy communication and the sense of what sells. The study concludes that the abovementioned dynamics that are contributing to identity formations may influence the creation of an object, but at the same time, these dynamics may also be used to analyse the creation processes of an object.

The study interrogated how designers collect

information regarding design processes and how designers work. The study concluded that the three basic design dynamics are people, ideas and things and when these

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dynamics are engaging in the activity of design, new concepts, new products and new identities come about and this demonstrates how designers contribute to new identity formations within certain design processes. The study then resulted in the explaining of how design functions in a social context – the key players in this social context are the person/individual, the field and the domain. The individual creates the novelty that is selected by the field and passed on to the domain. The novelty is internalised by the domain and this knowledge or inspiration is again passed back to the individual. The study also looks into the role fashion plays in the shaping of identity and self-identity and how the fashion designer can contribute to the shaping of new identities – or at the very least to the manifesting of existing identities that are either reshaped or reformed by the designer.

The study then investigates what the Namibian material hallmarks of identity are and the study reveals that Namibian individual identities are shaped by juxtaposing indigenous cultural identities in combination with what is “imagined” [as Anderson (2006:6-7) explained] to be a “Namibian” national identity. The study further investigates what the Namibian material hallmarks of identity are in form of looking closer at Namibian fashion design from the year 1995 until 2005.

The material hallmarks and specific design

elements that were found to be closely related to the Namibian fashion design domain were the elements colour, texture/fabrication and detail. One of the results of this study is that Namibia has created an own identity in fashion and couture design and this identity has been created mainly via the use of the specific design elements that were mentioned above by many of the knowledgeable or established Namibian fashion designers.

The study then sets out to use the ELEVEN design process as a case study and the research results in finding a close relationship between the general design dynamics and design processes (such as the design process within a social context) designers use to contribute to new identity formations and the design process the designer/myself used in

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the creation process of the ELEVEN couture design collection. The study also resulted in the discovery that design elements can demonstrate hybridity, depending on their application. The designer can juxtapose design elements not only to create new design applications or design principles, but also to co-create other design elements. Due to the investigation of the experiences obtained and collected from producing the ELEVEN couture collection, the conclusion reached add to the value of information available to practical designers and design organisations both generally, and within the Namibian context.

As a result, the study revealed that the designer is not continuously following a single design process, but several processes are involved simultaneously. There is an individual process in progress – where the designer works with ideas and things – and simultaneously a communal process is in progress – where the designer is involved with a field and a domain. Just like an individual has to adapt and negotiate between certain individual and communal forces, dynamics and senses to form or shape an own, personal identity (and one that might be constantly fluctuating), in the same way the fashion designer had to negotiate and adapt between new knowledge, tacit knowledge, experience, new ideas, concepts, materials and more to create a new body of work, namely the ELEVEN couture collection. The constant juxtaposing of all these forces and dynamics that have been applied in the creation process of the ELEVEN couture collection, did result in a new body of work with a hybrid or new identity. Since the study thoroughly investigated the role of the design elements that have been applied in the creation of the ELEVEN couture collection, it became clear that the same Namibian material hallmarks of identity, the specific design elements that have been identified as “authentic” Namibian, have been used in the ELEVEN couture collection. Therefore, the dominating result of this study is that the ELEVEN couture collection was a dynamic identity-building process that contributed to defining Namibian couture design.

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7.3 The Shortfalls in this Research

The study focussed on finding what the design elements are that are “authentic” Namibian as part of the Namibian material hallmarks that relate to identity shaping issues. The influence of other Namibian material hallmarks, such as Namibian historic or cultural clothing, have not been considered or included in this study since the aim of ELEVEN was to move away from historic and cultural clothing and to create a new or contemporary couture collection. Another shortfall of this research is the lack of earlier and proper documentation on the history of Namibian fashion. The designer therefore has to rely on personal observations and experiences, which may be challenged.

This study did not involve itself with investigating the authenticity of Schoeman's views on whether the landscapes she photographed represented a true Namibian identity or not. The fact that Schoeman's work has not been included in this research as a to whether they are perceived by knowledgeable Namibians as “authentic” Namibian, has a certain influence on this study since the work of Schoeman served as a dominating influence on the creation process of the ELEVEN couture collection. As mentioned earlier in this study, it has not been investigated whether and how Schoeman's own vision “intruded” on or enhanced the image of the landscape as an authentically Namibian landscape. However, it must be pointed out that the tension between the sociological/anthropological approach and the creative approach is always a dynamic that works within the design process, and this becomes even clearer when the task is the creation or manifestation of a design identity.

