- Clothing Piece
2. Visual References
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- My thinking is beginning with the old term “Sunday’s Best.” In earlier years this term was used to make sure you wore your best outfit on Sunday’s while attending Church.
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- My story is taking the idea of religion and the act of going to church through my personal relationship with God. My perception of religion has evolved through my days and it has played a significant role in my life.
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- My intention is to combine and feel life and religion from then and now- mid century modern was a good way to put this into perspective.
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- Leading to today- women being their most eccentric self at whatever age they desire- being able to wear whatever they feel is their “Sunday’s best.” This idea being independent from the societal norm.
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- I began to build off my first concept and leave behind the idea of “Sunday’s Best” to highlight my personal story and experience.
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- I took inspiration from the 2018 Met Gala “Heavenly Bodies” theme.
3. Questions for Ms. Orly Cogan:
What initially sparked your interest in story telling from the use of embroidery?
You said that the work you create is inspired by relationships; are you referring to personal relationships or the relationships that you observe throughout daily life?
How do you begin your approach of mixing two extremes like “subversion with flirtation” or “humor with power?”
4. Lesley Dill Retrospective
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- I was drawn to the horse hair coming from the man or woman’s sleeves here. I wanted to understand why the sculpture was being hit in the face.
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- “Faith” was interesting because of the placement within the exhibit. It was hiding within a window panel in a corner of the room. The way the man is leaping off of the wall reminded me of a “leap of faith.”
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- “Dreamer” caught my attention when I read the words that were written on the hands. I wondered why there was horse hair flowing from the eyeballs in a chaotic fashion. I also wondered what broken dreams occurred to inspire this sculpture.
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- In the office of the exhibit I found two chairs designed by the Campanna brothers. They blew me away and inspired me to begin digging into their work within furniture design.
5. Making Process
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- I began by painting the white feathers with gold leaf paint.
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- I pasted the first feather and slowly worked up to the design I wanted.
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- I tried multiple designs before choosing the final.
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- I painted the safety pins with the same gold leaf.
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- I cut a slit within the skirt lastly.
6. Final Piece
7. Artist Statement
The church has always put pressure on me to be obedient to the Bible and never took into consideration the times we are living in and the different circumstances on each of our lives. All humans are imperfect, and I wanted to bring up three issues I have dealt with my entire life; hypocrisy within the church, modesty, and the demand for purity. The Church I attended had a way of bringing shame to individuals that made mistakes, when in reality the place that is supposed to be Holiest holds the most baggage and imperfection. The white feathers being coated with gold paint is supposed to show the hypocrisy within the church being hidden. The slit up the dress is supposed to express my lust for independence when it comes to dressing. Lastly, the slit on the back of the dress being closed by safety pins is supposed to symbolize absence before marriage, the way a chastity belt would be used.
