from the Chiasmus Archive: June 16, 2018. "CRAIG GREEN. FLORENCE MEN'S SPRING 2019

 (Images from Vogue.com and wwd.com the public domain.  All rights.  Used in promotion of the designer.)

Craig Green's Spring 2019 collection, as briefly noted in my review of his Fall 2018 pieces, was the leaning towards a humanistic spiritual slant more so with the robe like styles.  He seems to be moving further into a direction  encompassing new perspectives of aesthetics.  Utilizing secular spiritual styles, that have borrowed from the rigidity of the mainstay religions and as mentioned, incorporating a more humanist approach.  Will this be on of the newer trends for 2019?   An attempt at designers searching for a spiritual understanding, although from a Zen narrative, one shouldn't seek or try to attain 'creative' enlightenment.  As the enlightenment is already persistent within the self.  Clothing and fashion can in turn, as seen throughout history, establish, in its homogeneous array, a catalog of religious styles. Which designers and artists can borrow and remodel into an individual basis. 

I have always liked tassels, fringes (clothing) and Tzitzit's (Orthodox Jewish requirement to wear the white/blue tinged hanging tassels.  As written in the Book of Numbers).  From a secular humanistic and philosophical belief that [god] is within, as  everything is borrowed from everything else.  Green seems to experiment with religious attire in a positive way and of course less theocratic, yet holding onto a ceremonial approach.

The extended society/religious influence is shown specifically in the red portrait  outline and visual portrayal behind some of the models  - viewed as a "halo effect" in which Green had seen a photograph of a person walking behind another person in the street.  As though it was reminiscent of a crime scene.  The outlined shadow of someone who has been killed.  The residual reminder of death from murder.  There are some grim overtures with his Spring 2019 collection, yet, even with the stalwart backdrops of black and white as the visual dualities to life and death.  Maybe Green is attempting, in an admirable way, to portray death and life as both dream like states.   As seem in most Buddhist traditions, more so Tibetan Buddhism, are the meditation of the various colors that represents the configuration of the cycles of birth and dying.  White being the purity of life, red as spiritual color, in Buddhist and Hindu worshiping aligning oneself within the life force of existence.  Fire and rebirth.  In contrast to most monolithic beliefs, red represents sin.

As seen with previous collections from Green he maintains the use of polyester, nylon and cotton blends for all his Spring 2019 pieces.  Well fitted and crated onto the models with accentuated styles of free flowing and draped looks.  The fitting is exceptional as noted from past shows.

The color palette for Craig Green's Spring 2019 collection utilizes  whites, grays and blacks as background shades to invigorate the serene temperaments of mostly yellows, orange, blues and greens.  Also noted were the full spectrum of colors, seen on smock like garments as the end show pieces.

The color finale is the achieving of enlightenment where one will be able to see the full spectrum of colors as a constant radiance.  Even within darkness.  

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(A.Glass 2018)