OTHERWORLD

An image of a Brigantian horned Celtic god harness fitting found in Aldborough, North Yorkshire enkindled an interest that I have touched upon before in my work when looking into Neolithic British culture. There is a certain magical presence to this object that is reminiscent of Cernunnos the Celtic deity that bears horns from the head and is said to act as the mediator between civilised and wild worlds. The presence of a mediator between worlds is common in Celtic mythology and provided a starting point and character for this collection.

My process can often start with a final image of how I would like to present a collection and an overall feeling that I would like to impart. Thinking about the Celtic deity and being a mediator between worlds brought me to Samhain the Celtic festival that is said to have marked the end of the year and the start of winter but also a time when the veil between the world of the living and the world of the dead is lifted to allow passage either way. Large fires are said to have been lit during this period some to ascertain the fates of the living and some as protection from the supernatural.

These thoughts conjured an image of ritual and an otherworldliness punctuated by the presence of fire being both transformative in nature and chaotic. I wanted the clothes to be shown in a way that invokes this image and in a sense to blur the lines between the world of the living and an otherworld. Scarecrows for me have always had this uncanniness to them and so it felt natural that that is how the clothes should be shown, these sculptures created to conjure the presence of humanity yet are not but sometimes illicit such personality that they may suddenly spring to life. One of my favourite photo books is Colin Garett’s Scarecrows in which he documented the Scarecrows of the British countryside ranging in appearance from the sinister and eerie to elegant or utilitarian. The hodgepodge manner in which the scarecrows are dressed influenced the way we wanted to style the collection, mixing up all the fabrications where it felt appropriate.

Whilst the collection takes it’s cues and decorative elements from what we know about what the Celts wore and their art it was important to bring this into my own world and not fashion some sort of archaic costume. The result is more concerned with an emotional response to the material available and therefore creating a character based upon that.

Texture, layering, fastening, colour and how garments are finished in the collection are all key elements to this. I wanted the collection to have a roughly hewn earthy sensibility to it. Paying homage to the natural colour’s the Celts obtained from plant dyes such as woads for blues and various berry’s in purple shades to hints of bronze reminiscent of jewellery in jacquards and shirting. There are also many undyed elements in the form of wools, knitwear yarns and linens offering a sense of purity and a break to the darker tones. Heavy textural tweeds populate a large portion of the collection made in mills all round the British Isles ranging from tonal checks to various blue and bronze shades.

Symbolism and decorative motifs within Celtic art are very prevalent, seen on everyday objects in pottery to cauldrons and the hilts of swords. These are translated into the various prints, silk and wool jacquards in the collection. Bronze fastenings and brooches in collaboration with Slim Barrett are made in serpent like shapes inspired by ancient Celtic clasps for cloaks. The Hats are hand felted in the shape of Celtic helmets and the horned head of the Brigantian deity made in collaboration with Rachel Frost.


SHOP COLLECTION XX