Flight
Costume Design
1999 (designed)
1999 (designed)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Costume design by Ali Pretty for Freedom Song, as part of the carnival band Flight. Flight was a Notting Hill Carnival band, designed for South Connections in 1999. The design draws its inspiration from the twelfth century Sufi poem, The Conference of the Birds by Farid ud-Din Attar. The design symbolises the migration of people across continents, highlighting themes of resistence to liberation and drawing upon the many cultural influences that such migrations and movements have brought to Britain.
'Freedom Song' itself was intended to represent liberation, with its wide wings and bright colours as a tribute to the young peoplewho fought apartheig in South Africa. The costume would be realised with wire for the wings, dyed cottonfor the textiles and papier mache for the headress.
Flight won first prize for the Best Adult Band at Notting Hill Carnival.
'Freedom Song' itself was intended to represent liberation, with its wide wings and bright colours as a tribute to the young peoplewho fought apartheig in South Africa. The costume would be realised with wire for the wings, dyed cottonfor the textiles and papier mache for the headress.
Flight won first prize for the Best Adult Band at Notting Hill Carnival.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Flight (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | |
| Brief description | Costume design by Ali Pretty for Freedom Song in Flight, Notting Hill Carnival, 1999 |
| Physical description | The design shows a bird-like costume with red, orange and yellow striped wings. There are two sets of wings, one attached to the performers arms, the other attached to the headdress of the performer, which is also in the form of a beak. The trousers of the performer are also striped and flared to appear like feathers. The torso of the performer is decorated with a gold necklace and a square, striped and patterned design. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions | FREEDOM SONG
Ali Pretty |
| Credit line | Given by Ali Pretty |
| Associations | |
| Summary | Costume design by Ali Pretty for Freedom Song, as part of the carnival band Flight. Flight was a Notting Hill Carnival band, designed for South Connections in 1999. The design draws its inspiration from the twelfth century Sufi poem, The Conference of the Birds by Farid ud-Din Attar. The design symbolises the migration of people across continents, highlighting themes of resistence to liberation and drawing upon the many cultural influences that such migrations and movements have brought to Britain. 'Freedom Song' itself was intended to represent liberation, with its wide wings and bright colours as a tribute to the young peoplewho fought apartheig in South Africa. The costume would be realised with wire for the wings, dyed cottonfor the textiles and papier mache for the headress. Flight won first prize for the Best Adult Band at Notting Hill Carnival. |
| Other number | THM/426/8/1/13 - Archive number |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.299-2016 |
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| Record created | May 23, 2016 |
| Record URL |
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