Wearable art, also known as Artwear or "art to wear", refers to individually designed pieces of (usually) hand-made clothing or jewellery created as fine or expressive art. While the making of any article of clothing or other wearable object typically involves aesthetic considerations, the term wearable art implies that the work is intended to be accepted as a serious and unique artistic creation or statement. World of Wearable Art Winner 2010 Open Section Loops, Yogesh Chaudhary & Manas Barve, India

Wearable Art the body materials signs & symbols function

Wearable Art the body Wearable art is for the body think about where it will be on the body What is the function of that part of the body. Are you trying to decorate the body Are you trying to conceal the body Are you trying to accentuate the body Are you trying to protect the body Are you interested in body image How does the media portray the body Matthew Barney, CREMASTER 3CREMASTER Waltraud Reiner and Simon Lloyd, Cap, 2004, wool felt

Wearable Art function What is the purpose of your garment Is it purely decorative You may choose to challenge the concept of function. For example; making a garment out of paper. A garment has a certain function and paper has a certain function What are they Do they relate to each other think about how different materials have different functions Lycra is elastic Denim is durable Would it be functional to make a swimsuit out of denim Mariko Mori

Wearable Art signs & symbols Signs and Symbols are everywhere They can be as subtle as colour or as overt as a peace sign Some signs and symbols are universal Some are personal You may choose to develop your own symbols Or explore the signs and symbols of other cultures Every element of your work has a meaning So think carefully about your choices Fiona Foley, No Shades of WhiteFiona Foley, No Shades of White, 2005

Wearable Art materials Think about the materials you use What other materials could you use Think about materials that are not normally used for garments Like a skirt made out of bubble wrap Or a top made out of bottle caps linked together Jewelry made from barbed wire Think about the symbolism of different materials Fur is luxurious, Silk is exotic, Nylon is tacky Think about combining unusual textures Like fur and metal, wood and lace

The Montana* World of WearableArt (WOW®) Awards Show is an extravaganza that twists conventional perceptions of both art and fashion and weaves them into a two-hour performance that has been described as, Mardi Gras meets Haute Couture at a Peter Gabriel concert directed by Salvador Dali. Breathtaking works of art are designed for the moving body, then individually choreographed into an extraordinary theatrical show entwined with every facet of performance: music, dance, lighting, drama and comedy. WOW® is completely unique every year and New Zealand is proud to hold this world-class event, now in its third decade, on local soil.

Commercially organised wearable fashion show in Australia (watch the 2008 show)

"Dream On" Designed and Created by Nicole Pease Modeled by the artist In Alaska, a fairy godmother would have to use duct tape and a blue tarp to make this evening gown for Cinderella, complete with her pumpkin carriage! All of us long for our Prince or Princess Charming, so bring it on! The Third Annual VAA Wearable Art and Runway Fashion Show "Bring It On!" - February 21,

Conceived by fashion designer and creative director Gary Harvey, this collection set out to prove that recycled clothing can be beautiful, innovative, and enchanting.Gary Harvey Made from 21 laundry bags

A billowy, crinkly confection of a skirt is made from 30 paper issues of the Financial Times. Perfectly newsworthy and recyclable.

This exquisitely structured dress has been made entirely out of recycled old phonebooks, creating something unique and appealing out of an obsolete old item.recycled old phonebooks The Green Wave Is held in Brighton The educational yet fun eco event helps raise awareness across a broad spectrum of green issues.

Phillip Toledano Hope & Fear is the external manifestation of internal desires and paranoia that are adrift in contemporary American society. What are we afraid of? What do we love? How does our society function, and what does it worship? *All costumes are real

Burca

Laurel leaves, rosehips and assorted leaves and thorns make for a jaunty waistcoat. (Photo courtesy of Nicole Dextras)

Jamie Uretsky's Interactive Fat Suit

Caleb CalabroCaleb Calabro,

Paper Shoes

Bloody Wreck The killing of animals for their fur is disgusting and inhuman. The fact that every fur collar or coat, an animal has suffered is just sickening. It is not only that they have died; it is also the methods of which they were killed, by breaking the neck, lethal injection or electrocution. This is a disgrace to the human race and should not be practiced. This piece of wearable art was designed and made as a statement about this issue, aiming to bring to light the sadness of animal slaughter. The dress was made using un-stuffed teddy bears to represent fur, and red material to represent blood pooling at the feet and leaving a trail as you walk.

Tips: 1.Pick something you feel strongly about 2.Know that you can do it even if it will be hard (Everyone thought I wouldnt be able to) 3.Have fun with it, be creative, IT IS ART!! 4.Be yourself; pick something that really depicts how you feel. 5.Stick to it ( This piece took FOREVER) 6.Use all the time you can

Amelia Hulme and Jasmine Marks o WORLDS APART My piece is a representation of learning and the use of raw materials in the earlier years (say the 16 th century.) Made of old burnt book pages, it signifies the fragility of the old ways of learning. And my partner Jasmines dress is to signify how we have become sturdier and improved, depending more on electricity and up-and-coming technologies. These two dresses are set in contrast but their similar forms represent the ever present thirst for knowledge and the continuous forward movement in technology and learning that is synonymous among the entirety of the human existence.

Both our pieces Jasmines piece was modelled in these photos by Hannah Royster, and I modelled my own dress.

Problems I had with my art My choice of dress probably wasnt the best. All I can say is that if youre using an existing piece of clothing, make sure your method of application will work with the fabric youre getting! I sowed my pages on, and didnt realise until Id started that I would have trouble accessing underneath the outer skirt. I ended up having to cut up the sides of the outer skirt and re-sow them afterwards. The bodice of the dress turned out differently to how Id imagined it. I didnt think of the lack of elasticity in the book pages, and they didnt sit well how Id first planned, so I had to change it. I also didnt consider the fact that it wouldnt take much strain before the thread ripped through the pages, and some fell off as I wore it for my photos. Thankfully it wasnt too drastic and I got a fair few decent pictures before I lost too many pages. There was a lot more time involved with making the dress than Id first thought. Due to my lack of planning, I was working on it up until the day before it was due