Saturday, January 29, 2005

THE CONCEPT OF CONTEMPORARY CONCEPTUAL CLOTHING

THE REALM OF CLOTHING: ON CONCEPTUAL CLOTHING EXHIBIT IN TOKYO

London's Tate Modern discusses the concept of Conceptual Art in this manner:

"As befits its title 'Conceptual Art' raises more questions than it answers. There is considerable debate as to when it began, who was involved, where it was made, and what constituted it. What is certain is that it challenged the notion of producing traditional objects to look at and thereby denied the viewer the opportunity for aesthetic contemplation. Simply stated, Conceptual art is art about ideas."




The synthesis of art and clothing trends has become an on-going thesis in art venues worldwide, and will continue to garner even more interest in the near future; hence the recent exhibit, On Conceptual Clothing at the Musashino Art University in Tokyo, Japan.




This ground-breaking group show, which closed last month, successfully continued to establish clothing as an unique art form and featured the works of participating artists and designers from all over the world such as Issey Miyake (Pleats Please!), Yasumasa Morimura and Marie-Ange Guilleminot.




You can see images of the On Conceptual Clothing Exhibition at this link. For further information, the Musashino Art University is located at 1-736 Ogawacho, Kodaira-shi, Tokyo 187-8505 and can ve reached at 042-342-6003.

JENNI DUTTON- A MODERN CONCEPTUAL CLOTHING ARTIST

Jenni Dutton is one of the most popular conceptual clothing artists today. Utilizing the very fabric of Gaia in the creation of her one of a kind conceptual clothing, Dutton has created pieces redolent with the history of the feminine and replete with rare and unique construction and decoration. Through her personal research with ancient clothing design techniques and forms, she is able to incorporate that knowledge in her art, classes and workshops.




‘A Walk In The Woods’ is one of Jenni Dutton’s creations; a fragile dress made from nature, poetry and memories. She writes,

“...The silver quilting threads running up the dress refer to the webs, the blue on the hem to the river. One morning in January I found the brightest red fungus cups spread about the floor of the wood on moss and dead trees. Some are used on the dress, I am not sure if they will last. The dress is about the walks in this wood. Feathers, egg shells and dead spiders were collected and quilted into the dress...”

Dutton is currently participating in a touring exhibtion of Conceptual Clothing entitled: 'Footsteps', during which nine artists respond to a particular exhibit from a museum of their choice. This special exhibition will tour through September 2005. You can see more of her work and get more information on her upcoming exhbitions and workshops here.

THE MOST FAMOUS CONCEPTUAL ART CLOTHING PIECE IN THE WORLD

Back in 2000, New York City’s Whitney Museum of American Art welcomed home a touring exhibition known as The Warhol Look,which focused on the late artist Andy Warhol’s contributions to the world of fashion.

One of the pieces featured was Warhol’s infamous Campbell Soup Dress of 1966-1967. At the time it was introduced to the public, the paper dress (content: 80% cellulose, 20% cotton) was a nod towards Warhol’s seminal pop art print of the soup cans and, at the same time, a distinct tweaking to the disposable and rather self-centered mores which existed at the time.




Described by the Warhol camp as the ‘Pop Art Souper Dress’, it was sent to the lucky purchaser for the mere price of $11.00 and came packaged in its own plastic bag with a matching ‘Souper Hat’ and instructions for care. And today? Just recently, a Warhol Campbell Soup dress was sold by New York’s Sotheby’s Auction House for $6,900.

If you reside in Southern California, you can actually see a framed version at Wasteland, a popular vintage clothing store located at 1338 4th Street in Santa Monica, CA. Ph.:(310) 395-2620). Oh, sorry...the Dress is not for sale.


A FINAL NOTE
It is said that conceptual artists do not work with the traditional methodologies of art; thereby confusing their audiences with art which may be unfamiliar or unrecognizable; and in an alternative setting as well. I personally believe that is the true purpose of art, i.e. to shake us to the bone and allow us to think beyond the box. I'm looking forward to the future of Contemporary Conceptual Art and Clothing. My expectation is to be challenged, excited and even a little mystified...all in the name of Art.

