Cooulture is a series of hand-sewn textile sculptures made from my own upcycled textiles. With the title as a play on haute couture, I took inspiration from the French designers’ attention to specific materials and impeccable craftsmanship. However, rather than designing for exclusive clients, I envision a more inclusive artform that could relate to everyone. Through the development of this series, I thought about how graphic minimalism could be used to foster a more responsible relationship with the disposal of our belongings.
I decided to name each piece sequentially, because as the series continues, the increasing numbers would reiterate the endless resource of discarded fabric. Each sculpture comes from different sources: Cooulture No. 1 is made from four white t-shirts that I dyed green; Cooulture No. 2 is made from two pairs of pants; Cooulture No. 3 is made from indigo dyed curtain scraps. Throughout the making process, I investigated deeper into the work of other artists to further inform the conceptual development the series.
Whenever I work with fabrics, I often remember a time where I visited the Walker Art Museum with my family. While walking through the collection, I came across one of Joseph Beuys’ Felt Suit (1970) pieces. At the time, I didn’t quite understand the concept but I remember liking it because it made me think of the person wearing the suit. The piece introduced me to the concept of clothing as sculpture. Beuys allowed the museum to present the suits in any way they saw fit which led me think about ownership and personalization. An idea came to me to add a pocket where the owner could hide something in plain sight in a piece of art. Only the owner would know, thus forming a personal relationship with the piece. Beuys also hoped that viewers might “realize that everyone is an artist, because, many people will ask themselves: “Why don’t I make something like that, something similar.” (Beuys in Schnellman and Klüsser 1980, unpaginated.) I found this concept relevant to promoting sustainability because approachability can be an important tool for empowering others to make change.
Along with these initial considerations, I also looked to other artists to help inform the visual construction. Ian Hundley is another one of those artists I think about whenever I work on a sewing project. Hundley uses textbook maps to create patterns for the quilts. I like the idea of something that represents something bigger than itself. After looking at the materials at hand, I knew I wanted something tonal but still graphic. So, I looked to the work of Agnes Martin and studied her paintings’ use grids and monochromatic colors. The restraint in her work made me think about how I could use the least amount of stitches while still having the illusion of a hidden pocket. Taking from what writer Clement Greenberg says about how Minimalist art “remains too much of an ideation... and that the idea remains an idea, something deduced rather than felt and discovered,” (Greenberg, Recentness of Sculpture 1967) I want to develop graphic minimalism in a direction that pushes “safe taste” but still “acts as triggers for thoughts and emotions pre-existing in the viewer.” (Darby Bannard, Artforum (1966).
When viewing this series, I hope people appreciate the visual quality and details but also relate to the understated message of sustainability. This is but one example of how you don’t always need a poster in your face telling to you everyday to save the world in order to inspire change. Cooulture is a subtle reminder to be aware of the things you discard and to remember that small consistent changes are just as important as grand gestures to help the environment. I hope to continue to explore more materials and construction techniques in order to tell different kinds of stories through Cooulture.
Paper is a casual discourse series meant to document my thought process and track the development of the CoolCool creative practice. I want to share my ideas and welcome your thoughts as well. Let’s discuss!