A pattern design filled with stories
I created this “Antique Birds” pattern inspired by ancient Greek art for Yiume, a men’s shirt brand with Aloha vibe. I chose to infuse it with a bit of Art history and earthy colors to create an ethnic and captivating shirt. They decided to make it into a long-sleeved shirt.
Antique birds
I was fortunate enough to visit Greece several times during my childhood. We drove across Europe, a long journey. I was fascinated by the remains of ancient civilizations. I remember the temples and columns, the bas-reliefs, the theaters of Athens, and I imagined the lives of the ancient Greeks. So much so that I wanted to study Greek art later, during my art history studies. Studying the painting on ancient vases was like lifting the veil on the mysteries of the past. These are objects on which scenes of daily life or mythology are painted with incredible finesse. They are like images that bear witness to the past.
@oscar_oscar_88 is wearing the ‘Antique birds’ Yiume men’s long sleeved shirt.
Hidden stories
Ancient Greek art inspired my “Antique Birds” pattern.
I focused on birds because birds are a connection between heaven and earth, between past and present (don’t they have dinosaurs as ancestors?) They link the spiritual world and the material world.
Black swans are signs of the unpredictable (and also refer to Zeus and the birds of Lake Stymphalus). Athena’s owl is a symbol of knowledge and wisdom in the ancient world. I also depicted a hoopoe. It’s a colorful and striking bird, fascinating to anyone lucky enough to observe it (and I was!).
All sketches ©Andrea Leonelli
John Boardman, Athenian red figure vases, the classic period, WOrld of Art edition; Silver coin depicting Athena’s owl Musée des Beaux-Arts de Lyon, France.
Pattern & narrative
Black-figure pottery
I studied archaic vase painting when I was an Art student. Archaeology, combined with art history, is a mysterious gateway to the past, brimming with exciting discoveries and Sherlock Holmes-worthy hypothesis.
I still regularly immerse myself in those fascinating books that attempt to distinguish styles, potters, and painters of the 5th century BC! They succeed through clues such as the use of a new technique, a different glaze, or the way to use a particular color!
In-depth research
Ancient Greek black-figure pottery features black motifs on a terracotta background. I tried to respect this grammar of shapes and colors while maintaining my drawing style and I kept these earthy tones and the aged look in my final pattern.
Herakles and the Stymphalian birds, 560-530 BC, attributed to Group E, British Museum, London.
Meaningful pattern
Echoes
In Art, as Lavoisier (almost) said about Matter: “Nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed.” So here is my creation a few centuries later! I made my material from this past.
In a way, this archaic world is still part of us and our collective imagination.
And my ambition is that my ‘Antique birds’ pattern will be a kind of echo of this shared mythological past.
My goal is for those who wear these clothes to feel connected to a narrative that make sense to them. I want my designs to evoke stories, memories, and a desire for discovery, for connection with oneself and others.
