The Golden Age of Personal Style
An icon of a bygone era has recently left the planet. Marianne Faithfull was arguably the ultimate rock chick and epitome of the swinging sixties in London, a decade that ushered in an explosion of heightened creativity in music, design, art & fashion. Whenever a great artist, musician, writer, style icon, visionary, creative ingenue, or philosopher leaves us it feels right to pause to honour them. When David Bowie and Prince passed back to spirit side I had the same feeling. Taking stock of this helps us to be mindful of the fast and furious pace of change of the technological age that we’re living through and how it’s impacting our humanity, our connection to ourselves, each other, the world around us, and to our own creative expression.
Is the Algorithm Dulling Our Natural Creativity?
In an era where we all have so much access to so many sources of visual references, visual stimulation and inspiration there is an argument that this will help a larger number of people to have greater access to style, fashion, art, and design. AI will be the great democratiser of the traditionally exclusive and rarefied world of fashion. Whilst I can see there’s an element of truth in this I would also like to entertain the opposite train of thought.
I think that everything is becoming more uniform, more homogeneous, more sterile. In my humble opinion, having a strong sense of your own style comes from a connection with your own spirit, your true authenticity, your own individual soul nature, a connection with the divine, the ocean, the sun, the moon & the stars, with awe-inspiring artworks, with life-changing literature, with stunning cinematography, with a heart-wrenching opera performance. It’s our direct experience with real life in the real world that is so fundamentally human. As Coco Chanel famously said;
“Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.”
Ultimately on social media, it’s now the algorithm that decides what we see, what influences we are subject to, what energies come into our field. Again, lovers of AI would say that it’s just a tool that can help us to be more creative. I would put forward another idea that the purpose of human creativity is for us to be in the process rather than focusing on the end result; it’s about us immersing ourselves in the beauty of the experience rather than trying to achieve an end result or reach maximum efficiency. It’s in that connection with our own soul, with a higher inspiration, with a divine force, the collective consciousness - whatever resonates for you or feels true for you. I feel that it’s almost a kind of panacea – we might think that we are being creative by having access to such a wide range of influences online and on social media, but it’s not us who are choosing what we see; it’s the corporations that own the platforms, the advertisers, and the algorithms. Because these platforms are designed to be addictive unless you have the discipline, intelligence, and wisdom to use them mindfully, rather than letting them use you, it can be a slippery slope. The more time people spend seeking inspiration this way, the less time they spend nurturing their own creativity by engaging with a piece of beautiful art in a gallery or losing their senses in the soft, warm glow of a sunset or trying their hand at writing a poem, or picking up a paint brush.
The Connection Between the Human and the Devine Design, Art & Interiors
The inspiration for so many of the world’s most important works of art, architectural masterpieces, or stylistic genres has been gleaned from nature - from the magical, mysterious, and transformative connection between the human and the natural world, the cosmos, and the divine. The Impressionist painters expressed the ephemeral beauty of Mother nature. You can go and visit Monet’s water garden at his private estate in Giverny that inspired his Water Lilies series. The Pre-Raphaelite painters were fascinated by nature & expressing the bright brilliance of colour with the clarity of a gemstone. For me the piercing brightness of the flowers in Millet’s Ophelia or the stunning flame-haired beauties of Rosetti’s paintings are indelibly etched in my consciousness or creative ideas bank! A summer spent living in Barcelona filled me with new inspirations and cultural influences. The soft, feminine, undulating beauty of Gaudi’s La Pedrera was inspired by a mountain (there is wide speculation as to which one specifically, from the Prades Mountains to the cliffs of Torrent Pareis in Menorca).
Barcelona, the ‘pretty city’ as I affectionately nicknamed it, had such a powerful feeling of Art Nouveau, even right down to the paving stones, a normally mundane surface that we don’t pay much attention to, but in BCN I found it so beautiful that they had taken the time to create delicate floral designs to delight your eyes even when you’re looking down at your feet! It was an artist I discovered at the National Art Museum of Barcelona, Anglada Camerasa, (the youngest of the second generation of modernist painters) whose deeply sensual, ethereal style and brush strokes, informed by Arab and Oriental influences, stirred a spark in my soul and inspired the print design for my collection, 50 Shades of Love. His exquisite, masterful use of bright colour was also connected with the Fauvist movement. Arguably I could have discovered the same artist on Pinterest or Instagram, but it just hits differently to actually spend time connecting with the artworks; it’s a much deeper emotional experience, and a delightful surprise when you unexpectedly come across such life-affirming beauty. The feeling is much more intimate and authentic.
I wonder if in 100 or 200 years time the creative geniuses, when they die, will make such a strong impact on our collective consciousness as Marianne Faithfull, Bowie, and Prince did in our era. In the meantime, I will endeavour to maintain my own direct experience with art, fashion, music and the world around me. I hope to inspire others to do the same!
By Closet Angel