DORE CHIQUE – CURATOR – JDADA2019

“When I see beautiful clothes, I want to keep them, preserve them….Clothes, like architecture and art; reflect an era.”

—- AZZEDINE ALAIA —-

Designer Payal Borana has created a formal wear collection called “Doré Chiqueé” which means golden elegance. The inspiration for the collection has been drawn from the paintings of Austrian symbolist painter, Gustav Klimt. He is one of the most prominent members of the Vienna Secession movement.

Klimt’s symbolist style is an amalgamation of the Art Noveau and Arts and Crafts movement that rejected the conservative art scene that existed in Vienna. He was fascinated by the transformative stages of the human egg into a fetus and then into an infant. Hence he often decorated his paintings with biological symbols, adding cryptic layer of meanings to his work. The biological symbols were represented in the form of circle, spiral, triangle and square patterns in his art work. One common theme of both symbolist and Art Nouveau painters of the period was the stylized depiction of women. Klimt’s depiction of sensual and beautiful women in his paintings weren’t just for the fantasy and entertainment for the male gaze but also personified the creation of life. As his painting style developed so did his use of materials. He began incorporating golden leaf in his work marking the “Golden Phase” of his successful career.

The designer has incorporated motifs inspired from the painter’s Golden Phase through screen printing. Zardozi and copper wire have been used as embellishments on the garments. The overall look of the collection is artsy chic which is unconventional and unique. The garments have been created using fabrics like organza and cotton silk. Black and gold are the main colours used for the collection.