Fishnet (pronounced fish-net)
(1) A net for catching fish.
(2) A fabric with an open mesh, resembling a fishnet.
(3) Being of an open-mesh weave.
(4) In fashion as a clipping of “fishnet stockings” &
“fishnet tights”, usually in the form “fishnets”.
(5) In mathematics, geometry and mapping, as “fishnet
grid”, a grid of equally-sized (usually square or rectangular) cells which can
be overlaid onto another representation for various purposes.
Pre 1000: from the Middle English, from the Old English fiscnett, the construct being fish +
net. Fish was from the Middle English fisch, from the Old English fisċ (fish), from the Proto-West
Germanic fisk, from the Proto-Germanic
fiskaz (fish). It may be compared with the West Frisian fisk, the Dutch vis, the German Fisch, the
Danish, Norwegian & Swedish fisk and
the Icelandic fiskur, from the
primitive Indo-European peysḱ- (fish) (the equivalent form
in was iasc and in Latin piscis.
Net was from the Middle English nett,
from the Old English net & nett, from the Proto-West Germanic nati, from the Proto-Germanic natją, from the primitive Indo-European ned- (to turn, twist, knot). It was cognate with the West Frisian net, the Low German Nett, the Dutch net, the German Netz,
the Danish net and the Swedish nät.
The most obvious “fishnet grid” is of course the fishnet,
used by fishers to catch fist and one of the oldest technologies still in use
with its essential design unchanged although much has changed in terms of
materials, scale and techniques of use. The
same design (a grid structure with equal sized cells) is used in various field
including (1) concreting where the steel reinforcing for slabs is used in this
form, either in pre-made sections or assembled on-site. (2) In agriculture, the grids are used as a
support structure for climbing plants like beans which grow up the grid, gaining
enhanced exposure to airflow and sunlight; ultimately, the arrangements also
make harvesting easier and cheaper. Made
now with slender, strong, cheap and lightweight plastic strands which don’t
absorb moisture, like the nets used to harvest fish, the agricultural mesh is
produced in a variety of cell sizes, the choice dictated by the crop. (3) In
architecture and interior decorating, grids are common design element,
sometimes integrated into structural members and sometimes merely
decorative. (4) In fashion, the most
famous fishnet grids are of course those used on stockings & tights where
the most frequently seen patterns are diamonds or squares displayed with points
perpendicular. When used of other
garments, the orientation of the cells can vary. (5) In industrial design, fishnet
grids made of durable materials like steel or synthetic fibers are widely used,
providing structures which can be lighter than those made with solid materials
yet, in a seeming paradox, be stronger, at least in the direction of the
stresses to which they’ll be exposed.
Such constructions are often used in support structures, fencing and
other barriers.
North America with the lines of latitude & longitude as traditionally depicted in maps using a fishnet grid (left) and in a form which reflects the effects of the curvature of the earth.
In cartography, the most famous fishnet grid is that made
up from the lines of latitude & longitude which, east & west, north
& south, encircle the globe and have for centuries been used for
navigation. However, the familiar
representation of the lines of latitude and longitude as a fishnet grid is illusory
because the common, rectangular map of the world is just a two-dimensional rendering
of a three dimensional sphere. For most
purposes, the flat map is ideal but when lines of latitude & longitude were
added, so were distortions because the lines of longitude converge at the poles,
becoming progressively closer as they move away from the equator. Never parallel on the sphere which is planet
Earth, on a map the lines are exactly parallel; a perfect fishnet grid.
The politics of the Mercator Map
The Mercator projection was developed in 1568 by Flemish
geographer, cosmographer & cartographer Gerardus Mercator (1512–1594) as a
navigation tool with spherical planet earth depicted on a flat rectangular grid
with parallel lines of latitude and longitude.
Its functionality was such that in the west, it became the standard
technique of projection for nautical navigation and the de facto standard for
maps and charts. For seafarers it was
invaluable; all they needed do was follow the line on the chart and, barring
accidents, they would arrive where intended.
However, the Mercator map is a most imprecise representation of the
precise shapes and relative sizes of land masses because the projection
distorts the size of objects as the latitude increases from the Equator to the
poles, where scale becomes infinite.
