My year 9 physics project was about the refraction of light and how it split into pretty colours of the rainbow. Of course my physics teacher had a real cow at me for extending the deadline on the project so much that I could not have possibly explored light refraction to the extent that Swedish label Nakkna has for their SS08 collection.
I’m not sure how I missed the store when I went to Stockholm in May but I’ll make a point of doing so next time I’m there. Nakkna was started by three students from the Beckmans School of Design in Stockholm in 2003 and are known for their experimental work with materials and constructions. I do however have to raise my eyebrows at the somewhat wanky description given to their clothes: ‘monochrome, geoanatomical neominimalism’. Oh dear, someone got a little too caught up in a thesaurus right?
But I suppose there is not other way of describing their methods of ‘geoanatomic’ cutting which is what they do by merging geometric shapes with the body. ‘The Behaviour of Light’ as explored in both my shallow physics project and Nakkna’s more artistic findings is inspired by light rays from the sun hitting a prisim. Through string art embroideries, intricate prints and the shapes of the garments itself, we can get an ickle science lesson seeing refractions and reflections of light. It’s interesting that what looks like a Grecian-inspired toga dress, actually portrays the angles of light hitting a block (see the full collection on the website).
I especially like how Fredrik Skogkvist has portrayed the collection here in these images…
I’m totally confusing myself with the light in the photos and the light portrayed on the clothes and memories of me furrowing my brows in physics…
My first though when you mentioned refraction was the cover of Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, but that first dress is quite the lust object- the combination of the wide straps and detailing on the bodice is wonderful.
Just goes to show, literally anything can be an inspiration.
glad you liked the light in the nakkna images, when nakkna asked me to light the show, we all came up with the idea of featuring the show in a light that would give every person that took an image of the models (they where posing in a gallery in stockholm, and you could walk around and look at the clothes as if they where statues) would get the perfect lighting, an unexpected weird light that would make people go, “uh how the hell did i get a great picture like that”… i guess it worked…