When an inanimate object is believed to be inhabited by a spirit and/or worshiped for its supposed magical powers, it is known as a fetish. Fetishes often form during childhood, taking root in the subconscious, where, for the rest of our lives, they continue to influence our preferences and choices. Which is why FETISHISM: Obsessions in Fashion & Design at the Trapholt museum in Denmark is a must-see for seeing how we embrace fetish via design in order to connect in a world increasingly driven by connections, but defined by physical isolation.
To showcase the way sensuous experiences during early childhood affect our adult personal preferences in materials and objects, the exhibition's curator, trend forecaster Lidewij Edelkoort, chose the work of 100 designers - including Fernando & Humberto Campana, Maarten Baas, Jaime Hayón, Front, Rick Owens, Studio Job and Iris van Herpen - to illustrate ten distinct fetish themes she sees emerging in the world of design:
#1. Nudism
#2. Sado-Masochism
#3. Romanticism
#4. Spiritualism
#5. Absurdism (right)
#6. Infantilism
#7. Regionalism
#8. Consumerism
#9. Shamanism
#10. Legendism (below)
"Many of our desires and obsessions stem from our childhood and are later developed into a fascination for example, lingerie, leather, velvet or shoes," notes Trapholt Museum director, Karen Grøn. "We increasingly use design as a fetish to link up with an increasingly uncertain society. We create fetishes by the choices we make, and thus we are connected to the world around us."
FETISHISM: Obsessions in Fashion & Design will be on display through January 24, 2016. Info & tix at Trapholt.dk.
- Lesley Scott
NOTE: Honoring the past to help us pave the way forward fashionwise is a signature of the Folkspun fashion tribe. For more of my posts & podcasts about this tribe, CLICK HERE. To learn more about each of fashion's four mega-tribes that I track, START HERE.
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