Indigenous Australians, also known as the Aboriginals, used cave painting as a way to tell stories about their ancestors. Dreamtime is the Aboriginal understanding of the world and how all things came to be and it is the name for this collection. It is inspired by ancient Australian cave art made by the Aboriginals and contemporary Aboriginal art, which uses a lot of bold, saturated colors in contrast with the ochre and Earth tones used in the cave paintings.
Aboriginal art uses vibrant colors, motifs, line work, and dots to create intricate and organic paintings that tell the same stories as traditional cave paintings. Contemporary artists use these colors to keep their culture “alive” and to also appeal to the Western art market. What started off as cave paintings and carvings use of natural materials is now the world’s oldest and ongoing tradition. A lot of Aboriginal work is reminiscent of colors you can find in nature, such as rust.
The color palette of this collection is derived from the use of color in ancient and present Aboriginal art, which contemporary artists use to contrast the past, present, and future. It is also taken from various color palettes of oxidation that took place in nature, creating rust that contains a marbling effect of different colors. Dreamtime is composed of cottons, jacquards, and knits that contain a lot of print detail. The mixing and matching of prints and layering, knits and wovens, and lightweight and heavyweight fabrics all play a role in the contrast between multiple periods of time. The result is a playful, yet mature collection that has sophistication in detail and fabric quality.
The target clientele lives in the city, yet loves traveling to gain insight about other cultures. Her age range is mid 20s to 40s. She is not afraid to wear bold prints and mix and match them to express her individuality, as well as her multicultural approach to the real world. Her personal style can be described as bold and eclectic. Her closet includes pieces that she bought while traveling internationally, as well as some pieces at a contemporary price point, such as MSGM and Carven.
Designer: Ashley S. Baylor