In full bloom

‘In Full Bloom : Reimagining Monet’ is a collection aiming to merge art and fashion to create a striking and memorable display. Focusing on highlighting feminine qualities but not limiting this to womenswear, designer Jorja Townsend used the artistic medium of fashion to bring to life and conceptualize the renowned artists work. After viewing Monet's waterlily series in Paris in the summer of 2023, Townsend felt truly inspired by the panoramic paintings. They became inspiration for colour and fabrics with a focus on recreating the brush stroke textures, as well as shape and silhouette, with the designer taking the floral shapes and creating sculptural pieces to be added to the garments. Another strong source of inspiration for this collection comes from Loie Fuller, a dancer who rose to fame during the 1980s, the same time as when Monet was creating the aforementioned paintings. Known for her ‘Serpentine’ dance, Fuller used vast amounts of draped fabric combined with expressive movements to create what seemed like floral silhouettes. This led to the idea to use a mixture of both lightweight fabrics to capture the freedom that comes with draped fabrics, as well as sturdier materials that would support and hold strong silhouettes. Due to the fact that water lilies bloom in the spring and summer months, this collection with its muted and natural colour palette as well as delicate surface detail, is best suited for spring/summer ‘25. Townsend showcases a range of handcrafted embellishment techniques within this collection, such as beading and embroidery, creating appliqués and also hand painting directly on to fabric to create surface detail.