It's no surprise that Frank Lloyd Wright is an artist that I am continuously drawn to, but I have had a temporary separation from him lately and felt a yearning to reconnect. I was pulled back by a lovely book entitled Loving Frank by Nancy Horan. This book chronicles the tale of what is considered Wright's midlife controversy, but what I would consider his most content period of his life. The book enlivened within me that earning to create more architecturally, as I did in my college days. I still share Wright's values of creating artwork that is both eye pleasing and one of/built for nature.
This dress above is a design that I created in college in 2008. It is a direct response to my passion of Wright's "prairie homes" such as his William E. Martin house in Oak Park, Illinois from 1903. This house really speaks to me. I wanted to convey the struggle that I envisioned Wright experiencing while designing. The viewer feels the contemplation and frustration of deciding whether the house, or my dress in this instance, should be structured upwards (vertically) or reaching outwards (horizontally). Th
is is one of his few three-story houses and in response my skirt has three separate, yet cohesive panels that culminate into what represents my homage to Frank Lloyd Wright.
My ultimate desire for this skirt was to play up natural light and the play of various translucent panels with varying textures. This skirt I made from knitted webs of alpaca wool that were handstitched onto silk organza which I then felted and shrunk. The puckered pockets that were created with this effect were textures to represent light play that is similar to stained glass. The tones are muted and neutral so as to be calming to the viewer. I wanted to invite the viewer to look closer and be pulled in a round-about path, circling to the right only to discover the burst of yellow and intense explosion bursting from the hip. Now, after looking back on this piece, I am excited to move forward with architectural designs once more and incorporate them into my hand-weavings instead of wearable art. Oh Frank, how I have missed you!
This dress above is a design that I created in college in 2008. It is a direct response to my passion of Wright's "prairie homes" such as his William E. Martin house in Oak Park, Illinois from 1903. This house really speaks to me. I wanted to convey the struggle that I envisioned Wright experiencing while designing. The viewer feels the contemplation and frustration of deciding whether the house, or my dress in this instance, should be structured upwards (vertically) or reaching outwards (horizontally). Th
is is one of his few three-story houses and in response my skirt has three separate, yet cohesive panels that culminate into what represents my homage to Frank Lloyd Wright.My ultimate desire for this skirt was to play up natural light and the play of various translucent panels with varying textures. This skirt I made from knitted webs of alpaca wool that were handstitched onto silk organza which I then felted and shrunk. The puckered pockets that were created with this effect were textures to represent light play that is similar to stained glass. The tones are muted and neutral so as to be calming to the viewer. I wanted to invite the viewer to look closer and be pulled in a round-about path, circling to the right only to discover the burst of yellow and intense explosion bursting from the hip. Now, after looking back on this piece, I am excited to move forward with architectural designs once more and incorporate them into my hand-weavings instead of wearable art. Oh Frank, how I have missed you!
