Collateral Concepts: Discontinuity

[mortalveneer]

I am very excited for this next iteration.

[Chinorlz]

[Chinorlz]

Horween horsehide with two way locking custom cut tarnished silver heavy duty Lampo zippers and fully lined in organic pure black cotton.

The body is constructed of a front, side and back panels that allow contouring through the sides for an anatomic fit even better than before. The front curving seam has a fully lined and hand-sewn reinforced edge pocket.

The collar is a curving deeper jut neck that can be worn fully zipped or lapels splayed out.

The sleeve seam arcs down the front and then towards the blade of the hand. The same seam continues through the front shoulder and then curves around the neck to meet the mirror image on the other arm at the center neck in a perfect +. The front panel's neckline curves up and around the back of the neck to help form the collar. The lines follow a continuous line of motion from one arm to the other.

The hem is also curved and is slightly lower in front and then curves around the hips and up at the base of the spine.

The inner lining is 100% organic cotton and forms the side curving pockets with seams that flow into the panel seams and then the double chest pockets similar to what was done on the 3rd iteration leathers.

The hide is a medium weight and so is a trans-seasonal leather that has an incredible handfeel and structure that gives it a form even when not being worn.

All the seams of the leather have been painstakingly sewn and then glued flat on the inside an inch at a time so that every seam lies completely flat and smoothly.

Each jacket cut and constructed from beginning to end by the designer without assistance.

Measurements for size 50:
Shoulder seam to shoulder seam- 17.5"
Underarm to underarm- 20.5"
Shoulder seam to cuff- 27.5"
Cuff width- 5"
Hem width- 20.5"
Total length- 25"

Measurements for all other sizes available on request.

[ironman]

damn yo :( looks beautiful. can't wait to see more

is the sleeve lining made of a different material? i find cotton sleeve lining makes putting on jackets noticably less smooth than if it was cupro or something

[Chinorlz]

The sleeves are the same cotton. It's a lovely cotton that has juuuust a little bit of slickness to it. I've been wearing a couple of versions of this in various leathers for the last 2-3 months and have not had an issue. The fiancee has one in her size and she hasn't complained yet!

[swims]

that jacket is really impressive! just a matter of taste but i really like the more subtle anatomic seam-work on this jacket.

i've been watching collateral concepts for a while and more than anything, it's been really inspiring. i'm at med school at the moment (albeit in the UK) and have been experimenting, making my own clothes too. seeing that you've managed to balance the two, working at such a high standard is great!

[michael_kard]

The looks and weight of this leather must be incredible.

I'd love to see the jacket worn.

[Geoffrey B. Small]

on medicine vs. design et al...

Agreed, I mentioned this beautiful piece in my last comment on Zam's thread. I do think that Albert, your stitchwork has also come along dramatically in this new piece, and that is a real complement. As for all you med students out there, I will chip in a few quick points to ponder...

Let none of us forget that before embarking on a remarkable design career, Giorgio Armani spent 2 years in medical school before dropping out and going to Milan and his destiny. I would argue that few practitioners in the art have shown the thoroughness and discipline normally reserved for a competent physician, better applied to the chaotic and narcissistic metier of fashion in his time than he.

So, I would further argue that the 2 fields need not necessarily be counter-productive to each other (although if I am being treated by you as your patient some day- I would hope, expect and depend upon--your 110% attention being paid in regards to your medicine work and my particular health situation).

And, I will confess that I come from a family of physicians myself, and while I did not follow in the footsteps of several generations of very dedicated and very competent medical practitioners and researchers who share my last name, I do feel that many of the old-fashioned principles and deep human responsibilities they adhered to- based solidly around the Hippocratic-Oath- and not the new "Business of Health Care" model that has taken over our society today, were quite well drummed into me over the decades of my youth. When I finally stumbled upon my own path to pursue a career in this particular metier, I could not help but feel like a black sheep and to be frowned upon - fashion and clothes being viewed as quite a superficial thing - saving lives quite another. So to make up for it, I felt impelled to approach it in the way I was brought up to approach all things: to be thorough and precise when necessary, to aggressively seek the truth always, to listen-look-and-diagnose problems carefully and accurately, to keep an open mind to new discoveries and technologies, to never waver from serving your fellow human being in need, and to constantly teach, share and pass on knowledge, information, guidance and encouragement to the next generation of practitioners.

