Unwrapped
CURATOR: Meredith Rowe
ARTISTS: Margaret Ainscow, Breathlesselfh, Billabong, Beauty of Nature, Sarah Crowest, Ernabella Arts Inc, Andrea Geisler, Lorinda Grant, Gwendolynne, Akira Isogawa, Easton Pearson, Julie Ryder, Sara Lindsay, Rosemary O’Rouke, Kerry Pryor, S!X, Tiwi Design and Stewart Russell, Utopia/Brahma Tirta Sari Studio, Vixen Australia, Ilka White, Liz Williamson, Zimmermann
Unwrapped: Australian Fashion and Textiles Design was an exhibition featuring contemporary fashion and textile works by over 20 contemporary designers from across Australia. Unwrapped included a wide range of media including wild kangaroo fur, hand-printed textiles and clothing, wool creations and collaborative artwork combining printed Aboriginal designs with hand quilting. Visitor comments from the exhibition in Singapore included ‘I feel so inspired! Thanks!!’ and ‘Wonderful pieces of work, flabbergasted.’
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Vixen Hibiscus Dress 2001 (background), Ilke White Cut Triangle Drapes 2001 (foreground) |
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Meredith Rowe
Gravity is the root of lightness 2001 |
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Generally coming from the populous Northern Hemisphere, most visitors to Australia are astounded by the light, the huge amount of space, the diversity of the landscape and population mix, and then by the prolific output and high standard of our industries. Light, land and people: these factors have a major impact on Australia's creative output today, and certainly within art and design, these influences construct a common language.
The small size of Australia's domestic market defines its initial parameters, thereby shaping its design product. Designers have to be versatile, adopting multiple forms of media, finding market niches and often working within several markets. Small producers who succeed under these circumstances have been able to create individual businesses focusing entirely on handcrafted or unusual products, with a strong local emphasis and innovative use of materials. Larger successful producers often tap into an aspect of Australian identity, such as surf culture, a unique understanding of space and colour or a blending of tribal, Asian & European influences.
Aspects of sociology can be understood by reading textile and fashion history, as these media, in clothing and interiors, are closest to the body. Today, no one thing could be said to define the Australian style, rather it is the dichotomy of an ancient land whose people consider themselves young and free, and the resulting mixture of personal expression which characterises our work. Omnipresent nature, the multicultural character of the population and our proximity to Asia provide a mixture of influences, which speaks of our place in the world. A do-it-yourself diversity where everything is attempted, all media from the handcrafted to the digital are incorporated within the marketplace, and the sun is shining.
This exhibition toured to Bendigo, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Manila, Singapore (2003-2005).