Cranes In The Sky | The Iconic Centerpiece Behind the Visual

Cranes in the sky | behind one of the most iconic fashion statement visuals to date

Written by: Tali Michelle 

(Instagram: _tali.michelle)

Solange's Cranes in the Sky visual definitely sends a message (as her whole does), but a lot of what the younger Knowles sister had to say was incorporated into what she was wearing. 

This visual, by far, had some of the most interesting, bold, organic looks this year, in my opinion but there's one look we all want to know about, in particular...The Cotton Candy Jumbo Sweater

 

The piece was made by 30-year-old German textile designer, Nadine Goepfert, as part of her collection called The Garments May Vary. It is a selection of clothes made from materials that track the physical movements of those who wear the garments.

 

Of course the garment looks light weight, for when you look at it, it resembles cotton candy, a cloud or even a pillow. In reality, Solange was wearing 10 pounds, "4 or 5 kilos" as Nadine put it, of memory foam on those stairs in her visual.  

The piece was initially supposed to be worn to the met gala, but because it is so heavy and uncomfortable, Nadine and Shiona, Solange's stylist, decided to collab for another occasion. In August, Shiona contacted Nadine via email stating that Solange wanted to the garment for her album so she sent it over. She didn't know exactly how it would be used so when the visual dropped, she was surprised. 

 

The sweater was completed three days before Nadine's shoot. She stated that she had been looking for the material in a color for a while. She knew she wanted it to be pink, but foam cannot be painted. "It will lose all of its characteristics", Nadine stated. When it was finished, she asked herself, "What did I create?".

 

Nadine was asked how she feels about her piece being in a music video as opposed to the usual art museums or galleries. Here's what she had to say: 

"Usually, I like it to be shown in a museum or gallery, because then people start to get interested in the idea behind the piece — what it is about, and if there is more to know about this garment beyond its aesthetic. But I think that the way that Solange wears it in the video, and the whole video, is artistic. It's not like a pop video. There is a message. Everything that she's wearing is a special piece. I like that she was mostly working with young designers, or not well known designers, and combining those piece with things she'd made. Sometimes, if you lend your things to stylists, you never know what they're going to do with it. But I trusted them from the first moment and knew that I would like what they did."

For more info about this post, fashion post requests, or fashion in general please contact: Tali.michelle1@gmail.com