Over the years, I made a lot clothes for a lot of people. I slowly began to believe as I still do today, that there are many similarities between the 2 metiers, and that they are both facing the same fundamental challenges that all of our society and humanity is facing now. So whichever work you wish to pursue, do it with all you've got, and do it well, always keeping the utmost of your patients, or customers, well-being in mind... God knows, we could use some good new, and honest, people in both fields these days.

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[Faust]

Well said, Geoffrey. On a side note, everyone must read this mind-blowing article.

Albert, the jacket looks truly beautiful. It is amazing to watch your progress!

[Pumpfish]

Geoffrey, Zamb, Albert,

I asked this question in another thread, but it is really addressed to you...

When you sign your work, who are you signing it for.... yourself, your customer, or your customer's wider circle?

(For want of a better phrase, I mean the people your customer might want to impress?)

Thanks


PS v4.0 so far as you have shown looks incredible. I would add Nishida-san to the anatomy discussion.

[mortalveneer]

I've known A (in an online capacity) since pre-Collateral Concepts days, and it has been amazing to watch the line progress. I recently acquired a couple pieces from an earlier iteration and they stand out as some of the more meticulously constructed garments I have ever handled. The anatomical design on the gauntlets is nothing short of incredible, and the jacket is quite simply one of a kind. In particular, the way the seams on the arms of the jacket articulate the elbows is visually fascinating; even unworn and hanging, the contour of the arms draws and bewilders the eye.

I'll get some photos that do things justice when time allows. For now, here's an insta-gauntlet preview...




{edit: I was typing as Faust posted, so let the mirrored nature of our first sentences towards Albert stand as a testament to his work as opposed to an indication of sycophancy on my part}

[Chinorlz]

Thanks so much to all for the kind words and to Geoffrey for (as always!) a lovely dialogue!

Wearing two hats as it were is certainly challenging. While at the hospital, it's 100% focus on the patients and then when I'm at home or in the studio, I get to relax and create.

Looking back and also as I work on the upcoming collection, I see the designs mature and become more functional and wearable while still retaining the influences that I pull my work from (my upbringing, training, research). I notice this at times in a more subconscious way as I find myself wearing more and more of my own more recent works :)

More updates, more pieces to come and ultimately a formal presentation of the collection as a whole!

Hope everyone is having a lovely weekend.

[Geoffrey B. Small]

To Chinorlz, Faust, Pumpfish, quick answers...


Dear Chinorlz, thank you and keep it up!

Dear Faust, yes that Time magazine article is a landmark piece. Today's equivalent of The Jungle/Upton Sinclair I believe... and indeed must be read by everyone living in America today. I got wind of it from my mother who is now a retired physician who spent a lifetime being one of the first women doctors in America, she was the only woman to graduate in her entire class in the late 1950's at UCLA Medical School (can you believe it-that's the way it was back then--her patients would always ask her when they could see the "doctor" as they thought she had to be the "nurse"); nevertheless she took care of a hell of a lot people under her watch, including thousands of veterans whom she served in her last decades working for the VA system with always less and less money and resources available... and I remember the thank you notes from her patients stacked up a mile high. When the article came out a month agao, she sent me a link to it, but it is only available to paid online subscribers (thank you Time Magazine, I believe in this one particular case an exception should be made in the interests of the American people to have access to this article), so eventually with some prodding on my end, she sent me a photocopied version of the article... it will make you sick just to read what is happening to all those people getting sick in America. I am going to try to scan it for my own circle of acquaintances to read...

