Roughly a week ago Donatella Versace spoke about her decision to be featured in the Givenchy Autumn/Winter 2015 campaign. The first look of the campaign (View this photo) on the Versace brand's official Instagram account was indeed posted with a caption by Donatella Versace stating "I believe in breaking rules. Riccardo Tisci is extremely talented and above all my dear friend. We are family. I want to get rid of the old system, work together, support each other and make fashion a true global community."
Before her, at the end of May, a group of designers under the moniker the Many Hands Collective gathered at Glasgow's Lighthouse to work together on a fashion project.
The results of that project - a deconstructed dress, a top and a pair of shorts hand-painted by over 100 collaborators with motifs inspired by maker's marks to create distinct repeat surface patterns, plus a textile piece painted last October - are currently on display in the same venue.
Co-founded by Ciorstaidh Monk and Alice Dansey-Wright, the Many Hands Collective focuses on collaboration via artworks, one-off products, workshops, events and exhibitions.
Collaborating is always a great idea, but some issues may arise: Donatella Versace appearing in a Givenchy campaign is clearly a publicity stunt, besides, while it is not impossible for fashion designers to bond as friends, it becomes much more difficult to do so when they direct rival houses and when money issues are involved.
While the idea of the Many Hands Collective is good and could also have a great impact on the creative level (designers may exchange suggestions and advice about specific aspects of a collection or receive and give constructive feedback, while coming up with intriguing exhibitions), it becomes much more tricky (though it is definitely a fun process) when over 100 people are involved in designing a product as copyright and financial issues may arise.
So can fashion be a genuinely collaborative effort between more than just two designers (the history of fashion is rife with successful fashion duos after all...)? Maybe not on the creative level as it would be rather difficult for a team of 100 designers creating one product or collection (though it would be definitely less stressful...).
But there is one aspect on which designers should definitely work together - setting new fashion rules and slow things down a bit. As the fashion rhythms intensify and while more emphasis is placed on pre-collections, the time has definitely come for designers to converge together and rethink many fashion strategies that are turning catwalk shows into moveable, fleeting and instubstancial feasts of fluttery.
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