Bridesmaid Dresses

I brought into school two different bridesmaid dresses with at least 20 years age difference, to draw from. I decided to look at bridesmaid dresses, as they portray a role in weddings and can be personal to the people who's wedding it is.

This green dress was my mother's bridesmaid dress which she wore at the age of four. It's a full size, pale green dress, decorated with simple Chinese characters and flowers.

I decided to draw with a Chinese brush  for some of the studies, using watercolours and Indian Ink. I found it more suited for the style of design for the dress, as they are very basic shapes.

The design on the dress also portray's roles, as the people are dressed for a special occasion (maybe a wedding).

I developed my drawings into hand painted samples, influenced by Nina Vivian Huryn. For the flower sample, I managed to find some floral material that looks similar to the original design.

I then looked at a more modern bridesmaid dress. It uses more silky materials and embroidery.

I focused on the floral design on the torso of the dress, as I found it the most interesting; it's a symmetrical design of a flower vine and reminds me of a spine of a skeleton.