Since 2007, Google search interest for the term "handmade" has more than doubled worldwide. (The term "machine made," meanwhile, has plummeted since its peak in 2004, according to Google Trends.) There is no doubt that the fashion industry, which frequently uses labels like "artisan" and "craftsmanship" to push products, has shifted its focus to more personalized, customized and individualized items—even at a time when Zara's growth continues to climb. (It's worth notingthat the Spanish company now sells a select range of "handmade" items instore andonline.) So what does it mean for a piece of clothing to be handmade, rather than machine made? And in an age of exacting 3D printing, computer modeling, laser cutting, and ultrasonic welding, is one really more valuable than the other?
Symbolic of exclusivity and individuality, handmade items have long been looked at with superiority, while machinemade pieces are deemedinferior and dehumanizing. But proponents of the machine—Karl Lagerfeld being one of them—argue that technology in fashion is simply a sign of progress; that the value lies not in what (hand or machine) made the garment, but rather the thought process behind it.
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"Perhaps it used to matter if a dress was handmade or machine made, at least in haute couture, but now things are completely different. The digital revolution has changed the world," Lagerfeld explainsin the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute Spring 2016 exhibition, Manus x Machina. Open to the public on May 5, the exhibition, featuring 170 ensembles, looks at the relationship between, and this ongoing dichotomy of, the hand (manus) and the machine (machina) in fashion.
Indeed, all of the haute couture ensembles on display, like their ready-to-wear counterparts, were actually constructed by machine. It is only in their surface embellishments (embroidery, featherwork, and artificial flowers) that the hand comes into play.
The exhibition's centerpiece, a Chanel wedding gown from the fall/winter 2014-2015haute couture collection, exemplifies this push-and-pull of fashion and technology. Described as "haute couture without the couture," the machine sewn and hand finished synthetic scuba knit dress, which took 450 hours to complete, dares the viewer to deem its digitally manipulated and heat-pressed embroidered train "inferior".
"Perhaps it used to matter if a dress was handmade or machine made, at least in haute couture, but now things are completely different." — Karl Lagerfeld
"The traditional distinction between haute couture and ready-to-wear is the distinction between handmade and machine made," explains Andrew Bolton, head curator of the The Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute. "The exhibition questions this distinction, not least because haute couture and ready-to-wear are increasingly embracing the practices and techniques of the other, but it also questions the traditional values associated with the hand and the machine."
Bolton describes the hand and the machine as "mutual protagonists" solving design problems, enhancing design practices and ultimately, advancing the future of fashion. But convincing the average consumer, who oftimes conflates machine made with mass production, may be difficult. Designer Jonathan Simkhai, who fuses "manus" and "machina" techniques for augmented creativity and innovation, believes a garment that is hand sewn is assumed to be more expensive because customers associate handmade with labor and skill. "They understand the intricacy of the detailing, as well as the fact that they are buying a one-of-a-kind design, or one of which only a handful were produced," he says.
Still, Simkhai believes it is possible to "embrace the time we live in with regard to technology as a way to stay relevant and move fashion forward," while continuing to recognize and respect handmade artistry. "We develop custom artwork digitally in-house that is then used to create our fabrics and trims," he explains. "It still takes a designer with a certain specialized skill-set to know exactly how to place these designs onto the fabric and then be able to manipulate that fabric in order to achieve the desired result."
Described as ’haute couture without the couture," this chanel machine sewn and hand finished synthetic scuba knit dress dares the viewer to deem its digitally manipulated and heat-pressed embroidered train "inferior""
Julie Heller, owner of the appointment-only designer vintage store EraLuxe Gallery—frequented by Rihanna and filled with a curated collection of Alaïa, Chanel, and Versace—believes that historically, more value has been placed on handmade clothing because of its meticulous construction. "Handmade pieces are more labor intensive, they are rare, you can see the detail inside the garment; these are all qualities that are still associated with added value," she says. Though Heller admits that the scope of what makes a garment valuable is "definitely changing" as technology advances, she believes that when it comes to resale value,it is unlikely something createddigitally will surpass the price of a handmade item—mostlybecause ofsociety's nostalgia for craftsmanship of the past. "People will always want oldschool pieces of manufacturing, the kind that need that touch and element ofconstruction," she says.
It is this physical touch, and the emotional relationship we have with our clothes, that Hazel Clark, the research chair of fashion at Parsons, believes will see handmade fashion continue tohold more value over themachine made.
"There is a sense of a relationship with the person who has made the item; a direct contact with another human being. People like that sense of connection," explains Clark. "The hand gives a value added which has no monetary value. The value added is that connection with a maker. There is a fear of losing connection, through social media, the wider global scene, that means we are seeking connection in many walks of life—including in our clothes. Thatsense of the individual in the process is important."
But as Dutch designer Iris van Herpen notes in the Manus x Machina exhibition, some materials are simply better to cut with a machine than by hand. "Leather is one of them," she concludes.
One thing is clear, however: asthe hand and the machine continue to work in tandem, whether in haute couture or ready-to-wear, we have no choice but to embrace anew paradigm of fashion,one that ismore relevantto our age of technology. As Sarah Burton remarked, referring to amachinesewn andhand-embroidered Alexander McQueen dress from Spring2009:"At [Alexander] McQueen there has always been a merging of couture and ready-to-wear practices. It's difficult to differentiate one from the other."
On the left, two machine sewn and handbraided Gabrielle ’coco" chanel suits, 1963–68 haute couture; on the right, two 3d printed karl lagerfeld for chanel suits, autumn winter 2015–2016 haute couture"
