Main Project - relevance, debates, theory

The 3 most essential questions part of my learning agreement:

·         ·         What is the wider context of your project?

             The project explores the essential role of stage costume in contemporary performance in terms of historical, psychological, practical, and commercial context. The included analyses cover some classical dance and musical performances and will compared them with contemporary local performances and determine the budget reflection on the tools of costume communication. In addition, the project covers some psychological analysis on questionnaires and case studies of people’s perception of combination of clothes, colours fabrics, and shapes and the way they are displayed. 

              Another aspect which is related to the main research question is the financial part of a production. For that reason, the project will identify some alternative methods, material and objects which could take part in the clothing creation of significant factors affecting the budget amount and how productions have been compared in terms of financial resources. The gathered techniques will be combined and tested while discovering some new approaches.

               Afterwards the new knowledge and skills will be collaborated to recreate one or two of the costumes from a classical music performance with minimum financial resources using some of the explored techniques. The outcomes of this practical work will be analyzed and tested on observers by polls. The made conclusions would be reported, comment and criticized (including period for possible corrections) in depth drawing the achievement of the research objectives.

·         How does the project relate to your previous experience/practice?

           I’ve already been a promoter and organiser of low budget events and I am familiar with  some of the difficulties one can encounter.

 ·         How does it relate to relevant current practices, debates and theory?

One of the debates related to my project which casts doubt on the creative side of costume designer’s profession in general:

“Since the costume designer, unlike the painter and the sculptor, is an interpreter of another man’s artistic product, the concept of a designer having his own style and forcing it on each production with which he is associated is untenable…”(Russell, D.A., 1973)

 Should a stage designer consider himself as an artist when he is required to create only imitations of epochs, characters and attitude?

 At the same time, the clothing which stage designers create is a representation of their own creativity and the way they’re reading the rules for stage costume design.

“The designer is, in fact, an inventor and should be prepared to experiment with new ways of depicting stage sets and expressing personality and character through costume design”.(Cassin-Scott,J., 1998)

How far can a designer go with experimentation particularly in dance and musical performances?

How could different characters in a play and their personalities allow the stage designer to experiment in creating their clothing by combining fabrics, colours, etc?

“Design is a balance of creativity and compromise, says the designer, with audience appetites demanding new solutions.”(Crowley, S., 2013)

The frame set from the characters and the script isn’t the only limiting tool for the designer. Therefore, some of the conflicts which may occur are from his own imagination:

 “Imagination seldom approaches problems in sequential manner. Instead it produces images, perceptions, and emotional responses which may, on the other hand, present themselves as fragment which seems to have little connection with one another or, on the hand, spring forth whole and intact like Venus in the myth.”(Ingham, R., 1992)

·         Why is the intended research significant? (So what?)

The great presence of musical and dance performance is an unalterable part of the contemporary British art. Many of these productions are provided with limited budgets. My work will contribute to designer’s production work by adding new approaches to some old costume design techniques and presenting some new ones. Thus, the project will outline the variety of ways of impact which costumes could achieve and the process of their realization.

The chosen types of productions also can cause some confusions for the costume designer:

“Dancing imposes limitations on costume designs and construction, which do not in those for the actor’s stage” (Harrison, M.,1978)

On the other hand, musicals and dance performances build a different connection with the audience based on a stronger costume impact.

“Costumes for dancing must give an illusion of the real garment, and not become a meticulous reproduction” (Harrison, M., 1978)

I hope the experiences acquired during this project would prepare me best for a position in art performances such as costume, set designer, and stage manager.

References:"

Cite material using the Harvard System referenced in the previous sections.

J. Cassin-Scott. The Stage Costume Sourcebook. London 1998

D. A Russell. Stage Costume design – Theory, Technique, and Style. Englewood Cliffs 1973

Caines, M., 2013. Arts head: Sean Crowley, project leader, World Stage Design 2013 [online]. The Guardian. Available at: http://www.theguardian.com/culture-professionals-network/culture-professionals-blog/2013/jan/29/sean-crowley-world-stage-design [Accessed 07.01.2014]
Harrison, M., 1978. How to dress dancers. Tunbridge Wells : Midas Books