How do you express a response to a visual science that is transformed into a visual art? I'm finding it difficult. I went to see From Atoms to Patterns this weekend, an exhibition at the Wellcome Collection that had reached its last weekend and finished yesterday. Mutable Matter gives an overview of the exhibition so I won't try to do the same.

The modern era feels like magic to me, there were instances of unity between science and art that created motifs that are unforgettable, the geometric patterns of the Russian avant garde movement, the crystallographers haemoglobin and insulin and the textiles industry was at the centre, the bridge between ancient craft and industrial production. We wear science on our bodies everyday but clothes pre-date our understanding of science, they are a craft that is ancient and there's an exciting juxtaposition there. The ability to wear scientific motif makes me feel enthusiastic because it feels like a recognition of advancing humanity at the beginning and in the present day so perhaps this is something I would love to have, a dress showing insulin or haemoglobin to the world.

I've been reading an article today by Heather Marie Akou that discusses the terminology we use to describe fashion, the problems with the word western when it applies to areas that are simply not in the west but fit into the description as it relates to specific types of society. Akou proposes that we adopt a specific sociological semantic system to describe the way that fashion fits together so it looks as if I am going to branch into reading sociology at some point in the near future.

On another note I finally gave up on the vast majority of the high street and bought shoes from Clarks the other day. I am sick to the back teeth with the trend for heels dominating every shoe shop, no one wears the fucking things on a daily basis and haven't those flat ballet pumps worn themselves thin after a decade dominating our shops?

It's International Blog Against Racism Week and while the google links I have found seem to focus heavily on fandom icons I'm not going to go there. Racism is so apparent in the fashion industry, not only are there far more white models, a view that is widely recognised but it's apparent that the entire business of fashion rests on the disparity between the wealthy white, western countries and other generally non-white nations where the body of the manufacturing of clothing takes place.

There should be more black and Asian models in our magazines and on our catwalks but the fashion industry is weird about physical appearance. It's biases run far beyond the ethnicity of models, it's a thoughtless industry and this is demonstrated in all kinds of ways. Here is a link to a blog post from Threadbared about racist language online and the way it ties into height.

I don't really know what else to say about this, I want to nod my head to IBARW and the importance of the message, particularly when we're talking about international industry, particularly where clothing is concerned because it functions on a foundation of racism, of presenting people in incredibly negative ways and treating them badly. This isn't a surprise, it's bad that it just keeps happening, it's bad that it can't be stopped and it's bad that it's propped up by the various media that cover fashion. Why continue in this vein? Sort it out fashion industry.

I read a fashion magazine in two stages. I go through the entire magazine when I first open it without reading a word. I take in every picture, including the adverts and I decide whether I like each piece of clothing. Usually this takes about 15 to 20 minutes, most pieces are easy to judge but sometimes I need to think about a garment for a while or go back to it and there are a lot of photographs in fashion magazines. Once I've done this I allow myself to read the articles but this takes second place to the feeling I get from the clothes. This process tells me that there are shapes and textures that I like and others that I dislike and even more that I like in some contexts and dislike in others. Jil Sander's Autumn/Winter R-T-W collection is a good spread of clothes that I have this response to.

Eco-fashion round up:

Topshop wants your rubbish, the past week has been Topshop's 'rubbish' week.

via Treehugger Horny Toad buys the Nau brand.



In other news Karl Lagerfeld promotes cycling safety.