The following was a post I wrote a year ago on an old and now abandoned blog with a few updates. Why post it here? Well I start my final year at university and the post mentions a scenario that came up when I was only mere months into first year. This post serves as a reminder of how far I have come as how much there is still to learn.
There is nothing more important than having a good knowledge of fashion. No-one knows this more than me.
In first year at university I was with a group of friends when they suggested we watch 'September Issue.'
"It's about Anna Wintour" one of my friends told me and when I asked who Anna Wintour was my friends literally fell silent.
Yes. I, an eighteen year old fashion student, didn't know who Anna Wintour was. Looking back on that event now I could scream at myself since I still don't understand how I couldn't have come into some contact with the name over my lifetime but the situation proved a valid point. KNOW YOUR STUFF!
To those who don't know, Anna Wintour is the head editor and chief of VOGUE, the ultimate fashion force. She is the woman who gave us the supermodel on front of our magazines instead of celebrities, she also drove street style into the pages of our fashion magazines.
I should mention that I recently bought 'September Issue' and every time I watch it I'm reminded of my first year at university and how much I had to learn...
Since then I've taken it it upon myself to learn as much as possible about the fashion industry and I don't just mean designers. You need to know as much as possible about photographers, models and designers who have changed the way the industry is. So on a regular basis I read blogs to see new designers and if I come accross a name I don't know I look it up, make some notes which I keep in a file and always come back to them when I do a project because their design style can also be of great inspiration to me.
There's a book called "In Fashion" which has a list of people in it the author demands you know about and I can see why. If you go for a job interview to get into the industry and they ask you who inspires you, you're going to need to know those people or else you need not have bothered turning up in the first place.
Imagine I went to an interview at eighteen and was asked what I thought of Anna Wintour, I'd have taken a Manolo Blahnik to the butt on my way out of the door!
So I have a few tips to help you get ahead of the game:
1. Read blogs, there are thousands of us out there who know designers, photographers, stylists etc that you may not have heard of, if you read a name you're unsure of, look them up! Get as much of a rounded knowledge as possible.
2. Keep a note of any designers etc that you find you personally relate to, wether that be in terms of back story, design style, ethics etc because when it comes to essays and interviews, the person infront of you is going to see that you've really grasped the idea.
3. Programmes like 'Next Top Model' and 'Project Runway' expose you to designers, editors and photographers you may not know, although reality TV can be hit and miss with some people it's a great insight to the industry and can only help build your awareness of people in the industry and how the industry itself works.
So! Start now. Have a look online at influential, well-known and some not so well-known people in the industry. Expand your knowledge and ensure you keep a note of what you learn because it is such a big help in the long run and has deffinately helped me in achieving what I do at university.
Some basic names:
-Anna Wintour
-Coco Chanel
-John Galliano
-Issey Miyaki
-Iman
-Twiggy
-Mario Testino
-Alexander McQueen
-Christopher Kane
-Zuhair Murad
-Vivienne Westwood
-Oscar De La Renta
Those are just a few to get you started, another good way is to look at the adverts in Vogue (lets face it, there's thousands) and look up the names of the designers who's adverts you find appealing. At least that way you already have some common ground! You like their style!
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