Sourcing the Muse

The journeys of eight Australian fashion designers from inspiration to creation

What are the processes from idea to creation? Where do designers source their inspiration?

In an endeavour to illuminate design processes, the Powerhouse Museum asked eight leading Australian fashion designers or design teams to explore the Museum's dress and textile collection and select objects which they would use as a source of inspiration from which to create a new garment. Those selected were Akira (Akira Isogawa), Easton Pearson (Lydia Pearson and Pamela Easton), Gwendolynne (Gwendolynne Burkin), Michelle Jank, Nicola (Nicola Finetti), S!X (Peter Boyd and Denise Sprynskyj), Tea Rose (Rosemary Armstrong) and Vixen (Georgia Chapman and Maureen Sohn).

Above is a glimpse of each designer's final creation alternating with an image of one of the Powerhouse objects which inspired it. In order, left to right, the design labels are Akira, Easton Pearson, Gwendolynne, Michelle Jank, Nicola Finetti, S!X, Tea Rose and Vixen. Information about the Powerhouse objects is at Inspiring Powerhouse objects.

The Museum presented the exhibition, Sourcing the Muse, which explored the designers' creative processes from their selected object/s to their final garments from 12 April to 21 July 2002. This website documents those journeys and that exhibition.

Each of the eight designer sections provides information about the designer, the items from the Powerhouse dress/textile collection they selected, and their final design, as well as interviews (audio file and text) and exhibition views.

The Project overview provides more information about the development of the project.