Tartan for Tartan's Sake

[Rex_Tremende]

Lately I have been pondering a question that with Nick's announcement of his awesome new tartan designer I am provided the opportunity to bring to the forum for discussion:

What if a tartan doesn't mean anything?

We call it here a "fashion" tartan, but that always seems to bear the slight scent of pity.

What if it doesn't represent a historical connection, pride of clan, or represent a place, or what if each thread isn't imbued with some sort of symbolism (Rocky has provided us with some beautiful examples, for instance), what if, gosh, it is nothing more than an array of intersecting and repeating stripes of color that pleases the eye?

Thoughts? Tell me yours, and I'll share mine later.

Regards,
Rex.

[MacMillan of Rathdown]

Gosh Rex, that's exactly how I've always viewed non-clan/district tartans. Just pretty fabric, something to choose in stead of stripes or solids. Madras tartans (plaids in the fashion industry) spring to mind, I love 'em. I've never had a view, one way or t'other about calling them "fashion tartans"-- but, having given it some thought just now I suppose that's a bit less pretentious than referring to them as "designer tartans".

I am transfixed with anticipation as I await your thoughts on the subject.

[Mael Coluim]

A recent post of Rocky's explains the make up of the Albannach tartan. That makes sense to me. So maybe fashion tartans can't trace their roots to the 19th century when prepared for the visit of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert. Now saying that I do have the tendency of having kilts made with family connections.

[The Wizard of BC]

But what would you call it?

"My pretty Plaid"

Oops, now it represents something.

[Monkey@Arms]

Well I guess I would call them "traditional tartans", in the sense that the first tartans bore no clan affiliations or special significance, but were simply woven for best looks with the colors available on hand. http://albanach.org/sources.htm

Best regards,

Jake

[pdcorlis]

Tartan for tartan's sake - an interesting discussion Rex. I agree that the term "fashion" tartan feels like a pejorative - a poor country cousin invited to the banquet out of pity. So I wonder if its the fact that the tartan is non-representational or the term thats at fault here. After all the much loved IOS tartan trademarked in 1992 was the result of an open competition. My mind spins thinking about the other Isles of Skye left on the cutting room floor. And why was the final color combination chosen if not for the beautiful pallet of colors?

Now here's a real stretch - as a photographer and artist I have asked one simple question of countless dozens of other artists... "Which comes first, the work or the title." The overwhelming answer is of course, the work. The name is almost always added after the visual creative act. I wonder how many other tartans also fall into line here? How many family tartans were first "fashion" tartans in Wilson's Key Pattern Book prior to the great tartan revival?

Personally, I say - should someone create a particularly stunning tartan color combination and later call it - oh say - "Peat and Heather" for its wonderful rich browns and stunning purples would that tartan be any less beautiful? I say no. Would that be a good enough reason to have kilt made of that tartan? I say you bet!

[Carolina Kiltman]

I would have to go along with the negative connotations of "fashion Tartan"), although any design carries with it the term "fashion".

One needs only to look at all the variants within a given tartan: Muted, Ancient, Weathered and then the variants from mill to mill. Perhaps some other term is needed, but I am not sure just what it is.

IMHO if the tartan is pleasing to the wearer, then does it really make any difference?

[Scotus]

There's nothing wrong with using the phrase, "fashion tartan," since that's what they are. I fail to see how this is a pejorative. A clan tartan is a clan tartan because it's been adopted by a chief, a district by a district, etc. A fashion tartan is one that's designed simply for the sake of... wait for it... fashion.

[M. A. C. Newsome]

If the term "fashion" tartan is seen as a pejorative, I think that is only due to the prevailing attitude that exists which says a tartan must be a named tartan if it is to be a tartan at all. This is not true, of course, but this is what most people think today, nonetheless. I much prefer "fashion" tartan to that other term people have -- "bumbee" tartan -- which has always to me carried the implication that it is not a "real" tartan.

In truth the term "fashion" tartan means that it was created simply as an attractive design, and has no greater representational authority behind it. In this day and age when every tartan simply must have a name, it may be given a fancy nomiker, and indeed many people may begin wearing it representationally because of that. So a lot of fashion tartans may end up being viewed as clan/district/family tartans out of wont and usage over time (think of all those Irish county tartans).

What has died off is the tradition of simply wearing an attractive tartan design in your Highland dress and not giving one whit about giving the tartan a name. Prior to the early 1800s this was the norm.

In The Kilt & How to Wear It (c. 1901) the author advocates for the revival of "country checks" (maybe he calls them "hill checks" -- the book is all the way across the room and I can't be bothered to get up and actually walk over there.) In any case what he means by this term is what we would call a fashion tartan. He thinks people should be free to design their own tartans, based on the colors of the landscape in various seasons, and wear those day-to-day and reserve the "clan tartan" for clan gatherings and such.

In principal, I advocate for the same thing, which is why I am very glad I am able to acquire custom run lengths of tartan in as little as 4 yards to make a single box pleated kilt from. You want to design your own personal tartan for your kilt, go for it! I'm glad to help you do it.

On the other hand, I do have one reservation about the proliferation of on-line "tartan designers." While the upside is that everyone can now design a tartan, the downside is that not everyone is a tartan designer. You now no longer have to have any knowledge or experience in weaving, textile design, or tartan tradition to create your own tartan. This can lead to some pretty horrid designs, as you can well imagine.

Still, overall, I think it is a good thing. While the tradition of named tartans is definitely here to stay, and is only being further codified through the introduction of the new National Register, perhaps there is room for the older tradition of unnamed tartans (or named "fashion" tartans or personal tartans) to exist side by side.

[ChattanCat]

Yes, "Fashion Tartan" carries a distasteful conotation to me. I have a fashion tartan that I made into a kilt. I called it my Santa tartan because I finished it for Christmas. I like wearing it but when asked what tartan I reply that it is a fashion tartan in a dejected/embarassed voice. I wore it to work yesterday and plan to wear it today so all is not lost. I like it and wear it to non-scottish related functions. So, yes, I am embarassed to wear it around Scottish clansmen.