hilary ellen martinfashion design research project 2011
contents• project background• illustration• specificationdrawing• print• tradingcards-firstedition• blog• lookbook• trading cards- second edition
Since the establishment of their partnership in 1998, Adidas and the New Zealand Rugby Union have re-created the All Blacks as a marketable brand. The elevation of a rugby jersey to a recognizable patriotic symbol shows the influence marketing can have on a piece of clothing– or perhaps an entire collection of clothing.
In a recent interview with Style.com, Alexander Wang states, “I’ve always liked to take something very dressy and bring it down, [take] something very, very casual and el-evate it.” Taking cues from Wang’s design aesthetic, I will produce a contemporary, wear-able, trans-seasonal womenswear collection that communicates a distinctive rugby theme. I will create my own brand, appropriate and re-design All Blacks imagery and employ marketing techniques to generate a tongue-in-cheek advertising campaign that encapsulates the same sense of excess, spectacle, obsession and celebrity as New Zealand rugby.
While I am not the biggest fan of the sport, I am intrigued by its impact on New Zealand society. Exploring the commodification of rugby and turning it into a body of work is my contradictory way of joining the fandom that surrounds rugby in the lead up to the world cup this September.
project background
“I’vealwayslikedtotakesomethingverydressyandbringitdown,[take]somethingvery,verycasual and elevate it.”
- Alexander Wang
illustration
illustrationfinal line-up
specification drawing
trading cardsfirst edition
These‘HEMcollectabletradingcards’havebeenmass-producedanddistributedaroundWellingtonduringkeyRugbyWorldCupevents.ReminiscentoftheAllBlackstradingcardsyoufindinyourWeetbix,thecardsaredesignedtograbpeople’sattentionanddirectthemtomyblog,www.hemdesign.co.nz.
www.hemdesign.co.nz
blog
www.hemdesign.co.nzextensivelydocumentstheresearchanddesignprocessesundertakenthroughoutthisproject.Blogmarketinghasbecomeakeyfocusofmyresearch,andissomethingIintendtocontinueexploringbeyondthecompletionofthiscollection.
“Bloggingisacommunicationtool,amarketingtechnique,alisteningdeviceandawaytointeractdirectlywithcustomersone-to-oneonaglobal scale.”
–JeremyWright,BlogMarketing.
lookbook
the struggle2012 trans-seasonal collection
trading cardssecond edition
