She - Updating Styling for Look 1

She’s emotional imprisonment is introduced at its most severe in the opening scenes. Feeling overwhelmed and engulfed by society’s ignorant negativity, her illusion captures her body and sense of being in constraining rope. In my proposal I designed the suffocating rope to be wrapped tightly all over She’s face and body, representing society’s power to restrict someone’s sense of individuality and freedom. I do think this would translate to the target audience of young people; however I think there's a danger of it looking cliche. My initial inspiration image is shown below. 

(Mr. Kate 2011.)

I want She to look distressed, tortured and constrained to reflect her mental state in a more striking and avant-garde way. I therefore looked for further inspiration for the styling, whilst still incorporating the feel of tied up rope. 

(Woah World 2017.)

Mental asylum patients were wrapped up in bandages after an invasive operation, mirroring how victims of discrimination feel ashamed by their emotional wounds and so try to mask their feelings. I am concerned She may start to look slightly erotic, with the restraining mouth piece combined with her naked body tied up in bandages and rope and I think the use of bandages may be too obvious. I therefore looked for an alternative material that would give the same trapped and constrained look. 

(Morel, 2015.)

The image above shows model Valeriia Karaman photographed by Paul Morel for OOB Magazine. Nude coloured bandages have been used to cover the upper head and hair, with the body decorated with layers of black mesh. The mesh almost engulfs the model, mirroring the claustrophobic feeling of constant discrimination and hate. The mesh creates different textures and tones, giving lots of depth and the freedom to create different silhouettes. My model for She says she is uncomfortable about showing any personal areas so this black mesh concept could work effectively to give the impression of a sheer look whilst still covering those specific areas. I think the mesh in the example above looks too controlled; I would want the mesh to be unstructured, almost like vines growing over a helpless, withering tree. 

Final Design

Inspired by Valeriia Karaman's image, the hectic black mesh evokes beauty whilst still projecting chaos. The eternal black material surrounds the model, overshadowing her happiness and sense of self-worth. Metres of black mesh will be wrapped and shaped round the body and layered in different areas to give lots of depth and colour variations. I will need to experiment once the material is bought to work out how to attach the mesh onto the body, possibly with body tape, and whether it would need to be constructed on the day or if I could attach it to another piece of clothing, making it ready to wear. She will be attached to her surroundings to show a strong sense of being trapped and captured unwillingly. I think using the mesh to attach her styling to the walls would look messy and distort her silhouette; I will therefore be using black elastic, secured by either hooks or giant safety pins, to pull the mesh to the surroundings. The sharp hooks and long strips of elastic will mirror the mass of people pulling her identity in every direction by her own. This is definitely something I will have to experiment with when I have the material as I am concerned there will be problems with the mesh sticking to her body correctly and attaching to the walls as I want.


References:
MR. KATE, 2011. Whimsical Halloween Costume Inspiration [viewed 2nd February 2017]. Available from: http://mrkate.com/2011/10/20/whimsical-costume-inspiration/

WOAH WORLD, 2017. Haunting Mental Asylum Photos from the Past [viewed 2nd February 2017]. Available from:  http://www.woahworld.com/haunting-mental-asylum-photos-from-the-past/47/

MOREL, P., 2015. Valeriia Karaman Photographed by Paul Morel for OOB Magazine [viewed 2nd February 2017]. Available from: http://www.25thcenturyyy.com/valeriia-karaman-photographed-by-paul-morel-for-oob-magazine/