This last point needs some further clarification. As has been argued in this dissertation an “identity”, a “community” and even a nationality are “imagined”, as described by Anderson (2006:6-7).

The notion of the imagined and its connection to the “imagination” is

manifested, and thus, inevitably, there can be no final, definitive “Namibian identity”. All

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that can happen, in the specific case of this dissertation, is that the “creative imagination” needs to go as far as possible to justify the creative choices made in the pursuit of that “imagined identity”.

The task is not of accuracy or even of truth, for this cannot be

attained; it is the task of honesty in the pursuit of authenticity.

Thus the designs in

ELEVEN are not absolutes, but simply an honest pursuit of identity.

7.4 Future Research Possibilities Regarding Related Areas

The study on identity and the role identity issues play in the area of fashion and couturier design might offer a future research possibility. The study regarding the individual, the field and the domain can be intensified and it can be further adapted to the specific field of fashion design, as more information is collected, and improved regarding design processes and how designers work.

An example of such an intensified study is the

realisation that the individual, field and domain do not influence one another only in one specific order, but that they influence one another in various orders. An improvement on this model will reveal how crucial identity formation issues might become for all these areas. Since an improved model will explain the influence of the field and the domain on the designer (the “others” surrounding the designer and his/her working processes), this model will also explain how the designer will influence these “others”. This also links to my argument that the individual is influenced by its outer peripheries, but that the outer peripheries are also influenced by the individual as illustrated in diagram 2.1 (refer to page 17) of this study (the individual is surrounded by peripheries such as the family, social class and culture). If a designer is this individual, then the “others” a designer relies on are part of these peripheries surrounding the designer and his/her working processes. Since these outer peripheries shape the identity of the individual (as argued in chapter 2 of this study, pages 17-18), then it can be concluded that the “others” shape the identity of the designer and his/her working processes. Therefore, an improved socio-cultural model which explains the relationship between the designer and the “others” is very important

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since it will illustrate not only these socio-cultural processes, but also how identities are created or recreated in these processes.

The way in which the hybridization of identities takes on shape and how they (identities) come about is another area for future research and it may well connect to the abovementioned area for future research.

The decisions made in the hybridisation

process are affected according to certain personal “mind-sets” or acceptance/rejection of external or internal influences and these decisions are related to how identities are eventually shaped in a hybrid society with numerous cultural, social and global influences. The decisions made in the hybridisation process might lead to interesting discussions in the design process and the fashion industry (designer and consumer) at large. This topic offers fertile ground for further research.

Finally, it may be argued that the findings of this study in terms of design and identity will play out in the domain of the curriculum development in fashion schools and departments throughout the training process. This research has opened up a number of contested spaces and dynamics that need to be addressed when design, function and identity interface.

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ANNEXURE A These texts were compiled by Amy Schoeman for the ELEVEN Exhibition opening. These texts were used to introduce the eleven scenes of the fashion show that has been presented during the opening event of the ELEVEN exhibition. These texts were also exhibited together with the photographs and fashion illustrations at the ELEVEN exhibition.

Eleven FotoFashionFusion

By Amy Schoeman

The Eleven project is a fusion of fashion design and photographic images aimed at creating a contemporary interpretation of Namibia‟s cultures and regions. These are represented by an environmental image portraying different aspects of sand, rock, water, cloud and sky. Drawing on the colours, contours and textures of the images, the designer has used silk, organza, chiffon, raw-fibre karakul and piece-spun yarn, and employed techniques such as felting, Nuno, knitting, tie-dying, fabric painting and wire beading, to fashion a highly imaginative collection of spectacular ensembles aimed at transporting the viewer into a world of fantasy.

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Scene 1 Oshana Silk

About 500 years ago the people referred to collectively as the Aawambo moved from the Great Lakes in East Africa to settle between the Kunene and Okavango rivers in centralorthern Namibia. In the central north, life on the vast plains depends on the efundja, the floods that feed the flat, shallow depressions called oshanas. The roaming nature and versatility of the Owambo people, coupled with the cycle of the seasonal efundja, are the themes of Oshana Silk. The colours in the photographic image – aquamarine, forest green, tobacco brown and warm bronze – are reflected in the designs by loose collages of overlapping layers of silk, simulating the texture of the water and the versatility of the people. The overall styling of the series is one of softness and movement. Finishes are loose and free, with beading to accentuate the subtle interflow of texture and colour.

