Influence

There’s something about creation. What once was nothing is now something tangible, an amalgamation of imagination, purpose and production. A collection of creative elements but not limited to the sum of its parts, defiant and dynamic, a unique offering. I must be clear, the nothing I speak of is of course inspiration, the ever lingering motivator on which I often lean.  

The idea of ‘borrowing’ a concept or design feature has given me pause in the lately, where does inspiration stop and theft begin? Can anything be truly original or do we assign ‘originality’ to the most prominent designer? An example that comes to mind is the debacle that was Vergil Abloh and Ryder Ripps. A disastrous tightrope to walk no doubt but does a big name lend legitimacy to a creation? The dispersion of art for hype? If so then does the creation of art take a backseat to simply establishing a name? I’d say art has not taken a back seat, its bound and gagged in the boot.

There is a purity in the struggle, the frustration of failed samples and wasted money on redundant fabric. The realization that the simplest garment can cost thousands of dollars to develop let alone produce. The self-analysis starts the moment the romanticism begins to wane. Friends can be few and far between as contemporaries tend to guard their production contacts closely. I for one got lucky, a chance conversation with a bulk fabric dealer changed our approach. He had little to gain and was generous with his time directing our production through a small batch manufacturer based in Richmond, Melbourne.

This act of camaraderie was not insignificant, it was a rare source of encouragement in a sea of negativity, naysayers and charlatans. It’s depressing to admit but there are many businesses advertising ‘step by step’ mentoring programs just waiting to take money (and sometimes control) from budding designers. This approach was ridged and lacked passion…. Lacked inspiration. My early pattern maker and friend Georgie Henerson walked out of one such pitch meeting, we were better than that.

To create is to breath life into something, to organize experience, thought, influence and individuality into a representation of self. To be true to one’s elements is the epitome of a distinct style. To quote Picasso ‘Good artists copy, great artists steal.’ Borrow a design element and its forever a fraud, take it and make it yours and you have allowed another’s work to influence your own. As an artist should not your objective be to influence others?