Falling-Apartness takes the position that that there is inherent decadence in decay. Objects and places that have been discarded are eventually reclaimed by decay where they exist as a shadow of former vitality until oblivion. This research project seeks to disrupt the temporality and placement of decay in clothing by pushing the structural limits of its tangibility and function. Through this, the project seeks to challenge the role of clothing as providing shelter, warmth or protection by designing clothing that seeks to expose the vulnerability and mortality in its wearer as it decays by ripping, un-weaving and crumbling apart. Perspectives on decay, clothing, fashion and death are explored through writers such as Daniel Trigg, Ghassan Hage, Walter Benjamin and Giacomo Leopardi. The Aesthetics of Decay, a set of principles, were incorporated as they observe the key reactions of the relationship between clothing and wearer. Practice-based and reflective-practice methodology are implemented to position iterative design and diarising as methods to gain new knowledge as part of an original investigation involving practice and the outcomes of that practice. Falling-Apartness seeks to explore and contribute to the dialogue between decay, clothing, fashion and death. It is a recognition and inquiry into the decay between whole and disintegrating, life and death.
