A dance costume is the clothing worn by a dancer when performing before an audience. A dance costume may be custom designed for use in a specific dance work, or it may have a traditional design, such as those used in some ceremonial and folk dances. Typically, dance costumes are designed to harmonize with the dance and not hinder the movements of the dancer.
When created for a specific work, a costume may be designed to expose or enhance the lines formed by the dancer's body, or to express the choreographer's artistic vision, or to engage the audience, or combinations of these. A costume may portray or relate to some characteristic, mood, or theme of the dance. It may fit loosely or it may be form-fitting to emphasize the form of the dancer's body. [1] Costumes are designed in accordance with aesthetic requirements, the anticipated movements of the dancer, and budget. Various people may collaborate in designing a costume, including the choreographer, costume designer, costume maker (seamstress), and dancer.
In the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Marie Camargo influenced changes in dance costumes by abandoning the traditional corset and dancing barefoot with exposed arms and legs. [1] Later, Isadora Duncan introduced a new look to dance costumes, inspired by the Greeks, of tunics and scarves that conformed to body shape and exposed body lines. [1] [2]
The amount of light a material absorbs and reflects may be a factor in material selection. Also, dance is about movement, so the way a fabric hangs or moves on the dancer is important. [3] Lightweight materials such as silk move faster and easier and tend to flow around the body. Stretchable fabrics such as jersey, silk, chiffon, Georgette, and Lycra are commonly used because they don't restrict movement. Natural materials such as Cotton or silk are typically used when the costume is to be dyed because they absorb dye well. Stiff fabric is typically used to create a boxy, square, or immobile look. [4]
Costume color can be used isolate a dancer, and a costume's colors usually contrast with the lighting, accessories and props used in the dance. [5] Also, color can influence audience emotions and, as a result, costume colors may be chosen according to their relevance to the emotions expressed in the dance. For example, violet may impart a cold feeling and red may evoke a warm feeling. [3] Colors can also be symbolic; for example, green creates a feeling of envy and white evokes purity. [2] Costumes will sometimes incorporate layers of colors that are revealed when the dancer moves. [2]
Costume colors may be used to enhance body line and form, and they may be chosen to complement the dancer's body shape or skin color. Darker colors can make the dancer appear slimmer, whereas lighter colors tend to make the dancer appear larger. [4] Loud prints or bold color combinations are often avoided as they can distort the body lines and, in the case of tights, tend to make the dancer look larger. [1] Also, strong, intense colors may tire the eyes. [3] Color transitions are often implemented using gradients, as sharp color contrasts tend to visually chop the body into sections. [4]
Costume texture and patterns can emphasize or minimize parts of a dancer's body. For example, vertical lines visually lengthen and thin the body, and horizontal lines shorten and widen it. [4] Costume textures and patterns are created using shading, patching, tie-dyeing, and appliqué techniques such as drawing with a fabric pen or painting on the fabric, spraying the fabric, or stitching onto the fabric. Stencils are commonly used when drawing or spraying onto costume fabric. When applying appliqué to stretchable material, the dancer will typically wear the costume so that the design will not be distorted. [4]
Some dance styles require a specific type of dance shoe. Shoes are usually chosen to harmonize with the costume, with consideration for safety and injury avoidance. In some cases, the footwear may blend with the outfit so it will not draw attention to the feet. If the dance involves a significant amount of turning, the footwear will typically cover the balls of the feet to enable the dancer to turn more easily. [3]
Dance costumes are designed so that dancers can move in them as required without damaging them. For example, if a dancer will be lifted, the costume will typically be designed in such a way that the lifter's fingers are unlikely to catch on it. In some cases, the armhole is cut unusually high to ensure free movement at the armpit.
Costumes frequently have special construction features and may also have accessories such as false sleeves, collars, cuffs, wristbands, and shawls. [4] Often, a costume must accommodate quick changes; this is usually facilitated with Velcro or hook fasteners. [4] In some costumes the bottom of the fabric is weighted so that it will move in a stately fashion. [5] Lining may be used to place a costume in a specific era or ethnic group [3] and give form, qualities of movement and direction, and accentuate points of interest. [6]
Costume is the distinctive style of dress or cosmetic of an individual or group that reflects class, gender, profession, ethnicity, nationality, activity or epoch. In short costume is a cultural visual of the people.
Quilting is the term given to the process of joining a minimum of three layers of fabric together either through stitching manually using a needle and thread, or mechanically with a sewing machine or specialised longarm quilting system. An array of stitches is passed through all layers of the fabric to create a three-dimensional padded surface. The three layers are typically referred to as the top fabric or quilt top, batting or insulating material, and the backing.
A quilt is a multi-layered textile, traditionally composed of two or more layers of fabric or fiber. Commonly three layers are used with a filler material. These layers traditionally include a woven cloth top, a layer of batting or wadding, and a woven back combined using the techniques of quilting. This is the process of sewing on the face of the fabric, and not just the edges, to combine the three layers together to reinforce the material. Stitching patterns can be a decorative element. A single piece of fabric can be used for the top of a quilt, but in many cases the top is created from smaller fabric pieces joined, or patchwork. The pattern and color of these pieces creates the design.
