Carol Christian Poell

[cjbreed]

I don't see contempt. How can you sell contempt. If clothes design is art, it is applied art. No one has to buy these clothes. Contempt would be a dead end. This line of argument is over.

What I see is an incredibly inventive, challenging but extremenly wearable collection. This hits all CCP buttons.

there is contempt. clearly. but it is not an attack if there is no resistance. the wearer is in on it. there is no argument, just a shared feeling.

there is also sacrifice. a sacrifice of comfort. movement is restricted. but again, the wearer is complicit.

like this:

The contempt for the wearer doesn't seem like a critique though, because I think the wearer must be in on the joke. I think Poell assumes the wearer will choose to project such a contempt for himself and his own body.

aka made a good analogy. roger waters singing about alienation as he builds a wall between himself and his audience. but without the audience he has no one to sing to. and no one to share his feelings. they are in a relationship. we all feel alone, together

another point is that only some of the clothing is meant to have this impact as its primary purpose. the majority is indeed wearable, with the philosophical implications taking a back seat. i mean its still clothing for fuck's sake.

[philip nod]

how can you sell contempt?
"alternative" culture

[cjbreed]

heehee

[Pumpfish]

how can you sell contempt?
"alternative" culture

Is alternative culture defined by difference from a percieved norm or contempt for that norm?

In any case this is about contempt of a designer for his punter...

[AKA*NYC]

In any case this is about contempt of a designer for his punter...

cjbreed's great post above illustrates the point that copacetic and others are making. it's not as literal as you're (mis?)interpreting it to be...

[cjbreed]

god makes it so OR there may be some of those mysterious magnets in there too...

haha i just saw that at least one person got that joke

[kunk75]

overthinkers unite. I hope he's reading this laughing

[copacetic]

I don't see contempt.

Thanks for the back-up of cjbreed and AKA in attacking this sort of fatuous commentary.

You don't see contempt? How about the fact that Poell places his model in the basement of some run-down abattoir? Truly: are you out of your mind?

[kunk75]

i am going to guess that:

a-the model went to the basement willfully
b-is a masochist, just look at the moustache

[copacetic]

overthinkers unite. I hope he's reading this laughing

Judging by the installation at Lift right now, I think he's thinking through his design precisely as much as we are.

And what better place to overthink than SZ? Better than underthinking!

[kunk75]

not questioning the thought that goes into them, just the thoughts that we put into them.

[Faust]

better than "i wear cool shit"

[kunk75]

true i suppose. i just don't get the contempt for the wearer comment. since he doesn't do runway shows perhaps there are pieces to be worn and pieces to be seen. i don't find his clothes painful in the slightest if you buy the right size

[Peasant]

Some 2010 on Darklands.

[copacetic]

true i suppose. i just don't get the contempt for the wearer comment. since he doesn't do runway shows perhaps there are pieces to be worn and pieces to be seen. i don't find his clothes painful in the slightest if you buy the right size

I agree with the second part of what you say. I don't find his clothing painful at all to wear. Sometimes the arms can be a bit restricting in suit coats, but what tightly-fitted coat doesn't restrict movement to some degree? (The only uncomfortable piece I own is a pair of the TEER breadstick trousers. The wool is very, very, very itchy. Looks fabulous though.)

But in terms of this "contempt for the wearer," I think I explained what I meant in the formal analysis of the self-edge high collar coat. I mean that it's intentionally unflattering in terms of generally appealing proportions. The strange folds in the fabric, the obtrusively high neck, the oddly placed pockets, the truncated body, the strangely flared sleeves...all of it adds up to a garment that seems to get in the way of the body that's wearing it. It swallows you up in a very calculated way, and it's hard to look past the garment. And that's what I mean by contempt. What's key to understand too is that I believe that the wearer is implicit in this contempt...i.e. Poell and the wearer are really on the same page, and both are interested in offering a critique of the garment and the wearer both.