The central feature of the art piece is the artist’s picture printed on wool fabric covered with moth’s eggs. The eggs have been allowed to develop into larvae, which have fed on the wool fabric, making holes in it. A second layer made of silk-organza fabric and printed in a Persian carpet pattern, can be seen through the holes. The two layers of fabric are isolated in a glass display case. The installation engages the audience in dialogue and discussion.
Clothing is commonly regarded as means of cultural communication, self-expression and the social construction of identity. This research project explores different possibilities to develop clothing as interactive tools through ways of using dynamic print in the design and construction of garments. The significance of this for fashion is therefore to expand and develop clothing as a vocabulary for social expression and identity construction. The research project was conducted by experimenting with a series of random and controlled interactive garments produced by lecuo dye-based thermochromic inks with activation temperature 31°C. The result of this research project opens up new design possibilities for fashion designers considering expressive interactive relationships between wearer and garments. In conclusion the series of experiments with the construction of thermochromic printed garments demonstrates new possibilities in garment design for a performative relationship between body, dress and the social space through the increased awareness of one’s own body and its dynamic expression in social situations.
Contemporary dance and modern ballet often focus on conveying emotions through patterns of movement which may be abstract, obvious, or anywhere in between, as supported by music, sound, or spoken words that set the mood. Scenography is typically sparse or confined to the available space, leaving the dancers as the main instrument of communication. This work explores choreography and costume design, with a focus on how garments can inform and direct movement, choreography, and performance, and in turn how movement may inform and contribute to the development of dynamic garments. Through a series of live experiments, ranging from self-instigated performance/video work in collaboration with choreographers and dancers to performances of garment interaction associated with everyday life, the performative, spatial, and interactive properties of garments are explored. The results of these live experiments relate to various aspects of choreography, scenography, and performance space, and offer wide-ranging creative potential. The work shows how designers and choreographers can collaborate on performance scenarios within the context of modern ballet and contemporary dance productions, thus creating conceptual garments that influence the design, choreography, and manipulation of conceptual garments. In relation to the act of dressing and undressing, previously unseen types of garment and ways of wearing and performing were found. New models of collaborative interaction are proposed. This work has demonstrated how the agency of garments can function as a manuscript in modern dance, and how performance itself redefines the notion of wearing and the concept of garments.