Wearable art
Encyclopedia
Wearable art, also known as Artwear or "art to wear", refers to individually designed pieces of (usually) hand-made clothing or jewelry created as fine or expressive art. While the making of any article of clothing or other wearable object typically involves aesthetic considerations, the term wearable art implies that the work is intended to be accepted as a serious and unique artistic creation or statement. Pieces may be sold and/or exhibited. The modern idea of wearable art seems to have surfaced more than once in various forms. Marbeth Schon's book on modernist jewelry (see the section on jewelry below) refers to a "wearable art movement" spanning roughly the years 1930 to 1960. A 2003 New York Times review of a book on knitting refers to "the 60s Art to Wear movement".
Most wearable art is made of fibrous materials and constitutes therefore a branch of the wider field of fiber art
, which includes both wearable and non-wearable forms of art using fabric and other fiber products. Wearable art as an artistic domain can also of course include jewelry, or clothing made from non-fiber materials such as leather, plastic sheeting, metals, etc.
As with any other art form, the talent and skills of artists in this field vary widely. Since the nature of the medium requires craft
skills as well as artistic skills, an advanced artist can be expected to study color theory
, chemistry
, sewing
, clothing design, and computer software such as Photoshop and Illustrator
. Classes in clothing design and marketing may be learned from such colleges as the Fashion Institute of Technology
in New York City
.
The New Zealand
city of Nelson
has gained a worldwide reputation in the field of wearable art, with its World of WearableArt Awards, held annually since 1987. From 2005, the show moved to Wellington
. In Australia, the Shearwater Wearable Arts or W.A.V.E. (Wearable Arts Vision In Education) has developed from a High School initiative to become a leading Wearable Arts Event.
.
and conceptual art
ists have sometimes produced examples which are more provocative than useful.
A well known example is the "Electric Dress", a burqa
-like costume consisting mostly of variously colored electrified and painted light bulbs, enmeshed in a tangle of wires, created in 1956 by the Japanese Gutai artist Atsuko Tanaka
. This extreme garment was something like a stage costume. Not really wearable in an everyday, practical sense, it functioned rather as part of a daring work of performance art
(though the "performance" element consisted merely of the artist's wearing the piece while mingling with spectators in a gallery setting).
In Nam June Paik
's 1969 performance piece called "TV Bra for Living Sculpture," Charlotte Moorman
played the cello while wearing a bra made of two small television sets.
More recently, Canadian artist Andrea Vander Kooij created a group of pieces called "Garments for Forced Intimacy" (2006). According to an essay at Concordia University's Faculty of Fine Arts gallery website, these hand-knit articles of clothing are designed to be worn by two people, and they, "as the name states, compel the wearers into uncharacteristic proximity."
Most wearable art is made of fibrous materials and constitutes therefore a branch of the wider field of fiber art
Fiber art
Fiber art is a style of fine art which uses textiles such as fabric, yarn, and natural and synthetic fibers. It focuses on the materials and on the manual labour involved as part of its significance.-Fiber:...
, which includes both wearable and non-wearable forms of art using fabric and other fiber products. Wearable art as an artistic domain can also of course include jewelry, or clothing made from non-fiber materials such as leather, plastic sheeting, metals, etc.
Wearable fiber art
Artists creating wearable fiber art may use purchased finished fabrics or other materials, making them into unique garments, or may dye and/or paint virgin fabric. Many believe that art is something that requires money in order to make it, but a lot of clothing artist are now starting local clothing companies that produce quality art work and clothing for a decent price. Wearable art isn't simply restricted to jewelry but is also seen in graphic T-shirts and even pants.As with any other art form, the talent and skills of artists in this field vary widely. Since the nature of the medium requires craft
Craft
A craft is a branch of a profession that requires some particular kind of skilled work. In historical sense, particularly as pertinent to the Medieval history and earlier, the term is usually applied towards people occupied in small-scale production of goods.-Development from the past until...
skills as well as artistic skills, an advanced artist can be expected to study color theory
Color theory
In the visual arts, color theory is a body of practical guidance to color mixing and the visual impacts of specific color combinations. Although color theory principles first appeared in the writings of Leone Battista Alberti and the notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci , a tradition of "colory theory"...
, chemistry
Chemistry
Chemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
, sewing
Sewing
Sewing is the craft of fastening or attaching objects using stitches made with a needle and thread. Sewing is one of the oldest of the textile arts, arising in the Paleolithic era...
, clothing design, and computer software such as Photoshop and Illustrator
Illustrator
An Illustrator is a narrative artist who specializes in enhancing writing by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text...
