| According to Albert Einstein, our imagination is a preview to life’s coming attractions. In Dean Davidson’s case, his reality reveals an imagination filled with beauty, adventure and success.
New to the fashion scene, Davidson is a rising accessories designer whose career is accelerating faster than the speed of light. By the time you are finished reading this article, someone will have purchased one of his bracelets or belts at Smyth and Kang. By the time you read next week’s issue of Fast Forward, Davidson’s designs will be debuting with Paul Hardy’s Spring Summer 2004 collection at New York City’s Fashion Week. And by the time you get into this fall’s fashion trends, Davidson will be busy working on his collection for fall 2004.
Not bad for an individual who decided to act upon his imagination and started producing bracelets for men and women without any formal training in jewelry design.
Davidson always knew he wanted to make a living at doing something creative. At an early age he used to sketch fashion designs with his sister, who was planning on becoming a fashion designer. But by the time he was ready for higher learning, he put his creative side on hold to pursue something more practical.
"I’m the complete opposite (of most designers). I grew up on a farm in Manitoba, where getting a job in a creative field was difficult, so I studied an agriculture program in Brandon," says Davidson.
For the past five years, Davidson has toiled his way through the agricultural industry in sales and marketing, but his creative side eventually began to resurface – he finally discovered a project where his creative energy would prosper.
"I was shopping in a market in Cape Town, South Africa, where I purchased a bracelet made out of safety pins. When I returned to Calgary, I made myself a similar bracelet, which a lot of people showed interest (in)," says Davidson.
Due to the positive response, he decided to create five variations of the safety pin bracelet (which was composed of a wide piece of elastic and several large silver safety pins, some beaded and some plain) and brought his creations to Smyth and Kang, where they were a success. Davidson then tapped into his imagination and created a collection of bracelets and chokers for Smyth and Kang using strings of red, black and white leather clasped in silver.
With the support of this local retailer, Davidson has been able to continue experimenting with different designs.
"It’s great to have a retail space that is confident in what I can do. Leon (Kang) is great to work with."
Davidson’s current collection of bracelets, chokers and belts are made of black or reddish-brown strips of leather varying in width. Each piece is clean and simple, with an undecorated matte surface. Instead of buckles, he uses snaps – with a slight patina – as clasps. Davidson’s bracelets come in one size, but he strategically places the snaps to fit both his male and female clients. An extra snap also allows the wearer to style his or her piece.
"I like making accessories that people can wear in different ways – a belt that can be worn as a bracelet or a belt that has a bracelet that can be snapped off."
At the moment, Davidson’s pieces are made primarily of leather, but he has his sights set on using other materials for future collections.
"I don’t want to be branded as a leather designer. I'd like to get into working with wire or metals, which will allow me more opportunity to create different projects, and meet other designers like Paul Hardy," notes Davidson.
Meeting Hardy has given Davidson the opportunity to explore and challenge his design sensibilities. Hardy’s collections are always Biblically based, and for his Spring Summer 2004 collection, the theme is based on the Sumerian woman who Jesus met at the well. This woman had five different husbands and one lover, so in turn she led six different lives. Hardy modernized the Sumerian woman and broke the collection into six colour groupings – white, black, brown, pink, pink and brown, and ivory and brown. Davidson’s challenge was to create accessories that will successfully complement each outfit and capture the essence of the lives she must have lived.
"We collaborated closely on this collection and agreed that the jewelry should have an ethnic or rustic look. Paul also gave me a lot of freedom to do my own thing for this project," Davidson says.
The end result is amazing pieces that demonstrate Davidson’s natural aptitude for design. The jewelry includes earrings, necklaces, armbands and a breastplate. For the brown section, he used woodchip coco beads and shaved cow horn. For example, the necklace is composed of nine different strands of woodchip coco beads, knotted by hand. Davidson says Hardy designs his clothes to be worn in various ways, so to reflect this philosophy each strand of the necklace can be removed or twisted, allowing a woman to style her necklace from a simple choker to dramatic layers. The arm cuff is made out of the same woodchip coco beads woven together, which creates a fluid, web-like effect that will mould to the arm.
For the black section, Davidson used black woodchip coco beads with rhinestones to catch the light and contrast against the black. For the white section, he used four strands of pink beads, rhinestones and small religious iconic pictures in gold frames.
Davidson’s debut with Hardy in New York, as well as his relationship with Smyth and Kang, is a reality that many newcomers can only imagine – and one that will allow him to make a living doing what he enjoys.
"It’s great to be given this opportunity to work with Leon and Paul. I can work on many more ideas and ultimately design full time," says Davidson. |
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