 "Art wear")
Paintings, sculptures and installations are now finding space in wardrobes, says Avantika Bhuyan as she checks out art on saris, shoes and bags
BRUSH WITH FASHION
Leading the way is artist and curator Alka Raghuvanshi who conceptualised the wearable art collection, "Ehsaas", last year. Works by five artists - Niren Sengupta, Shridhar Iyer, Sanjay Bhattacharya, Manisha Gawade and Raghuvanshi - were digitally transposed onto saris, stoles, dupattas, bags and ties. "Selection is key. You can't mindlessly put a painting on a garment. Like, you can't put an artwork featuring Krishna on the pleats. And if you are using nudes, it has to be done in a refined manner," says Raghuvanshi who feels that abstracts lend themselves better to wearable art.
These works, retailing at Ekaya, were modelled last year by artistes like kathak danseuse Sharmistha Mukherjee, who happens to be President Pranab Mukherjee's daughter, Odissi dancer Madhavi Mudgal, dhrupad exponent Wasifuddin Dagar and the legendary kathak dancer Birju Maharaj. "Not every work is translatable. Niren Sengupta, for instance, works a lot with colour to create semi-figurative pieces. But a colour that may look great on a painting may look jarring on a garment. Also, sometimes a sari may make you look fat because of the positioning of a motif," says Raghuvanshi.
Online media like Facebook have helped artist-cum-designers like Delhi-based Madhuri Mamgain who runs the label "Massif By Me" and Mumbai's Aarti Verma reach thousands. "Colours have always been my preferred vocabulary of expression. Each hand-painted ballerina has its own story and identity," says Mamgain who recently launched her second collection titled "Secret Forest" in which she has experimented with furs, feathers, floral prints and African motifs.
She also hand painted and designed shoes for Anurag Kashyap's Bombay Velvet starring Ranbir Kapoor. Verma used to be an arts and craft teacher before blending her twin passions for art and design. "I used to make jewellery out of M-seal when I was teaching. I later started painting on dupattas and bags and started the label "Art Meets Fashion" in 2010. Her Machli collection and range of Shiva bags are worth checking out.
GUT FEELING
In the arts space, garments have become a new sort of canvas to test radical ideas and question existing thought. For instance, Bangalore-based artist Ravikumar Kashi created a line of T-shirts titled "Inside Out" on which he painted with waterproof ink. "The idea was to reveal what we cover by clothes," he says. So you had artistic depictions of the digestive system and the cardio-vascular system painted on white T-shirts. Artist Vivan Sundaram too explored the tensions between art and design in his series "Gagawaka- Making Strange" that was showcased at Rabindra Bhavan Galleries in New Delhi in 2011.
He used everyday materials like plastic cups, sanitary napkins and undergarments to create unusual clothes. "The materials were far from conventional. The idea of recycling and the Duchampian concept of readymade have always interested me," he says. Both artworks sought to inspire and make you think. "People found the idea too radical. I once wore one of these T-shirts to an event and attracted a lot of stares.
Just imagine having a transparent stomach on your shirt showing the food being churned! But if someone is interested in the idea, he or she can approach me," smiles Kashi.
DRESSED IN A MIRANDA
Of late, leading designers have incorporated artworks in their collections. You have Rohit Bal featuring abstracts by Paresh Maity; Deepika Govind using graphic and line drawings by Avijit Mukherjee; Tarun Tahiliani creating designs inspired by Anjolie El Menon's work; and Rajesh Pratap Singh celebrating Mario Miranda. "In the West, Yves Saint Laurent designed prêt-à-porter dresses based on the geometric creations of abstract painter Piet Mondrian.
Emilio Pucci too was inspired by Russian painter Wassily Kandinsky," says Govind who has created designs inspired by the works of S H Raza and Kandinsky. Rajesh Pratap Singh too celebrated the unmistakable humorous style of Miranda. The T-shirts showcase the cultural and political transition of the country between the 1960s to the turn of the century as captured by Miranda's cartoons.
