Arianna Padfield-Seleman

Ontological fashioning is a term referring to the effects of mindfulness on the self as mediated through fashion illustration. The activity of drawing the croquis is a reflection and refraction of the self that operates within the social construct of identity-forming practices such as self-fashioning. To appear is to exist; to appear in fashion is to exist fashionably; to see appearances informs the way we appear ourselves. The croquis (the word is French for “quick sketch”), the rudimentary sketch, is the basis for fashion design. The croquis is a fusion of the mannequin and the human form, emphasizing attitude and narrative silhouette. The fundamentals of fashion design education begin with instruction on how to draw the croquis. The industry's lack of inclusivity in relation to figure size extends to educational tools. While a traditional croquis in fine arts is eight heads in height, the fashion croquis is nine-heads, creating an exaggeratedly tall, slender model. In fashion education, the only physique considered is tall and outlandishly slender. The market for manuals and tools for drawing the body is limited in terms of inclusionary narratives. Over years of illustrating and providing instruction on drawing the traditional fashion figure, I have found the literature surrounding the croquis in fashion studies to be surprisingly underexplored. I find that every fashion illustrator who draws the human figure tends to portray themselves. My aim is to explore fashion illustration as a representation of the self and how educational institutions fail to reflect diversity in fashion illustration instruction. Seeking to critically engage, I adopt a sociological perspective in exploring drawing as an embodied action within fashion illustration, one that is connected with mindfulness practice. In response to the shortcomings of the educational tools available, I have created MindLines®: the 21st century fashion plate, a digital manual promoting inclusivity in fashion illustration.