To try and find inspiration for my fashion hair and makeup look, I turned to music videos, books, magazines and the internet for inspiration. It wasn't difficult for me to soon realise that the tribal theme has inspired many different varieties of work across artists of different fields.
In Music
The first music video that I thought of with a strong tribal theme was Rihanna's 'Where have you been' video from album 'Talk that talk'. The video references many different cultures and is not primarily themed around tribes. A clear reference to the Hindu god Shiva is seen showing a variety of influences, however it does have strong tribal references throughout the video.
During the video, a number of African tribal references can be seen. During the first chorus, Rihanna can been seen dancing in what appears to be a dessert surrounded by men who are clearly identified as tribesmen. The men are shirtless and have various materials wrapped around their waists. This indicates the tribal theme as in many tribes, the people clothe themselves in anything that they can find.
During the dance routine, Rihanna and the men are seen dancing around the fire. In many African tribes, rituals an ceremonies include fire dancing so this is a strong link to the tribal theme. As well as this, a large tribal tattoo can be seen on the back of one of the male dancers. Tribal tattooing can be traced to ancient African times where both men and women would have their bodies tattooed to represent their tribes as well as for a number of other symbolic reasons so this is also a strong link.
The last tribal indication that I saw in the video was a scene shot in what appears to be an African hut. In the background, African inspired art can be seen on the walls. I know it is African because of the shape, wooden material and spotted decoration. (which I have also included in my makeup look) As well as this, the zebra print can be seen again, this time in the shape of a rug on the floor, however the reference is still there. Rihanna's appearance in this scene is different, with her natural African hair loose and purposely wild appearing eyebrows. I think that this references the wild animals of Africa and although this is not made clear, her hair reminds me of a lions mane and how it runs free and is not controlled.
Overall, this video shows a number of African tribal references and has given me inspiration for my design. What I love about the video is that due to my research I was able to easily identify which parts had strong tribal themes.
In magazines/On the runway
Whilst looking through April 2015's edition of Harper's Bazaar, I was lucky enough to stumble across a short style article on Isabel Marant's SS15 collection which was inspired by West African culture.
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| Harper's Bazaaar, April 2015 |
What is interesting about the article is that it shows Isabel's moodboard for the SS15 fashion looks which includes many tribal inspired objects such as shells, feathers, Aztec prints, images of men decorated with straw etc. (which I am including in my headpiece)
Her clothes designs for the SS15 show included many African style prints. The colours used in the collection were quite earth toned, linking them to the natural life of African tribes people, and in particular, there were some colours that I found reminded me of a particular tribe in Africa who would cover their skin in red earth to protect them from the sun. As you can see below, the colours are very similar which allows me to create a connection between the two.
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| Tribal print, SS15 |
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| Similar colours were used in Marant's clothes design |
Looking back through previous fashion shows, I remember that SS14 saw a variety of tribal inspired fashion with designers such as Alexander McQueen, Valentino and Givenchy all inspired by African and South American tribes.
At Valentino, the beautiful dresses showed clear South American tribal influences with Aztec prints and fringing dominating a large part of the show. What is clear about the tribal fashion trend is that it influenced many fashion companies to replicate this trend with fringed bags, chunky golden jewellery and Aztec printed clothing proving to be very popular across fashion stores during the summer of 2014.
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| Valentino, SS14 |
Editorials
Alexander McQueen's SS14 collection showed a tribal warrior theme. The image below is from the SS14 editorial campaign and portrays model Kate Moss in a tribal inspired outfit. In the background, tribal masks can be seen given a clear indication as to where the inspiration came from at Alexander McQueen. Kate is wearing an outfit that looks as though it is constructed from woven straw. From my own knowledge, I know that in certain tribes, straw and cotton is woven to create clothing and straw is also used on its own to create skirts and head dresses to scare off other tribes so this is a clear connection. The voodoo doll of Kate Moss that she is holding references different tribes and their rituals as in West Africa, Voodoo is the main source of religion for some people. Like many other tribal references, feathers can be seen as a source of decoration in this campaign. As I have previously mentioned, feathers are used in tribes to decorate the body and clothing.
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| Art by Artist Cindy Sherman |
I really love the above campaign picture from Alexander McQueen. Kate Moss is almost unrecognisable with bright yellow hair that works well with the red colour of the outfit and blue background colour. The bright hair colour reminds me of some of the work created by eccentric artist Cindy Sherman. The makeup look in this editorial is dewy and omits a healthy glow which is something that I most definitely want to include in my design. The highlight around the eyes and cheek area works well to highlight the face and I really love the gold undertones of the makeup which compliment the jewellery that Kate Moss wears. The actual outfit that Kate wears is inspiring when it comes to designing my own look. I want to include straw in my headpiece design and seeing this image has inspired me to consider how I can manipulate the straw into a fashion item.
In books
What I have learnt about fashion is that you can link any theme to fashion by the clothes, makeup and hairstyles portrayed. Whilst looking through a book by makeup artist Francesca Tolot named 'One woman, 100 faces' I found tribal inspiration in a number of images.
Although each image is very different, they all show tribal influences even if it wasn't the intention of the artist. Something I noticed whilst looking through the varied makeup designs is that most makeup looks are very simplistic yet strong at the same time. This is something I want to remember when creating my own makeup design as I think that sometimes I can overcomplicate a look and I don't want my makeup to look too busy. Making the eyes the main focal point like a variety of these looks is definitely something I want to focus on.
My favourite image out of the above looks is the leopard print image. (third across) The eye makeup is simple yet stunning and the colours of the eyeshadow and lashes compliment the leopard print material really well. I really love how the eyelashes have been incorporated into this look and love how they have been attached the opposite way round. As a rule, using eyelashes on the outer corner of the eye helps to open the eye up so this technique works to draw in the attention of the eye which I think is very clever and beautifully done. A glossy, nude lip finished this look and works well to ensure the eyes are the main focal point of the makeup.
From exploring different resources, I have realised that I am able to find inspiration in anything and should never just rely on the internet to find ideas. I'm really looking forward to creating my tribal inspired fashion hair and makeup and will be taking into consideration all of the things I have found out.
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