Dressmaking
My Aim
The assignment for this project was to construct a sculpture using at least 100 pieces of a common object. My initial aim with this project was to make a dress out of book pages. I didn’t want to use a book that I loved reading for this project, as I felt somewhat guilty destroying someone else’s art, so I decided to utilize my least favorite book, 13 reasons why, and turn it into a functional piece.
Experimentation Phase
Prior to constructing anything, I began the process by experimenting with the book pages themselves, testing the limits of the fragile material. I sketched out a made-up lace pattern with a pencil and cut it out carefully with an Exacto knife to mimic the look of lace. I thought of using the lace as a trim along the bottom of the shirt, or perhaps as straps. Ultimately, the faux lace was not strong enough to function as straps.
The Process
This project truly tested my ability as an artist to explore different methods and diversify my approach to my art when faced with obstacles.
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I first began tackling the shirt portion of the dress. I knew that I wanted the shirt to have some volume to it, so instead of sewing on flat triangles, I decided to fold the lower left and right corners of the triangle together so that it created a more 3-dimensional effect. I traced the bodice of the shirt onto a piece of paper and used that tracing to cut out pieces of the book pages that matched the shape of the shirt. I then sewed those pieces onto the shirt base.
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When constructing the skirt, I gathered inspiration from my childhood, as I would often make fans by folding pieces of printer paper over and under. I figured that if I constructed fans out of book pages, taping the tops of the fans to the skirt base, it would mimic the look of pleats. I duct-taped the bottom layer of pleats to the skirt, but since I didn’t want any duct tape to be visible along the waistline, I experimented with various forms of attachment. When both stapling and gluing on a paper belt onto the waistline failed, I resolved to add a silk dress around my waist to function as a belt, fusing the top and the skirt together.