Dear Pumpfish, I cannot of course speak for the others, but if you are referring to my hand signing my garments, it is not ego believe me. It adds time and in many cases, serious risk to ruining an extremely time-consuming, expensive and rare piece. The last thing I need to do is mess up a signature on a piece that I have worked so hard on for weeks, so I would generally prefer to avoid having to do it. And it is more than easy to mess up, believe me. I would quickly refer to the recent posts on Yohji's thread about him signing his stores to begin to shed some light on the difficulty of this type of operation. But I do it for the following 2 reasons. First, it has been demanded and requested, heavily and consistently, in recent years by my retail client dealers, and now has become my defacto label in the majority of our works for them. It is good for them, as I often include their name and number the piece with the signature, which provides the dealer with an undeniable level of authenticity and confirms the extreme personal and rare nature of the piece. Remember, most of my esteemed colleagues and competitors in the field (especially in my generation and older) are producing their designs in far larger quantities than I, so it is important, and just, that the client understand this difference clearly in every aspect of the piece. Second, I am an independent working artist. And I have been so for 3 decades, making my living and raising a family with my art. While there are many aspects of this art (a new Facebook page is being developed to address this soon) including my drawings and illustrations which I won my first international design competitions with, and with which I started my career... my primary medium for many years now is the very rare and special clothes that I design and make. I strongly believe making clothes the way I do is an Art form and needs to be treated and respected as such. And I have spent a lifetime dedicated to this unique mission. So I would ask anyone out there, have I not the right, indeed the obligation, to sign my artwork with my own hand if I wish to do so?

thanks to each of you,
Best wishes,

Geoffrey

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[Chinorlz]

A new piece completed after many late nights. Once I get started I get the urge to just keep going and going and next thing you know it is 5 am and I have to force myself to step away and sleep only to get back to it the next day!

Vintage Japanese Boro Jacket with Piano Key Ivory Buttons

[Chinorlz]

Constructed from Japanese boro fabric decades if not a century old, the jacket was design to be a balance between traditional English blazer cut and construction and that of asian jackets with the mandarin collar. I built the lapels to be in between a notch and a peak and they are hand sewn together to create almost a "shawl" style collar.

Four button front can either fully close the jacket making it more reminiscent of a Chinese jacket or buttoned with 2,3 buttons for a more western classic look.

Following my application of anatomic lines and movements, the dual front flap pockets flow from the arcing line (that is actually contoured for fit) on the sides of the body and continue that visual "movement."

The pocket flaps may also be tucked in for a smooth front if desired.

All the original hand-sewn patching and repairs done by those original farmers, peasants and hard workers have been completely preserved and they show up in sections of the lining. I wanted to pay respect to this ultra-time consuming method of repairing and continuing to keep the fabric "alive." I echo this in the completely hand-sewn pick stitching done around all edges of the lapel, collar and pockets.

The sleeves are each constructed out of the original pants legs of the traditional pants worn by the farmers. Beautiful original indigo dye and heavy, dense sashiko stitchwork used by the original owner at what used to be the knee which I reversed to be the elbow of each sleeve. The complex pattern of fabric panels used to construct each pant leg struck me at beautifully anatomic and so I preserved almost all of it. The cuffs are the original pants legs cuffs and can be half folded or folded down all the way.

The buttons are 60-125 year old reclaimed piano key ivory that I received from a man who restores pianos. Two keys were sanded flat and then bound together with resin before they were cut and sanded into their shapes of buttons and button backing. These were then drilled before dyeing in natural black dyes and installed by hand with needle and thread on the jacket.

On the opposing side, the buttonholes were created in the traditional fashion in 3 steps with only the first base stitch done on the machine, The heavy thread reinforcement and the tedious edging (what is visible on all buttonholes) was done by hand with needle and thread. Each button hole took 45 minutes to 1 hour to make.

The shoulders and front of the jacket are "canvassed" in the sense that carefully chosen reinforced panels were used for these parts. From the original garments, the shoulders and backs would have a secondary, denser panel hand sewn on to the inner face of the outer layer for structural support and I repurposed these to function in the same way to echo and serve as traditional western jacket canvassing.

Total construction time was approximately 40 hours not including original canvas prototype and pattern development.