That’s why land-masses such as Greenland and Antarctica appear much
larger than they actually are, relative to equatorial areas such as central
Africa.
The Mercator map (left), the distorting effect of the Mercator projection with the real size in the darker shade (centre) and the actual geography of Earth's land masses (right).
In the twentieth century, that distortion attracted
criticism on the grounds the projection tended to increase the size of the
land-masses of the European colonial powers while reducing those in the
colonized south. However, neither
Gerardus Mercator nor other cartographers had social or political axes to
grind; the geographical distortion was an unintended consequence of what was
designed as a navigational device and it's anyway impossible accurately to
depict the surface of a sphere as a two-dimensional rectangle or square (the
so-called "orange-segment" renditions are dimensionally most accurate
but harder to read). The Mercator map is
no different from the map of the London Underground; a thing perfect for
navigation and certainly indicative but not to exact scale. Modern atlases generally no longer use the
Mercator map (except for historical or artistic illustrations) but they’re
still published as wall-maps.
The Tube
The classic "map" of the London underground is an ideal navigational aid but, conceptual rather than being drawn to scale, applying a fishnet grid would be both pointless and without meaning. Professional cartographers refer to such things as "diagrams" or "mud maps", the latter a colloquial term which began life in the military and was a reference to the improvised "maps" drawn in the soil by soldiers in the field. While not precise, to scale or a detailed representation of an area, they were a simple visual aid to assist in navigation.
Fishnet fan Lindsay Lohan: Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen (2004), (left), Elle Style Awards, London, February 2015 (centre) and Cannes Film Festival, May 2017 (right).
There are both fishnet tights and fishnet stockings and unless worn in a manner to permit an observer to discern which, whether it’s one or another is often known only to the wearer, the distinction blurred further by manufacturers being sometimes inclined to be a bit loose with their labeling. While both items of leg-wear, there are technical differences in the construction, coverage and style. Tights should be made of a thicker, more opaque material which affords complete coverage from the waist to the toes. Although a fashion item, the historic purpose of tights was to keep the legs warm in cold weather and they were a garment of some importance when there were dress codes which denied women the right to wear trousers. Constructed almost always in one piece, tights have an elastic waistband which has the primary purpose of keeping them in place but there are some tights which technically are “shapewear”, the midsection an expanded, all-round elastic panel which has a mild compression effect on the areas around and immediately above the hips, rendering a more trim silhouette. Except for a handful of high-priced products, tights use relatively thick materials like nylon or spandex (sold as lycra in some markets). There are also composite materials now available which has meant the range of thicknesses, colors and patterns offered has been expanded and the finishes range from semi-sheer to opaque, making them suitable for casual and formal occasions while still providing protection from the cold. The essential difference between tights and leggings is the later are shorter, stopping anywhere from the ankle to the upper calf (although some specialized sports leggings extend only to somewhere above the knee).
Classically, stockings were designed to cover only the
legs between the upper-thigh and the toes.
Made typically from a sheer material, they are held in place by a device
called a “garter belt” or “suspender belt” which sits around the hips, two
(sometimes three) elastic “suspender slings” (a marvelous name) are attached to
each side at the ends of which are metal clips into which a rubber or silicone disc
is inserted through the stocking material, holding it permanently in place. Usually sheer in a color spectrum from black
to white (with a solid emphasis of “skin tone” although sensitivity to the
implications of that term means it now less used), patterns are also available
and among the most popular is the single, emulated “seam” running vertically up
the back of the leg. Until the mid
twentieth century, stockings were made almost exclusively from silk are they
remain available but the majority use some form of synthetic, either nylon or a
nylon-mix and are thought to impart both a more delicate and refined look and
are thus associated with formal attire.
The modern hybrid which has since the 1970s captured most of the stocking
market is “pantyhose” (the construct being a portmanteau of the modified clippings
of panties (panty) + hosiery (hose).
Pantyhose used the design of tights and the sheer material of stockings,
the obvious advantage being the convenience of not needing the belt apparatus with
its alluring but fiddly “suspender slings”.
Fishnet pantyhose are available.
No comments:
Post a Comment