Saturday, January 01, 2005

FRESH THINKING ABOUT THE TSUNAMI TRAGEDY

The sadness that has permeated the world due to the horrifying and unexpected Tsunami Disaster in the Indian Ocean (and U.S President Bush's Iraqi War, but that's another post) has uncovered a very interesting fact; not one animal was found dead amongst the hundreds of thousands of human beings who were killed in the disaster. Do animals have extrasensory abilities? Ed Stoddart writes about it for Reuters.

There's a dark side to the survival of animals in this catastrophe...if you have the stomach for this, visit Yahoo and read this news story.

Joe Shirley, Jr., President of the Navajo Nation, wrote a statement about the disaster at Indian Country Today. As a representative of his people, he writes in part,

"...We're told this is one of the worst underwater earthquakes in more than 40 years that led to this tsunami. It's being called the worst natural disaster in recent history. But we understand this is how nature has shaped our world since its beginning and is part of how things come into being.

When the forces of nature act, it impacts everything on the earth and in the earth, from the finned beings, the winged beings, the crawling beings to the five-fingered ones.

We can reshape the land and build on the earth but we remain no more than a part of it - small, humble and needing of protection and blessings from the Holy People....
"...the rest can be read here.

I think its important that we take in Navajo Wisdom at a time like this and become grounded in what the present and the future holds for the planet and its inhabitants.

How Can I Help?
The death toll of the tsunami's victims at the time of this posting has now climbed above 100,000, and some pundits predict the final tally to be over 400,000 lost. Unfortunately, it hits close to home; a physician co-worker of mine was almost killed and lost his wife and daughter in the disaster and we on the job are praying for him on a daily basis.

“What else can we do besides pray? How can we reach out and send donations? What is needed? What can I DO?”

Answers to your questions can be found on the Internet (of course!). MSNBC's interactive website has a comprehensive listing of organizations who are accepting donations, and also includes contact information for those readers searching for missing U.S. Citizens in the area at the time of the disaster.

Amazon.com features an Honor System which allows you to donate to your favorite charities via the Web, such as the American Red Cross Disaster Relief. You can reach them thru Amazon.com or call 1‑800 HELP NOW or e-mail info@usa.redcross.org.

Robert over at Boiled Hot Dogs has also posted a wonderfully detailed listing of international relief organizations. More of the same can be found at USAID's website.

There's an interesting post at Blogueurs Sans Frontières. The article entitled Tsunami Outreach by Jonas M. Luster describes specific skill sets which are lacking in the Indian Ocean areas hardest hit by the tsunami to date. This blog is also running an ambitious donation program; check it out here.

Lost Remote points us towards a great interview at TVNewser about the media coverage of this disaster by CNNI Managing Director Chris Cramer. He says, ”Television can't begin to comprehend the suffering. The screen is not big enough." Read the balance of this insightful interview here.

For a unique, up-close viewpoint about the Tsunami Tragedy, pop over to Extra, Extra and take a look at Fred Robarts' posts from Jaffra, Sri Lanka. His writing is clear and true and his photos show Sri Lanka's present reality at its most jarring.

Last but most importantly, if you reside in the O.C. or the Southern California area, interested adults are encouraged to respectfully visit The Goddess Temple of Orange County for a Special Prayer Vigil and Ceremony for the Souls of South Asia. This event will take place on New Year's Eve, December 31st from 6 to 7:30pm. For more information, please call 949/ 651-0564.

Oh! What a way to begin the New Year...there is so much suffering at this time, with souls being wounded and losing their lives all around the world. I find it extremely painful to dwell on a HappyNew Year at the moment...all I can do is light a votive and be grateful for the safety of my co-workers, friends, loved ones and YOU!