Anastasia
Member
Hello there,
I have been listening to The Tolkien Professor podcast for several years now, but have been nervous about joining in more actively. When I first read the news about the Silmarillion Film Project, I decided that this would be a fun opportunity for me to participate.
I am a costume maker for Theatre and Film. I graduated from a costume studies program in university and have been working as a wardrobe technician for the past five years.
As you may know, the purpose of costuming is to portray character. Costumes do this first by placing the character in a particular time and place - physically, culturally, economically, and mentally - and second by manifesting the character's development through changes in dress.
What is most interesting to me, however, is how the garments are made. To me, thinking about how each culture approaches the making of clothing, and where they are in terms of technical prowess is fascinating.
Although technical discussions should probably come later in the design process, I believe that they play an key role in creating a culturally rich world. In my mind, what the design process will look like is:
1) Overarching aesthetic of the Silmarillion
2) References to clothing throughout all of Tolkien's works that pertain to Arda (I think a reference list of these would make a really great thread in and of itself)
3) Overarching aesthetics for each race (Vala/Maia, Elves, Men, Dwarves, Hobbits, Orcs)
4) Aesthetics of different subgroups (Examples: Noldor vs Sindar, Goldolin vs Nargothrond, Gondor vs Arnor, Dwarves of the blue mountains vs Dwarves of the lonely mountain, Hobbiton Vs Bree, Rich vs Poor)
5) Costume silhouette, colour, texture and construction
6) Character-specific costume design.
As you can see, the first 4 points on that list are world-building points. The reason character-specific costume design is so low on the list is because the characters must fit within the framework of the world. Even if the character is non-conformist, they must still have something to not conform to.
I think (and I'm assuming a little bit here) that there will be many opportunities to discuss these overarching aesthetic and world-building points through the podcast and in other forums.
What I would like to do is to create a space where people can specifically discuss how the costumes are going to be made. I believe it will be beneficial to think of this through the perspective of both "how would the people within the story have made this garment?" And "How are we as costume makers going to achieve that effect?"
The things I think such a thread could focus on are:
-Weaving
-Dyeing
-Surface design (includes: painting, embroidery, beadwork)
-Lace making
-Pattern making and fit
-Under structures
-Sewing techniques
-Knitting/Crochet/other yarn work
-Notions/closures
My expertise is in main body garments, so I can really only speak to their construction, but if anyone has expertise in the following:
-Armour
-Shoe making
-Accessories
-Hair styling techniques
-Makeup
I think that those are also important and will add additional depth to the discussion.
A sample of some of the discussions we could have are:
-What kinds of tools or machinery (sewing machine, looms, printing presses) were used to make garments?
-Did zippers exist?
-What was used to dye fabric and how colorfast was it?
-How can we reveal the skill of the elves through the cut of their clothes or the complexity of their weaving?
-How will historical dress on earth inform our ideas about the clothing of Arda?
I know it's a bit early to be thinking about this, but I want to get a feel for how many folks are interested in this topic. I would also like to know whether you think this would work as a general discussion, or whether you think these technical questions would be better served by integrating them into the discussions of each individual culture (for example, when we discuss Gondolin, we could talk about their - presumably - advanced weaving techniques).
Please let me know your thoughts regarding this topic, I would love to hear them!
I have been listening to The Tolkien Professor podcast for several years now, but have been nervous about joining in more actively. When I first read the news about the Silmarillion Film Project, I decided that this would be a fun opportunity for me to participate.
I am a costume maker for Theatre and Film. I graduated from a costume studies program in university and have been working as a wardrobe technician for the past five years.
As you may know, the purpose of costuming is to portray character. Costumes do this first by placing the character in a particular time and place - physically, culturally, economically, and mentally - and second by manifesting the character's development through changes in dress.
What is most interesting to me, however, is how the garments are made. To me, thinking about how each culture approaches the making of clothing, and where they are in terms of technical prowess is fascinating.
Although technical discussions should probably come later in the design process, I believe that they play an key role in creating a culturally rich world. In my mind, what the design process will look like is:
1) Overarching aesthetic of the Silmarillion
2) References to clothing throughout all of Tolkien's works that pertain to Arda (I think a reference list of these would make a really great thread in and of itself)
3) Overarching aesthetics for each race (Vala/Maia, Elves, Men, Dwarves, Hobbits, Orcs)
4) Aesthetics of different subgroups (Examples: Noldor vs Sindar, Goldolin vs Nargothrond, Gondor vs Arnor, Dwarves of the blue mountains vs Dwarves of the lonely mountain, Hobbiton Vs Bree, Rich vs Poor)
5) Costume silhouette, colour, texture and construction
6) Character-specific costume design.
As you can see, the first 4 points on that list are world-building points. The reason character-specific costume design is so low on the list is because the characters must fit within the framework of the world. Even if the character is non-conformist, they must still have something to not conform to.
I think (and I'm assuming a little bit here) that there will be many opportunities to discuss these overarching aesthetic and world-building points through the podcast and in other forums.
What I would like to do is to create a space where people can specifically discuss how the costumes are going to be made. I believe it will be beneficial to think of this through the perspective of both "how would the people within the story have made this garment?" And "How are we as costume makers going to achieve that effect?"
The things I think such a thread could focus on are:
-Weaving
-Dyeing
-Surface design (includes: painting, embroidery, beadwork)
-Lace making
-Pattern making and fit
-Under structures
-Sewing techniques
-Knitting/Crochet/other yarn work
-Notions/closures
My expertise is in main body garments, so I can really only speak to their construction, but if anyone has expertise in the following:
-Armour
-Shoe making
-Accessories
-Hair styling techniques
-Makeup
I think that those are also important and will add additional depth to the discussion.
A sample of some of the discussions we could have are:
-What kinds of tools or machinery (sewing machine, looms, printing presses) were used to make garments?
-Did zippers exist?
-What was used to dye fabric and how colorfast was it?
-How can we reveal the skill of the elves through the cut of their clothes or the complexity of their weaving?
-How will historical dress on earth inform our ideas about the clothing of Arda?
I know it's a bit early to be thinking about this, but I want to get a feel for how many folks are interested in this topic. I would also like to know whether you think this would work as a general discussion, or whether you think these technical questions would be better served by integrating them into the discussions of each individual culture (for example, when we discuss Gondolin, we could talk about their - presumably - advanced weaving techniques).
Please let me know your thoughts regarding this topic, I would love to hear them!