Scene 2 Desert Disk The San are the earliest known inhabitants of Namibia. These hunter-gatherers of the east – including the Ju/hoansi, Kxoe and !Kung – roamed the vast plains of Southern Africa for thousands of years before migrants armed with weapons and searching for new land drove them further and further east into the Kalahari and Namib deserts, where some communities still practise their traditional, nomadic life style. Renowned as great storytellers, the San express themselves eloquently in prose, music, mimicry and dance. There is a high degree of mysticism in their culture, expressed symbolically by the sun or moon in the photographic image and repeated in the solar disks, embellished with rich gold beaded borders. For the over-garments Namibian raw-fibre karakul has been felted into various shapes, finished and accessorised with traditional beading techniques. The

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mistiness of the clouds and dust raised by dances such as the n om txai or trance dances are reflected in organza, matka and raw silk fabrics.

Scene 3 Sperrgebiet In the early 1800s adventurers and explorers of European descent started moving into southern Namibia. They were mainly Afrikaners infiltrating from South Africa, and German and British missionaries. Although white domination of Namibia lasted just over a hundred years, the influence on the country‟s culture, economy and infrastructure was extensive. A major factor was the discovery of diamonds in southern Namibia in the early 1900s, leading to a feverish convergence of fortune hunters on Kolmanskop in the area known today as the Sperrgebiet. The beauty and purity of the diamonds found in the shifting sands of the Namib are represented by the mica flakes in the image, their brilliance echoed in the diamanté embroidery on the felted garments. Layers of knit, chiffon, organza, tulle, guipure lace and litter gauze in black, charcoal and silver grey are defined by rough felt and fine nuno elements. The metallic sounds in the music devised for this scene symbolise industry and ingenuity.

Scene 4 Marble Mosaic Characterised by hope, stoicism and optimism, the Rehoboth Basters regard themselves as a distinct community by virtue of their unique history and the fact that they have been living in their designated territory for over a century. Their roots date back to 1652 when the first Dutch colonists under Jan van Riebeeck landed at the Cape of Good Hope. Two hundred years later some ninety Baster families moved to Namibia from the Cape, first residing at Warmbad, then migrating northwards to Berseba and, in 1870, finally settling at the hot-water springs called Rehoboth. The photographic image reflects the bubbling

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water of these springs, its marbled blueness extended into the loose hand-knitted pieces in colours ranging from aqua and teal to royal blue. Layered organza provides a seethrough effect to further reinforce the transparency and feel of water, with wrist cable strands of glass beads replicating the movement and light.

Scene 5 Textured Trinity Towards the end of the nineteenth century a large group of Batswana embarked on a Thirstland trek to settle in Namibia, where they developed a distinct culture and character. Today they live in a triangle, with a line between Epukiro and Aminuis in the east as its base, and extending to Walvis Bay, its vertex, in the west. This triangular shape and the three main clans of Namibia‟s Tswana are reflected in the three-dimensional aspects of the photographic image and repeated in the structure of the garments. Piece-spun yarn laid into felting replicates the textures of the sand, detritus and drying silt, the soft feel and texture of chiffon and organza replicating the movement of the sand, yielding under-layers of chiffon that contrast with the roughly textured felt pieces. Complementary colours of gold, taupe and rich cream symbolise shade and light, and likewise the characteristics of joy and happiness that typify this group.

Scene 6 Lace Agate It is believed that in ancient times Ovaherero lived in a legendary African marshland of water and reeds known as Roruu before undertaking their southern migration down the African continent, crossing into present-day Zambia and southern Angola and, led by Kaoko, arriving at the Kunene River in about 1550. After inhabiting the North West for some 200 years, a large splinter group led by Maendo moved further south. They reached the Swakop River valley towards the middle of the 18th century; moved eastwards in the 19th century and eventually established themselves in the northern-central areas of the

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country. The story of their migration is symbolised in the serpentine shape in the photograph, echoed in the praise- and chant-like rise and fall of the music and reflected in the soft falls and folds, yin-yang contours and feminine curves of the designs. The subtle green and wine-red hues are intensified in the shot weaves of organza and silk, bonded with golden thread and picked up on the keyboard tones and rhythm.

