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Written by Knight Ridder
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Wednesday, 26 April 2006 |
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Cool summer nights. Windows open. Lamps burning. Fruit in the bowl.
It’s been 20 years since minimalist author Raymond Carver published that poem. But it’s the perfect backdrop for fashion’s archetypal woman of the moment:
She wears a simple, white A-line dress. Straight hair to her shoulders. She reaches for a peach. Bites down.
Strains of a new minimalism have appeared in spring/summer collections. This, after so many sugary sequins, ridiculous rhinestones, baroque brooches and other elements that demand over-the-top alliteration. A cool cleansing was inevitable, really.
“It’s sort of historically something that happens from time to time after a real exploration of color, as we’ve had in the last couple years,” said Leatrice Eiseman, executive director of the Pantone Color Institute, which marks trends in fashion. “It’s just a natural kind of progression to go into more neutral colors.”
Minimalism in art dates back to the 1950s. Works like Ad Reinhardt’s black canvasses and Donald Judd’s elemental sculptures in stainless steel later gave way to minimalist interpretations in fabric by Jil Sander and Helmut Lang. Their designs tended toward the angular and androgynous, often in white and black.
Calvin Klein relaxed the lines a little and some of the starkness. His broad appeal, which spilled over into home decorating and furniture, gave the upscale consumer the feeling she was cleansed of her travesties and excesses.
Paring down suggested a certain morality. Minimalism brought one closer to truth.
In the years since, simplicity has cycled in and out, particularly in mass market apparel. “Miami Vice” did its part for a minimalist aesthetic for awhile, with clean silhouettes and white jackets, Eiseman notes. And in fashion’s upper reaches, less has always been more.
“Particularly in high-end design, there was always that sensibility that they have continued to do: To keep it classic and understated,” Eiseman said.
Last fall, runways featured spring/summer shows that were drenched in muted tones _ white, nudes and grays _ so much so that they seemed to have suffered from a downpour. And celebrities at this year’s red carpet at the Oscars wore subtler colors than in recent years.
The new minimalism doesn’t regurgitate the past. It’s softer, both in fabric and design. Pleats and folds are permitted. So is the occasional adornment. Draping, brights and busy-ness are still forbidden.
But at a moment when luxury is king and overkill isn’t enough, the new restraint is a turnabout. Perhaps only those in fashion’s periphery will embrace it. How many retailers, after all, will order their customers to strip down and kick their decadent habit?
Intermix, for one _ the trendy, pricey and well-edited fashion store chain _ isn’t embracing the look in its entirety, said New York-based CEO Khajak Keledjian.
This time around, minimalism’s aspirations are humbler. It doesn’t promise to purge us. Life is going to stay messy whether or not you put away your shiny, orange club-romping blouse with sequins.
But this minimalism does suggest we’re coming down from the giddy fashion highs of the last few years. Maybe now we’ll be more focused, get more done around here.
Or maybe we’ll just eat more fruit.
Making minimalism your own
Choose clothes from a muted palette _ white, tan, soft peach, olive, black, taupe and gray.
No need to appropriate the mannish angles of early minimalist designers. Pleated skirts and shirts with soft contours can also build a minimalist aesthetic when embellishments are few.
Keep jewelry to a minimum. Try little dots of color on earlobes or even simple black studs. Take that necklace OFF.
Hair should be straight, if possible, and starkly simple.
Don’t forget to remove strong colored nail polish.
Tone down makeup but don’t go nude or you’ll look like you were dropped in the washing machine.
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