1970s Czechoslovakia as Inspiration for a Modern Fashion Collection

I grew up in the Czech Republic and while I do not remember the 1970s, I have read a lot about the era and have heard many stories from my family about their experience. For my latest collection for Fashion Design - a class I am taking at the Academy of Art University - I decided to use the times as an inspiration. 

I am intrigued with societies living under strict political regimes and it has been a great experience to work to transfer the ideology/propaganda into a collection of garments that would appeal for a contemporary customer. I played around with the idea of uniform and limited access to variety, which could be easily linked to the era. Crowd mentality was promoted by the government as individualism and independent opinion were considered a threat to the running of the society. All of these ideas emerged in my collection through the garments I decided to use (e.g., uniform-like silhouettes) and through the details I implemented (e.g., pockets that stand out). 

My collection is called Isolate Acts of Protest as it honors individuals and small actions that would make one stand out of the crowd and the uniformity of the society. Below are a few looks from the collection with imagery that explains my creative process. 

I find that when I select inspiration that is close to my heart, my work benefits immensely as I am comfortable in the design process and I want to delve deep into the topic. History of my country is definitely one of these topics. I am excited and proud of my collection. 

​Want to see all of the elements of this collection? Check out the full presentation here!