Lands of Coffee Fashion Project

Doodling, sketching, playing around colorful tropical fruits... looking for design ideas. And doing some collages, too – I could not miss it!

Bajot are traditionally personal writing or dining tables. Currently, they are oft used in India, and in some regions of North Africa and the Middle East as coffee tables. They are decorated with colorful square tiles have hand-carved sides and legs.

Above – Sketches of a Bajot + studio of Indian decorative motives

Above – A fashion Design Idea: application of floral furniture pattern on textile

Below (Reference) – Sketches of Indian floral patterns used for traditional furniture design decoration

Martial arts are an integral part of the Indian culture and they are a subject treated in Indian Vedic texts. The Kalaripayattu was born in the South of India, in Kerala Region. There are a special beauty, lightness, and elegance in this discipline.

Sketches of Kalaripayattu fighters (above) The Kalaripayattu trainers use to wear traditional uniforms, as one can see in the picture below – source: http://goldenstarkarate.com

“Kalaripayattu is the most ancient martial art in the world. Peoples believe that the Kalaripayattu culture is 3000 years existing in the world. Kalaripayattu is known to be the mother of all martial arts. The Kalari centers were the practicing centers of the soldiers of the erstwhile local rulers of Kerala. The father of Shaolin martial art Kungfu, Bodhidharma started Shaolin Kungfu in China only after mastering Kalaripayattu from Kerala State in India”. (source http://www.kalaripayattufedindia.org)

“keriya: India. A child's tight fitting, long sleeved jacket with a skirt-like border that flares out from the breastbone”. –  The Complete Costume Dictionary, Elizabeth J. Lewandowski, The Scarecrow Press, Plymouth, 2011

Parenthood – Sketch of a Keriya jacket worn in West India (above)

The two sketches (above) are personal ideas for a female long dress inspired by the  Sherwani. That is a traditional Indian male coat / jacket made from heavy suiting fabrics, and distinguished by the presence of a lining. Below: studies of exsisting sherwani – sketches took from classic fashion

Below: detail of a contemporary version of sherwani created by the Indian Fashion Designer Sagar Tenali (beisde the jaket, a detail of the pattern)

Sketch of Henna tattoo – pen, pencil and marker pens (above)

Mehndi or mehendi is a form of body art from Ancient India, in which decorative designs are created on a person's body, using a paste, created from the powdered dry leaves of the henna plant (Lawsonia inermis).

This fine powder that’s used for dying clothes, hair and temporarily dying the skin — hence henna tattooing. The plant has even been known to treat skin conditions (source: www.huffingtonpost.com).

Collar design inspired by a sequence of arches – the Chandrashala – pencil + photoshop (above) Chandrashala is the term most often used to describe the circular or horseshoe arch that decorates so many Indian cave temples and shrines. The arch is shaped like the cross-section of a barrel vault. When used on the facade of a chaitya hall, the stupa, it is called a chaitya arch –  http://dictionnaire.sensagent.leparisien.fr/Chandrashala/en-en/

Sketch of an Interior of an Indian representative building. That emphasizes the importance of the Chandrashala as a module in Indian’s architecture. – pen and markers (below)

Geometric print applied on a female suit (above) – vector illustration Development of the geometric pattern (below)

The cityscape of Guanajuato, Mexico (sketch above) one of the most colorful places in the world, has been the starting point for the development of this textile pattern. The hand-drawing, the colors and this orderly chaos were also the basis to create a second – and kind of boho – pattern (see the sketch below).

The city of Guanajuato (below) – source: http://www.incredible-pictures.com

The flower of coffee plant is such beautiful! That brought me in designing a really delicate pattern (see above).

One of the most influential Architects of the XX century, Luis Barragán summarises the cultural complexity of his Land, combining tradition (almost conservativism) with a strong impetus to innovation creating an amazing combination of pure forms and vibrant, saturated colors. Casa Gilardi, in Mexico City, is the last, fantastic project of this Modernism’s leading figure. To learn more: https://youtu.be/Td0Ky4ooTCc

Pattern 2 (above)

Pattern 2 (above)

The highly spiritual ceramic figures with their monocle created by the Indonesian artist Albert Yonathan Setyawan (see sketch below) – have been captured my attention. Their uniqueness is defined by their enigmatic and somehow primeval appearance. They became my main reference in designing these futuristic helmets (see sketch above). Presenting them, I’ve deliberately combined these sort of hats with a typical Indonesian dress, in order to emphasize the unavoidable deep connection with the Indonesian millenary tradition.

Albert Yonathan Setyawan is a wonderful artist who uses ceramic and clay to produce a high conceptual and performative art. He explores the spiritual dynamics between humans and the natural world developing hybrid figures molded manually (see sketch above) that are then arranged in modules of patterned configurations (see below) – more about the artist on Change Performing Arts.

Besides that, traditional Indonesian hats are a relevant source of inspiration. See below, a wing-shaped headgear adorned with feathers, worn by a dancer from Bali.

According to the Indonesia Coffee Annual Report, Indonesian coffee production is expected to increase from 10.6 million bags green bean equivalent (GBE) in MY 2016/17 to 10.9 million GBE in MY 2017/18. Since Indonesia became the fourth largest producer of coffee in the world, the coffee culture in the Capital Jakarta is evolving, following the third wave of coffee’s development. The Third Wave is a movement to produce high-quality coffee. As consequence, small-scale, specialty coffee joints that stand in contrast to the bigger, more established coffee chains are sprouting throughout various regions of Jakarta. These tendencies are known as “Third-Wave Coffee Joints”.

Cappuccino served @ Common Grounds (sketch above), one of the most renowned cafes in Jakarta (whatsnewjakarta.com)