Scene 7 Liquid Sky

Caprivians share their language with the Lozi of Barotseland, the Valozi being the remnants of the Kololo Kingdom, established by Chief Sebetwane of the Bafokeng, who crossed the Zambezi River in the 1800s. Most Caprivians make their living on the banks of the Zambezi, Kwando, Linyanti and Chobe rivers. When the Zambezi and Chobe come down in flood, more than half of Eastern Caprivi becomes inundated and wooden mekoro, dug-out canoes, become a common means of transport. The ensembles in Liquid Sky reflect the crisp, glassy feel of water, life essence of the Caprivi people. Their strong sense of tradition is depicted in the well-defined styling, reflecting the zigzag pattern of the Caprivi‟s backwaters. This is repeated in contrasting colours of violet, periwinkle and pink in the hand-painted and dyed layers of raw silk and silk chiffon. Accessories have been fashioned with flamingo feathers and silver, pink and blue glass beading.

Scene 8 Shades of Velvet During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries groups of Cape Coloureds – mixed-race descendants of Caucasians, Malayans and indigenous Khoi and San people – moved to Namibia. They generally speak Afrikaans and are characterised by their sense of humour, love of dance and the different musical arts they brought to Namibia. While a small number practise stock farming in the southern parts of the country, most Coloured people

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live in towns, especially Windhoek, Keetmanshoop, Lüderitz, Kalkveld, Karasburg and Walvis Bay, where many are employed in the fishing industry. In the Shades of Velvet scene the emphasis is on the curves and contours of Sossusvlei‟s dunes, suggesting playfulness, humour and dance. Drapery around the hips emphasises the theme of curvaceous dunes, with layers of lace portraying the rippling and textures of the sand. Techniques include felting with karakul wool on lace net in rich colours of copper, cream and claret.

Scene 9 Pregnant Sand The only true descendants of the Khoekhoe in Namibia are the Nama, whose ancestors originally lived north and south of the Orange River. Pushed continuously northwards by a rapidly advancing white farming community, the Nama, led by the famous Jan Jonker Afrikaner, settled in the south and central areas of the country. Numerous proverbs, riddles, tales and poems have been handed down orally from generation to generation, the poems ranging from impromptu love songs and formalised praise of heroic figures, to songs of the animals and plants in the environment. What inspired the designer most in the Pregnant Sand image were the strong stylised lines that symbolise the perseverance and tenacity of these people of the south. These elements have been replicated in the simple structures of the garments and the wire trim. The warm hues, sheerness, clean lines and simplicity are mirrored in the layering of black and brown raw silk.

Scene 10 Rock Diva The origins of the various so-called Damara clans, who belong to one of the oldest cultural groups in Namibia, are somewhat of an enigma, giving rise to many myths and theories. One of several puzzling aspects is that while they differ in appearance and lifestyle from the Nama and Hail/om people, they also speak Khoekhoegowab. In former years the

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Damara had the widest geographic distribution in Namibia, but today they are concentrated in the environs of Outjo, Kamanjab, Khorixas and the Brandberg region. The photograph of a rock surface reflects the rugged landscape of Damaraland, the vibrant colours bearing testimony to the ancient volcanic forces that shaped the land many eons ago. To reproduce the textures the designer has applied the Nuno technique, used a felting needle and rough karakul wool on sheer organza. Colours are volcanic – rust, burgundy, burnt orange and ochre – and defined by warm layers of black organza and mottled wool.

Scene 11 Water Taffeta Lifeline of the Kavango people is the Okavango River, forming the border between Namibia and Angola over a distance of some 400 kilometres. Archaeological diggings place the arrival of early Kwangali settlers around the 1600s, although VaGciriku, VaSambyu and Hambukushu might have arrived later, between 1750 and 1810. Migrating from the great lakes area of East Africa, they first settled around the Kwando River in Angola, before moving south of the Okavango River in Namibia. People here make a living from fishing, tending their cattle and cultivating sorghum, millet and maize on the wide fertile plains on either side of the river. Naturally creative, they are renowned for their skill and artistry at woodcarving, crafting furniture and, of course, drums. The image of clouds reflected in water is replicated in the designs by layers of tie-dyed silk chiffon and hand-painted matka silk, combined with aqua, azure and cream chiffon. Fun elements are combined with classic tailoring and timeless details, including wide cuffs and collars. Accessories are made of wire, glass and wooden beads.

