Yesterday's post closed with a design that integrated a trompe l'oeil pocket, so let's start this new post from pockets and from the form follows function principle.
According to this design concept, the shape of a building or object should primarily relate to its intended function or purpose. Fashion designers often use the same principle also in their creations, but there are times in which function may also follow form.
Take this 1948 design by Edward Molyneux: the large pockets at the hips of this dress protrude even when empty and rather than being used to carry the contents of a woman's handbag, they were employed as a design feature to emphasize a small waist, accentuating in this way the fashionable postwar silhouette. So in this case the function of the pockets (carrying objects) was secondary to the silhouette of the design. Are you a designer looking for inspirations for your new collection? Try pondering a bit about how you can subvert or reinvent the form follows function principle in your creations.
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