The collection, earlier retailed at all of Singh's stores, will be available from September under the exclusive Mario T-shirts e-commerce section on the designer's website. The idea is not to blindly incorporate the artwork in the collection. "It's not about literal transposition; rather it is about getting inspired by the artwork. You have to get inspired by the energy of the artist and the artwork and then interpret it in your own signature style," says Govind.
BRUSH WITH FASHION
Leading the way is artist and curator Alka Raghuvanshi who conceptualised the wearable art collection, "Ehsaas", last year. Works by five artists - Niren Sengupta, Shridhar Iyer, Sanjay Bhattacharya, Manisha Gawade and Raghuvanshi - were digitally transposed onto saris, stoles, dupattas, bags and ties. "Selection is key. You can't mindlessly put a painting on a garment. Like, you can't put an artwork featuring Krishna on the pleats. And if you are using nudes, it has to be done in a refined manner," says Raghuvanshi who feels that abstracts lend themselves better to wearable art.
More From This Section
Online media like Facebook have helped artist-cum-designers like Delhi-based Madhuri Mamgain who runs the label "Massif By Me" and Mumbai's Aarti Verma reach thousands. "Colours have always been my preferred vocabulary of expression. Each hand-painted ballerina has its own story and identity," says Mamgain who recently launched her second collection titled "Secret Forest" in which she has experimented with furs, feathers, floral prints and African motifs.
She also hand painted and designed shoes for Anurag Kashyap's Bombay Velvet starring Ranbir Kapoor. Verma used to be an arts and craft teacher before blending her twin passions for art and design. "I used to make jewellery out of M-seal when I was teaching. I later started painting on dupattas and bags and started the label "Art Meets Fashion" in 2010. Her Machli collection and range of Shiva bags are worth checking out.
GUT FEELING
In the arts space, garments have become a new sort of canvas to test radical ideas and question existing thought. For instance, Bangalore-based artist Ravikumar Kashi created a line of T-shirts titled "Inside Out" on which he painted with waterproof ink. "The idea was to reveal what we cover by clothes," he says. So you had artistic depictions of the digestive system and the cardio-vascular system painted on white T-shirts. Artist Vivan Sundaram too explored the tensions between art and design in his series "Gagawaka- Making Strange" that was showcased at Rabindra Bhavan Galleries in New Delhi in 2011.
He used everyday materials like plastic cups, sanitary napkins and undergarments to create unusual clothes. "The materials were far from conventional. The idea of recycling and the Duchampian concept of readymade have always interested me," he says. Both artworks sought to inspire and make you think. "People found the idea too radical. I once wore one of these T-shirts to an event and attracted a lot of stares.
Just imagine having a transparent stomach on your shirt showing the food being churned! But if someone is interested in the idea, he or she can approach me," smiles Kashi.
DRESSED IN A MIRANDA
Of late, leading designers have incorporated artworks in their collections. You have Rohit Bal featuring abstracts by Paresh Maity; Deepika Govind using graphic and line drawings by Avijit Mukherjee; Tarun Tahiliani creating designs inspired by Anjolie El Menon's work; and Rajesh Pratap Singh celebrating Mario Miranda. "In the West, Yves Saint Laurent designed prêt-à-porter dresses based on the geometric creations of abstract painter Piet Mondrian.
Emilio Pucci too was inspired by Russian painter Wassily Kandinsky," says Govind who has created designs inspired by the works of S H Raza and Kandinsky. Rajesh Pratap Singh too celebrated the unmistakable humorous style of Miranda. The T-shirts showcase the cultural and political transition of the country between the 1960s to the turn of the century as captured by Miranda's cartoons.
The collection, earlier retailed at all of Singh's stores, will be available from September under the exclusive Mario T-shirts e-commerce section on the designer's website. The idea is not to blindly incorporate the artwork in the collection. "It's not about literal transposition; rather it is about getting inspired by the artwork. You have to get inspired by the energy of the artist and the artwork and then interpret it in your own signature style," says Govind.