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ANNEXURE B

Eleven The Portfolio

Cultural group

Title of Photograph Matching Scene

Owambo

Oshana Silk

San

Desert Disk

Nama

Lace Agate

Coloureds

Shades of Velvet

Tswana

Textured Trinity

Whites

Sperrgebiet

Caprivi

Liquid Sky

Kavango

Water Taffeta

Herero

Pregnant Sand

Damara

Rock Diva

Rehoboth Basters

Marble Mosaic

&

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ANNEXURE C ELEVEN FotoFashionFusion 2005

PRESS RELEASE ARTISTS:

Amy Schoeman & Melanie Harteveld Becker

EXHIBITION:

July 30 – August 13, 2005

VENUE:

Main Gallery, National Art Gallery of Namibia

MAIN SPONSOR:

Bank Windhoek

OPENING FASHION SHOW: Thursday July 28, 2005 Music: Madryn Cosburn & Kenneth Abrahams Compére: Prof Minette Mans Choreography: Edmund van Neel Lighting: Johan Louw Models: Extravaganza Hair Styling: Heidi‟s Hair Studio Following their successful collaboration on the pioneering Five Seasons project staged in the National Art Gallery in Windhoek in September 2002, Amy Schoeman and Melanie Harteveld Becker put their heads together and devised a follow-up fusion of photography and fashion. The challenge was to find a theme that was sufficiently new and different. It had to be equally colourful and evocative, to extend the creative abilities of both these artists into new directions and be something to which Namibians could relate. Then they hit on a winning formula. While the theme of their first project was universal, the theme of this one would be essentially Namibian. It would go to the very roots of the country, and it would highlight those elements – the natural environment and the people – that define the Namibia of today. The objective of the Eleven Fashion Show and Exhibition is to give credence to the premise that not only is fashion art, but that it is a living, vibrant, expressive and valid form of art which fulfils one of art‟s most important functions, namely to uplift and transport the viewer. THE ARTISTS Amy Schoeman is a veteran Namibian photographer who has been actively involved in photography for the past 27 years. While she made her name as an environmental

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photographer, for the past ten years she has been focusing on Fine Art. Fashion designer Melanie Harteveld Becker has achieved a reputation for designing with true Namibian flair. She uses contemporary textiles and local materials, and her designs are characterised by home-grown inspiration and local materials, reflecting trendy silhouette and line. THE PHOTOGRAPHS The photographs will consist of the Ephemera portfolio of environmental imagery celebrating the continual ebb and flow of the forces of nature – sand, water, wind, cloud, sky and sun – their relevance being not so much what they are, but how the viewer interprets them. The images are reproduced as 12 large colour photographs, the title image 1 m x 2.50 m and the eleven images representing each cultural group 1 metre square. THE GARMENTS When designing the Eleven Collection the designer has drawn on the following two points of departure: 

The 12 images of the Ephemera Portfolio, for colour, texture and form.



The cultural aspects of each of the 11 cultural groups, not portrayed literally, but symbolically.

While pivotal, these are merely points of departure. The garments do not replicate a traditional or tribal dress or style. They are very much of the here and now: haute couture creations for the Namibian man and woman of today. Craft techniques such as crocheting, knitting, felting, beading and Nuno (felting on different fabrics) have been incorporated.

THE FASHION SHOW The exhibition will be opened by a full-on fashion show with a production team consisting of the fashion designer, a lighting engineer, sound engineer, choreographer, models and dressers. On the opening night the designs will be modelled on a ramp to electronic music composed by Madryn Cosburn and Kenneth Abrahams, with choreography by Edmund van Neel and compéred by Professor Minette Mans of the University of Namibia. There will be twelve scenes, eleven comprised of three garments modelled by two female and one male model, professionally made-up and coiffured and a grand finale that will include the title garment.

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THE EXHIBITION After the opening fashion show the 34 outfits will be suspended at different heights from the ceiling of the gallery for the duration of the exhibition. The photographic component of the exhibition will be featured against the walls of the gallery and will consist of the title image with the title garment on a stand next to it and 11 units representing Namibia‟s eleven cultural groups and consisting of: 

The cultural group‟s title image as centre piece block-mounted and framed; and



A sketch of one of the garments representing that population group, blockmounted and framed.

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