Costumes as Performance and Activism

It's official. I've signed my contract to be the keynote speaker for the Costume Society of America - Midwest Region Conference - which will be held on Friday, October 14 and Saturday, October 15, 2011 at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls, Iowa. More details about the event are available on the CSA site here.

The selection committee was drawn to my work as an artist who uses costume in my work (All is Vanity series) and the themes of feminism and social activism that I have explored in my series Revolutionary Fashion and 1966 (Paper Dresses). They also liked my mesh dress sculptures (which are a work in progress) titled Women in Armour. I will also draw on my experiences as a writer and researcher in reviewing the relationship between fashion and art, particularly in recent exhibitions like McQueen at the Met and Gaultier at the MMFA. Let's hope I can live up to their expectations!

Notice of copyright: 
All text and images on this blog are the copyright of Ingrid Mida, unless otherwise noted. The copying of posts, images and/or text without proper attribution is violation of copyright and legal action will be pursued.

Dolce Dreams

Blinded by Desire V by Ingrid Mida 2010

 "Dolce" is the Italian word for "sweet", and it was indeed a sweet dream to have my work featured on the lovely blog Dolce Dreams twice this week. The first post called "Do you Know where you are Sewing?" featured an array of talented artists who use embroidery as their medium. Much to my surprise, Nathalie of Dolce Dreams declared my Revolutionary Fashion series the Grande Finale!! And then to make this dolce dream even sweeter, she featured a post with more of my work yesterday in a post called A Special Showing.

Blinded by Desire, Mixed Media on Toile de Jouy by Ingrid Mida

I am honoured to find my way onto her beautiful blog Dolce Dreams, especially as she is a very talented embroiderer herself. I know because I am lucky enough to own several of her pieces.  Her lovely lavender sachets get tucked into my suitcase and have traveled with me to Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York, Paris and Berlin. A pretty sachet with the words "Je suis calme" sits in my lingerie drawer and is a constant reminder of her friendship. See more of her work on her lovely Etsy shop here.

Notice of copyright: 
All text and images on this blog are the copyright of Ingrid Mida, unless otherwise noted. The copying of posts, images and/or text without proper attribution is violation of copyright and legal action will be pursued.

My LA Debut

When Toronto design guru Christopher Wood told me that he wanted to showcase my work in his chic King West furniture store, it was like winning the lottery. Christopher has impeccable taste and I feel like this month's IT-GIRL with an installation in one of Toronto's uber-chic furniture stores, LA Design!

In the window of LA Design is my sculpture What Lies Beneath, a recreation of an 18th century chemise, corset and panier created out of window mesh. This sculpture allows the viewer to see the layers and supporting substructure to an 18th century gown. (A big thank you goes to Dale Peers at Seneca College Fashion Resource Centre for loaning me the appropriate shaped mannequin for this project!).

The layers of undergarments worn in the 18th century created a protective barrier between one's body and the world. The panier in this sculpture spans nearly four feet at the base making it awkward to move as I found out when I tried on the outfit. As well, I gained an appreciation for why 18th century women needed help to dress! (I photographed myself wearing my creations and showed these self-portraits to Christopher who thought them worthy of being blown up life-size a la Cindy Sherman. That's my next project! In the meantime, here is a documentation photo of the dress.) 

What Lies Beneath

18th Century Chemise, Corset and Panier in Mesh

Copyright of Ingrid Mida 2010

Also in the store is my Balenciaga-inspired dress which I created for the Fly Gallery installation in January 2010. If you missed that, this is your chance to see this sculpture in person which won me the Underdog Achievement Award for 2010 from Toronto Art Critic and New Media Artist Otino Corsano.

And finally, Christopher gave his stamp of approval to my Revolutionary Fashion series on toile and my paper corset series which are also on display.

I invite you to visit LA Design to see my work and check out the stylish furniture, lighting and home accessories on display. I'll keep you posted as to future events at the store related to my work.

LA Design
788 King Street West
(2 blocks west of Bathurst on the north side underneath Art Metropole)
Toronto, Ontario
416-363-4470
www.livingartsdesign.com

Revolutionary Fashion Installation

Revolutionary Fashion Series by Ingrid Mida 2010

What Lies Beneath, 18th century chemise, corset and pockets in mesh

on a vintage mannequin, by Ingrid Mida 2010

In the series Revolutionary Fashion, digitally altered images of upper class eighteenth century women are layered over traditional French toile de jouy fabrics, which are then embroidered or altered to bring attention to certain areas. This is my attempt to create a whimsical warning against fashionable decadence and the folly of extravagant fashion trends. 

In my related sculpture, What Lies Beneath, I have created the underpinnings for an 18th century gown out of mesh. Displayed on an antique mannequin are a mesh chemise, pockets (which hung beneath a gown before purses existed), and a corset. I have yet to finish the panniers which will give support to the exaggerated hip lines of the gowns from that time period. The translucency of mesh creates a mystery and a ghost-like quality to the sculpture. 

Much to my delight, Christopher Wood of LA Design asked if I'd like to display this dress sculpture and my Balenciaga-inspired mesh dress sculpture in the windows of his chic furniture shop LA Design at 788 King Street West. Of course I said yes!! So instead of lolling about eating bon bons this week in a post-show funk, I will get back to work pronto to finish the panniers!!

Revolutionary Fashion

Hussein Chalayan, Airmail Dress, 1999 Private Collection
From the Paper Dress Exhibition next at MOMU in Anvers (March 12 - August 16, 2009)

Yesterday as I rewrote my artist statement on my website, I was trying to figure out why I am intrigued by fashions as disparate as 18th century French gowns and 1960 paper dresses. It struck me that both were revolutionary fashions in that they mirrored times of political and social upheaval.

The paper dress phenomena of the 1960s could be considered as revolutionary a fashion step as the adoption of the muslin chemise by Marie Antoinette in 1780. They are both:
* semi-transparent
* slipped on over the head
* lightweight
* easily torn

But more importantly, these garments are representative of a huge shift in how women perceived themselves.

In the 1770s, there was literally a transformation in silhouette. The bejewelled and decorated court gown with paniers and stays gave way (over time) to the more natural shape of the soft unstructured muslin chemise. The powdered hair and rouged face was replaced by loose unpowdered hair and a natural visage. These changes in dress mirrored the growing unrest in the populace against the ancien regime, the American revolution, and the proposed ideal of a natural existence as proposed by such philosophers as Jean-Jacques Rousseau.


In the 1960s, there was a transformation of women from a highly structured girdled attire (think of the Dior look) to the more shapeless A-line shift in the form of a paper dress. This evolution in style coincided with the sexual revolution and the entry of women into the workforce.

"Souper Dress" Paper Dress (1966)
photo from The Collection of the Kyoto Costume Institute

Perhaps this is a simplistic analogy but I do find the comparison provocative.

To my 18th century fashion fans, forgive my parlay into contemporary fashions. I promise to get back to historical fashion very soon and am reading three books simultaneously to deliver more material (Madam Campan's Memoirs, The Art of Dress - Fashion in England and France 1750-1820, and Secrets of Marie Antoinette).