There are typically two types of clothing worn in Japan: traditional clothing known as Japanese clothing, including the national dress of Japan, the kimono, and Western clothing, which encompasses all else not recognised as either national dress or the dress of another country.
A T-shirt is a style of fabric shirt named after the T shape of its body and sleeves. Traditionally, it has short sleeves and a round neckline, known as a crew neck, which lacks a collar. T-shirts are generally made of stretchy, light, and inexpensive fabric and are easy to clean. The T-shirt evolved from undergarments used in the 19th century and, in the mid-20th century, transitioned from undergarments to general-use casual clothing.
Stockings are close-fitting, variously elastic garments covering the leg from the foot up to the knee or possibly part or all of the thigh. Stockings vary in color, design, and transparency. Today, stockings are primarily worn for fashion and aesthetics, usually in association with mid-length or short skirts.
Pantyhose, sometimes also called sheer tights, are close-fitting legwear covering the wearer's body from the waist to the toes. Pantyhose first appeared on store shelves in 1959 for the advertisement of new design panties as a convenient alternative to stockings and/or control panties which, in turn, replaced girdles.
A pointe shoe, also called a ballet shoe, is a type of shoe worn by ballet dancers when performing pointe work. Pointe shoes were conceived in response to the desire for dancers to appear weightless and sylph-like and have evolved to enable dancers to dance en pointe for extended periods of time. They are manufactured in a variety of colors, most commonly in shades of light pink.
A patchwork quilt is a quilt in which the top layer may consist of pieces of fabric sewn together to form a design. Originally, this was to make full use of leftover scraps of fabric, but now fabric is often bought specially for a specific design. Fabrics are now often sold in quarter meters. A "fat quarter" is one square meter folded into four and cut along the folds, thus giving a relatively square piece of fabric 50 cm on a side, as opposed to buying a quarter of a meter off the roll, resulting in a long thin piece that is only 25 cm wide.
The blanket sleeper is a type of especially warm sleeper or footie pajama worn primarily during the winter in the United States and Canada. The garment is worn especially by young children.
Sun printing may refer to various printing techniques which use sunlight as a developing or fixative agent.
Visual design elements and principles describe fundamental ideas about the practice of visual design.
A dress shoe is a shoe to be worn at smart casual or more formal events. A dress shoe is typically contrasted to an athletic shoe.
Sweater design is a specialization of fashion design in which knitted sweaters are designed to fulfill certain aesthetic, functional and commercial criteria. The designer typically considers factors such as the insulating power of the sweater ; the fashion of its colors, patterns, silhouette and style lines, particularly the neckline and waistline; the convenience and practicality of its cut; and in commercial design, the cost of its production and the profitability of its price point. Sweater designs are often published in books and knitting magazines. Sweater design is an old art, but continues to attract new designers such as Nicky Epstein and Meg Swansen.
Sportswear or activewear is athletic clothing, including footwear, worn for sports activity or physical exercise. Sport-specific clothing is worn for most sports and physical exercise, for practical, comfort or safety reasons.
Clothing fetishism or garment fetishism is a sexual fetish that revolves around a fixation upon a particular article or type of clothing, a particular fashion or uniform, or a person dressed in such a style.
Acro dance is a style of dance that combines classical dance technique with acrobatic elements. It is defined by its athletic character, its unique choreography, which blends dance and acrobatics, and its use of acrobatics in a dance context. It is a popular dance style in amateur competitive dance as well as in professional dance theater and in contemporary circus productions such as those by Cirque du Soleil. This is in contrast to acrobatic, artistic and rhythmic gymnastics, which are sports that employ dance elements in a gymnastics context under the auspices of a governing gymnastics organization and subject to a Code of Points. Acro dance is known by various other names including acrobatic dance and gymnastic dance, though it is most commonly referred to simply as acro by dancers and dance professionals.
Croatian national costume, also called as Croatian traditional clothing or Croatian dress, refers to the traditional clothing worn by Croats living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, with smaller communities in Hungary, Austria, Montenegro, and Romania. Since today Croats wear Western-style clothing on a daily basis, the national costumes are most often worn with connection to special events and celebrations, mostly at ethnic festivals, religious holidays, weddings, and by dancing groups who dance the traditional Croatian kolo, or circle dance.
Kazakh clothing, worn by the Kazakh people, is often made of materials suited to the region's extreme climate and the people's nomadic lifestyle. It is commonly decorated with elaborate ornaments made from bird beaks, animal horns, hooves and feet. Although contemporary Kazakhs usually wear Western dress, the Turkic people wear more traditional clothing for holidays and special occasions.
The conservation and restoration of quilts refers to the processes involved in maintaining the integrity of quilts and/or restoring them to an acceptable standard so that they may be preserved for future generations. Quilts have been produced for centuries, as utilitarian blankets, decorations, family heirlooms, and now treasured museum collections objects. Quilts are three-layered textile pieces with a decorated top, a back, and a filler in the middle. The composite nature of these objects creates an interesting challenge for their conservation, as the separate layers can be made of different textile materials, multiple colors, and therefore, varying degrees of wear, tear, and damage.