Yesterday a friend of mine who’s studying fashion design told me that, every now and then, he feels scared about inspirations and wonders what would happen to him if one day he couldn’t find any fresh ideas for his collections.
This is a perfectly understandable fear, yet we do live in very inspiring times.
Fifteen years ago you would have had to physically go to another country to do some researches, visit and exhibition or even buy rare books and records.
Now it’s incredibly easy even to find the rarest books around and you can take virtual tours of museums, zooming in and out of masterpieces located in the Uffizi Gallery, at the Metropolitan Museum or at the State Hermitage, thanks to sites such as the Google Art Project.
Yet I think one of the most inspiring things for me remains looking for ideas in unlikely places.
Last year while doing some virtual researches in Australian museums searching for rare fashion images, I stumbled upon the amazing archive of the New South Wales Police.
Unfortunately I didn’t have the time to write about it earlier on, but, after yesterday’s chat with my friend, I thought this was the right time to look at the treasures hidden in this archive and at the ways they could inspire us.
All the images in the archive are actually part of a collection of forensic crime photographs put together by the New South Wales Police between 1912 and 1960.
The images were rescued by the Historic Houses Trust and are now available online, but also in book format, in two different volumes, one entitled City of Shadows: Sydney Police Photographs 1912-1948 by Peter Doyle and Caleb Williams, and the other entitled Crooks Like Us (by Peter Doyle).
Some of the images included in the online archive feature crime scenes, murdered corpses, axes, bombs and assorted weapons, abortion instruments and objects such as hats found on crime scenes, and they could actually be rather inspiring for directors and photographers.
Both men and women’s wear fashion designers should instead look at the mug shots featuring con artists, housebreakers, thugs, gunmen, shoplifters, drug dealers and pickpockets.
The choice is wide and includes gender bending Harry Leon Crawford/Eugenia Falleni; a guy called William Cahill who seems to be stylishly posing; a man nicknamed “B Moody” looking relaxed holding his hat in his hand, and Guiseppe (probably misspelt - it should have been "Giuseppe") Fiori, alias Permontto, with his hands in his pockets.
While some of the people portrayed have got a rather scary look, others such as the two guys called De Gracy and Dalton look impeccable in their tailored suits and hats.
Interestingly enough some of these images are considered as “special photographs”, taken in the cells at the Central Police Station between 1910 and 1930.
Peter Doyle suggests that, compared with the subjects of prison mug shots, "the subjects of the Special Photographs seem to have been allowed - perhaps invited - to position and compose themselves for the camera as they liked.
Their photographic identity thus seems constructed out of a potent alchemy of inborn disposition, personal history, learned habits and idiosyncrasies, chosen personal style (haircut, clothing, accessories) and physical characteristics."
These emotionally charged images are fascinating from a human point of view, but also from a fashion perspective, some of the details regarding the clothes and accessories worn by the men and women in the photographs are indeed very interesting.
You wonder for example where did Ms Nancy Cowan, 19, and charged with conspiring to procure a miscarriage on a woman, got her kimono-style dress or how how could Ms B. Smith pictured with her “friends” Gertrude Thompson and Vera McDonald at the Sydney Central Police Station on 25th January 1928 in the aftermath of a raid led by CIB Chief Bill Mackay, go through the effort of wearing everyday quite striking shoes with rather elaborate strings.
It’s actually almost funny to think that, by simply doing their job, the NSW Police officers ended up turning into fashion chroniclers.
Look at these images and at the trendy street style portraits of contemporary fashion bloggers and you will realise the photographers working for the Police were probably much more into fashion than the Sartorialist.
The archives feature hundreds of images, so enjoy looking at them, trying to spot that special fashion inspiration that may help you with your collections. I’m sure you will even find a favourite one among the many photographs stored in the archive.
My favourite picture remains the image showing the back of a man, probably a detective, in a tulle skirt behind a stage curtain.
The photograph was taken after the dressing room fire at Sydney’s Tivoli Theatre in 1945.
You wonder why the policeman was wearing a tulle skirt, but apparently the explanation goes like this: “Police are called in to make a report in the aftermath of a fire. They find themselves granted access to one of the most titillating locales in Sydney - the 'Tiv' dressing room. In the ensuing mood of ribald jocularity a policeman is photographed clowning about.”
Wow, who could have ever thought the New South Wales Police officers were into extravagant tulle gowns?
For more crime-related inspirations, check out the "Sin City: Crime and Corruption in 20th Century Sydney" exhibition at Sydney's Justice & Police Museum.
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Brillante come sempre!!! chi ti ha ispirato?????
Posted by: GabeSemeraro | March 22, 2011 at 07:54 PM