The first piece in my installation on the far left is braided muslin and primary colored threads held by a hand. I am a very messy person and I appreciate that in design sometimes, but I really believe in making garments with craftsmanship, hence the hand sculpture. This also goes along with my disdain for sweatshops because, not only does the quality go down, but these are people being treated and payed inhumanly.
The next one to the right is a pair of overalls I bought a while ago from a fast fashion store that has broken somewhat, although I still wear them. This piece talks about my belief in the philosophy to buy less and make it last.
The next piece is muslin stitched and braided with primary colored threads. I tend towards muslin as a fabric because it gets used to make a pattern to make another garment out of different fabric, a process which is really wasteful, which is how I also developed the seaming technique trying to salvage scraps of tule that had no use. The piece for me was conveying this childish playfulness that, for me, runs rampant in fashion, even amongst all the heavy topics like grief or labor conditions.
The final piece is demonstrating the gravitation I have towards my culture and background in my work. It was from my mother’s store of 80’s and 90’s Japenese clothing, was my moms, then went to my Grandpa, then to my dad, and now I have it.
This work shows my principles as a designer in addition to, simply, my aesthetic and attraction to installation.
