About Me
Hi! I'm Jonathan, a recent graduate from Manchester Fashion Institute
I was inspired by my own ancestry that includes British naturalist Charles Darwin and British potter Josiah Wedgwood. I clashed my history with my time spent living in Berlin during lockdown 1 and yearning to go clubbing in Berghain, alongside my love for techno music, rave and BDSM culture.
This collection is rooted in Britain and Germany, and is framed by a diverse group of international artists, photographers and pony-play enthusiasts. This is about escapism - an escapism from the realities of life, work and covid-19, in order to once again dream together, dance together, sweat together and have sex together.
INSPIRATION
THIS MENSWEAR COLLECTION FOR SS22 IS ENTITLED “BLUTLINIEN” (THE GERMAN WORD FOR BLOODLINES)
Blutlinien’s vision focuses on the development of the human anatomy into that of a horse. A metamorphosis transition of a powerful and dominant male, into a submissive pony. A redefinition of menswear and tailoring through cut, silhouette, details and through analysing the assertion and relinquishing if power found in the world of pony play. Tailoring has been juxtaposed against mid-twentieth Century couture and pottery shapes, offering a new proposition of glamour and new glimmer of hope.
Robert Rauschenberg’s “Monogram” notable for its gay, sexual undertones was a vital building block of my research. The same fetishistic obsessiveness is reflected in the pony play world - the pony worships it’s master and vice-versa. A double-entendre of the subverted. The fields of colour found in the work of Josef Albers and Mark Rothko inspired the colours and the prints of the collection, whilst Barnett Newman’s zip paintings offered a literal gateway to the subliminal and divine.
MY WORK
PORTFOLIOS
CONCEPT BOARD 1
CONCEPT BOARD 2
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT BOARD 1
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT BOARD 2
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT BOARD 4
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT BOARD 5
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT BOARD 6
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT BOARD 7
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT BOARD 8
DESIGN DEVELOPMENT BOARD 9
FINAL LINE-UP
FINAL OUTFIT BOARD 1
FINAL OUTFIT BOARD 2
FINAL OUTFIT BOARD 3
FINAL OUTFIT BOARD 4
FINAL OUTFIT BOARD 5
FINAL OUTFIT BOARD 6
FINAL OUTFIT BOARD 7
FINAL OUTFIT BOARD 8
DETAIL
I CHALLENGED THE MASCULINE STEREOTYPE THROUGH MEANS OF EXPLORING SHAPE, PRINT AND FABRICATIONS
One of my early inspirations was collaging humans with horses with a metamorphosis approach in mind to push the silhouette of classic men's garments. This then led to the "horse leg" trouser being developed, enhancing the calf area. I explored 1950's couture shapes on men, citing Christian Dior's Bar Jacket and Cristobal Balenciaga voluptuous, architectural shapes as key inspirations, in particular for my "pottery saddle" vest. I made sure that they would be cool, contemporary and that men would want to wear them. I began to develop the shape of this through various methods of creative pattern cutting and early toile developments. Another inspiration for the shapes was humans wearing horse saddles in pony play scenarios, and it involved lots of pinning fabric into place and cutting into toile's to reach the desired shape. Prints were inspired by flags and portals floating in a void space - the empty dance floor, and fabrications came in the form of cowhide, printed leather, latex and laser-etched denim.
“MY PREVIOUS COLLECTION "MONOLITH" WAS ABOUT DEVELOPING THE CONCRETE EXTERIOR, THIS IS ABOUT IT'S INHABITANTS AND THEIR PRESSURE BUILDING INSIDE ITS VESSELS ON THE VERGE OF EXPLOSION…"
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