the history.
The T-shirt evolved from undergarments used in the 19th century, through the cutting of the one-piece union suit underwear into separate top and bottom garments. T-shirts were adopted by miners during the late 1800s as a convenient garment for hot environments.
T-shirts, as a slip-on garment without buttons, originally became popular in the US when the US Navy issued them during the Spanish-American War. These were crew neck, short-sleeved, white cotton undershirts worn under a uniform. Named the T-shirt because of the shape of the garments physical outline, they soon became popular as a bottom layer of clothing for workers in various industries. The T-shirt was easily fitted, easily cleaned, and inexpensive. For this reason, it became the shirt of choice for young boys. Boys shirts were made in various colours and patterns, and became synonymous with the cartoon character Charlie Brown. By the time of the Great Depression, the T-shirt was often the default garment to be worn when doing farm work. Following World War II, it became common to see veterans wearing their uniform trousers with their T-shirts as casual clothing. Here is wear the T-shirt became fashionable and a stand-alone outerwear garment.
The T-shirt has a rich history that spans over 120 years. It has been a garment that has been touched by every social level, from the uniform of the miners, the military, the poor during the depression, and now at the height of fashion. It is a garment that can be worn by any age group and gender. It is a single garment that has the ability to unify all people internationally on an equal level.
the culture we are facing.
During times of economic turmoil and unrest, a T-shirt is always a garment that everyone can still afford and are comfortable with wearing. It is a basic garment that never goes out of style.
Now, in 2010, we are still dealing with a difficult economic time internationally. Many people have lost jobs, homes, and money. Companies are in debt and filing for bankruptcy. During these times, companies often resort to producing products of lower quality to have lower prices to stay in business. Instead, we should be refining our skills, going back to the basics of the craft we are in. By going back to the hand-made product, you increase the relationship your product has with the customer; they feel the value that has been injected into the product, the love it was given. It is these companies that re-examine their core values and skills and improve upon them, that succeed in these hard times. The hand-made feature is something that is priceless and should never be forgotten or overlooked.
who we are.
We are one of a kind because of we are a collaboration of different countries, design preferences, and taste. From Italy, Korea, and Canada, we can incorporate our individual experiences in a new way that has not been explored before. Our global span within our collaboration will help us achieve a result that is unique to us as a collective and cannot be duplicated.
our view.
Often we as designers take ourselves too seriously and can become cynical about what is around us, especially in periods of economic turmoil. We all want to be taken seriously that at times we forget about enjoying and embracing what we already have around us. The four of us are young in our careers as designers and each one of us have big dreams, and it is difficult not to worry about the future when many companies are failing around us. Instead of giving up, we want to find HOPE in this project. By building a foundation based on hope we have the freedom to realize the impossible because we have the skills to do so and the dreams and drive to support it. We must always face negativity with a why not attitude we are young but we are not that young, and we have the ability to motivate others to share in our dreams.
In this moment during the crisis, we want to get back to the basics, the root of the craft. This is a great opportunity to take a simple garment and showcase it as a work of art in our own unique way. Manipulating this mass-produced garment, we can attempt to change the perception of the T-shirt in a whole new way. We can write a new chapter in the history of this garment, by reinventing it as something very creative and experimental. While respecting the past of this garment, we can help move it forward into the future.
The beauty of this collaboration originates with the concept, the T-shirt. There is a reason why the T-shirt has remained relatively unchanged over the past 120 years. It is a simple and perfect design that has stood the test of time. Although, as a result of its simplicity, the T-shirt can be overlooked as a mass-produced item and brushed aside as something boring. In reality, it is the opposite. It is a single garment that unifies, brings comfort, and remains in-style regardless of decade or social status. It is a great challenge to use this garment as our foundation. Our aim is to build upon it and, in turn, produce something exciting, fresh, and creative. In a way, this can be the total analysis of our perception of the T-shirt.
our proposal.
We will conduct a deep research into the history of the T-shirt, what it represents to each of us individually and collectively as a group. Furthering our research into our own concept will deepen our outlook on this garment and affect how it is manipulated. Each one of us will create our own interpretation of the T-shirt starting with the idea of this garment and allowing the creative process to take it outside of the box for each of us. Remembering our foundation of HOPE, we will create projects that reflect a positive message or emotion in order to bring a sense of love and passion to the original product, the T-shirt.
Each one of us will keep a sketchbook to show our thought process, research, and journey along this project, showing the growth of our ideas individually and as a group. These sketchbooks will help tell the story of our journey.
We can further this project by creating an object/shirt/painting/piece of art that tells the story of the history of the T-shirt or perhaps a moment in the T-shirts history that deeply affected us individually. In order to truly reinvent our own T-shirt project we must understand its history. Perhaps by showing this in an unconventional way, we can find the ability to grow from it through our own creations.
After our individual experimental projects are done, we can compile our separate works and as a group find a way to translate them to a garment or object that is more wearable or usable. Extracting the essence of each work and finding a way to make it accessible to anyone while still maintaining this hand-made quality, unique perception, and design is our goal.
Presenting a collective project of both individual and collaborate elements will help create this unique view of each of our perceptions and cultures while creating n atmosphere revolving around our dream of the T-shirt and its unlimited possibilities. We are creating the total concept environment of our project.
