Gabriele Fabris

I was caught up in one of my web excursions driven by my curiosity, the moment I discovered a fairly little known piece of art that sparked my interest.

It was in the form of an experimental sonic project produced by Nicolas Jaar dedicated to the recreation of an alternative soundtrack of a movie, that I first encountered Sergej Parajanov’s 1969 “The color of pomegranates”.
I was intrigued by the musical palette and the sounds of what seemed like ancient tribal music but made contemporary, so curious of the reasons why Jaar decided to create this work I took a look at the movie itself.

I was blown away by the enveloping ambiance and the richness of the graphic stimuli provided by its images, the historic and representative authenticity of its narrative and the striking beauty of the colors captured on film.
The movie tells the story of 18th century Armenian musician and poet Sayat Nova through a series of tableaux vivants depicting the artist’s evolving life stages.
It’s the atmosphere of the scenes filled with tradition, the solemnity of the gestures, the symbolism of composition, the liturgy of the everyday and the sacred nature of religion that moved me and filled my desire to embark in this project.

The stunning depictions of the movie show through elaborate objects, customary attire and localized surroundings an existence deeply rooted in Armenian heritage.
This last reality of the oeuvre’s narrative has been excluded in the conception of my collection as it doesn’t belong to me; I indeed focused my interest on the holistic echo of the images.

A sort of ritualistic performance pervades the dimension of everyday life.

I channeled traditional and religious dresses through voluminous trousers and flared sleeves, referencing their decorations with silk inserts and embroideries.
I enhanced the strenght of each outfit accesorizing it with foulards and with semiprecious stone headpieces and belts.

An essential aspect that influenced my designing choices is actress Sofiko Ciaureli playing multiple both male and female characters.
Elements and fabrics of female clothes become details of the different menswear pieces, for a modern everyday easy to wear bespoke fashion.