. Classes in clothing design and marketing may be learned from such colleges as the Fashion Institute of Technology
Fashion Institute of Technology
The Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
The New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
city of Nelson
Nelson, New Zealand
Nelson is a city on the eastern shores of Tasman Bay, and is the economic and cultural centre of the Nelson-Tasman region. Established in 1841, it is the second oldest settled city in New Zealand and the oldest in the South Island....
has gained a worldwide reputation in the field of wearable art, with its World of WearableArt Awards, held annually since 1987. From 2005, the show moved to Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
. In Australia, the Shearwater Wearable Arts or W.A.V.E. (Wearable Arts Vision In Education) has developed from a High School initiative to become a leading Wearable Arts Event.
Jewelry as wearable art: the mid-twentieth century "wearable art movement"
Some twentieth-century modern artists and architects sought to elevate bodily ornamentation — that is, jewelry — to the level of fine art and original design, rather than mere decoration, craft production of traditional designs, or conventional settings for showing off expensive stones or precious metals. In "Modernist Jewelry 1930-1960: The Wearable Art Movement" (2004), author Marbeth Schon explores unique and innovative wearable art objects created by surrealists, cubists, abstract expressionists, and other modernist artists working in the middle decades of the twentieth century. For the main article on this kind of wearable art, see art jewelryArt jewelry
Art jewelry is created with a variety of materials, not just precious metals and gems. In the late 19th century, René Lalique revolutionized jewelry design through his emphasis on imagination and technical virtuosity over precious materials and the imitation of past styles. Additionally, he...
.
Extreme examples of wearable art
Not all garments created as wearable art are made from traditional fibers or fabrics, and not all such artworks are meant for ordinary, practical use. PerformancePerformance art
In art, performance art is a performance presented to an audience, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performance may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or...
and conceptual art
Conceptual art
Conceptual art is art in which the concept or idea involved in the work take precedence over traditional aesthetic and material concerns. Many of the works, sometimes called installations, of the artist Sol LeWitt may be constructed by anyone simply by following a set of written instructions...
ists have sometimes produced examples which are more provocative than useful.
A well known example is the "Electric Dress", a burqa
Burqa
A burqa is an enveloping outer garment worn by women in some Islamic religion to cover their bodies in public places. The burqa is usually understood to be the woman's loose body-covering , plus the head-covering , plus the face-veil .-Etymology:A speculative and unattested etymology...
-like costume consisting mostly of variously colored electrified and painted light bulbs, enmeshed in a tangle of wires, created in 1956 by the Japanese Gutai artist Atsuko Tanaka
Atsuko Tanaka (artist)
Atsuko Tanaka was a pioneering Japanese avant-garde artist.-Biography:She was born in Osaka, on February 10, 1932.. She went to several local art schools where she worked in mostly figurative mode...
. This extreme garment was something like a stage costume. Not really wearable in an everyday, practical sense, it functioned rather as part of a daring work of performance art
Performance art
In art, performance art is a performance presented to an audience, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performance may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or...
(though the "performance" element consisted merely of the artist's wearing the piece while mingling with spectators in a gallery setting).
In Nam June Paik
Nam June Paik
Nam June Paik was a Korean American artist. He worked with a variety of media and is considered to be the first video artist....
's 1969 performance piece called "TV Bra for Living Sculpture," Charlotte Moorman
Charlotte Moorman
Madeline Charlotte Moorman Garside was an American cellist and performance artist.She was born in Little Rock, Arkansas. She studied cello from age ten and won a scholarship to Centenary College where she took her B.A. in music in 1955. She received her M.A...
played the cello while wearing a bra made of two small television sets.
More recently, Canadian artist Andrea Vander Kooij created a group of pieces called "Garments for Forced Intimacy" (2006). According to an essay at Concordia University's Faculty of Fine Arts gallery website, these hand-knit articles of clothing are designed to be worn by two people, and they, "as the name states, compel the wearers into uncharacteristic proximity."
External links
- Wearable Arts Vision in Education - Shearwater, The Mullumbimby Steiner School - Australia
- Brancott Estates World of WearableArt (WOW) - New Zealand website
- Morgan Culture - International wearable artist in WOW
- The Sacred Valley Fund - Wearable Art from Peru
- The Wearable Art Awards - Wearable Art competition held yearly in Port Moody, Canada
- Ro London's Sacred Fish Collections - Wearable Art of endangered species wildlife paintings/designs on silk to create awareness
- Supicajeweled Wearable Art - Wearable Art, Belt Buckles, Handbags, Photo Frames, Bridal Toasting Glasses
- Aliveshoes- aliveshoes is a project that is changing how people perceive and experience art and fashion.
- ICON's Fine Art on Leather Shoes and Handbags - Wearable Art, Fine Art, Leather Shoes, Leather Handbags, Small Leather Accessories