Unlearning the Garment from the Body: Sasha de Koninck
July 14th - September 9th, 2023
Opening Reception:
July 14th @ 5:00pm – 8:00pm
Unlearning the Garment from the Body is a process of taking apart existing garments–garments that I have found and collected over the years, and garments that I have made myself–in order to question the relationship between the garment and the body. The garments are cut apart and deconstructed, and then hand sewn back together. But they are not exact or precise reconstructions. This process is not about taking something apart, only to put it back exactly the way you found it. A dress form is used to build these new pieces. It gives an armature to build off of, but it in no way determines how the garments are worn. There are openings for limbs, torsos and necks. But they are not documented on a body. Because they are meant to make you question how they interact with and on a body. Are they garments or are they sculpture? Maybe they are both. Maybe they are neither.
Artist Bio:
Sasha de Koninck is a textile artist and costume designer from Santa Monica, CA. She uses textiles, technology, and the body to create a multisensory experience, through the research and development of smart textile material for the body that is intimate, sensitive, and loud. Clothing reveals the details and subtleties of our personalities and life that can’t always be explained in words. As material, the textile in a garment is something that is the closest thing to our skin, our shield, and security. She received her BFA from Maryland Institute College of Art, her MFA from School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and her PhD from the University of Colorado Boulder. She has exhibited, performed, and presented her work at galleries and conferences across the United States and Europe.
