Western University Scholarship@Western Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository 6-3-2014 12:00 AM Presenting the Fashion Object: Analyzing the exhibition Fashioning the Object: Bless, Boudicca, Sandra Backlund Elyse N. Tsotsos The University of Western Ontario Supervisor Bridget J. Elliott The University of Western Ontario Graduate Program in Art History A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the equirr ements for the degree in Master of Arts © Elyse N. Tsotsos 2014 Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd Recommended Citation Tsotsos, Elyse N., "Presenting the Fashion Object: Analyzing the exhibition Fashioning the Object: Bless, Boudicca, Sandra Backlund" (2014). Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository. 2093. https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/2093 This Dissertation/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarship@Western. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository by an authorized administrator of Scholarship@Western. For more information, please contact [email protected]. PRESENTING THE FASHION OBJECT: ANALYZING THE EXHIBITION FASHIONING THE OBJECT, BLESS, BOUDICCA, SANDRA BACKLUND (Thesis format: Monograph) by Elyse Tsotsos Graduate Program in Visual Arts A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Art History The School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies The University of Western Ontario London, Ontario, Canada © Elyse Nicole Tsotsos 2014 Abstract This thesis discusses methods of display taken up by fashion designers Bless, Boudicca and Sandra Backlund, as seen in the museum exhibit of their work, Fashioning the Object, held at the Art Institute of Chicago from April 14 to September 16, 2012. It focuses on how these methods differ from those traditionally used in the fashion world to show that fashion designers are looking towards the art world for new ways to present their work. The first chapter examines how the frame of the museum itself functioned in this exhibition. The second chapter studies Bless’s use of performance art events and Boudicca’s use of fashion films as a replacement for the traditional catwalk show. The last chapter considers the still life photographic techniques used particularly by Ola Bergengren for Backlund that depict her garments as art objects. Overall, the thesis shows how contemporary designers are reconfiguring the traditional display methods of the fashion world in order to shift attention from commercial purposes to the artistic intent of fashion objects, and to create a more engaged viewership. Keywords Fashion, museum fashion exhibitions, catwalk, performance art, Happenings, fashion film, fashion photography. ii Acknowledgments Acknowledgement and many thanks are due to Professor Bridget Elliott, my supervisor for this project. I would also like to extend my gratitude to all of the educators and staff at Western who have guided me throughout my time here, especially Professor Christine Sprengler for her helpful suggestions on chapter one as my second reader. iii Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgments ............................................................................................................. iii Table of Contents ............................................................................................................... iv List of Figures ...................................................................................................................... v List of Abbreviations .......................................................................................................... ix Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter 1: The Museum Frame ........................................................................................... 9 Chapter 2: Alternative Catwalk Methods .......................................................................... 30 Chapter Three: Fashion Photography, Still Life Meanings ............................................... 56 Bibliography ...................................................................................................................... 81 Copyright Release ............................................................................................................. 85 Curriculum Vitae ............................................................................................................... 86 iv List of Figures Figure 1: Converse, Chuck Taylor All Stars (Pair of Boots), 1989. From The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England http://collections.vam.ac.uk/exhibition/streetstyle-from- sidewalk-to-catwalk-1940-to-tomorrow/81/ (accessed April 24, 2014). ................................. 15 Figure 2: Bless, BLESS N° 45 Musiccurtian, Installation view Fashioning the Object: Bless, Boudicca, Sandra Backlund at the Art Institute of Chicago, 2012. From The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, USA, https://blog.artic.edu/blog/2012/12/ (accessed April 24, 2014). ..... 17 Figure 3: Bless, Hairbrush 1999. From The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, USA, http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/exhibitions/Fashioning-Object/Bless (accessed April 24, 2014). ....................................................................................................................................... 18 Figure 4: Bless, BLESS N°22 Perpetual Home Motion Machine, Spring/Summer 2004. Reprinted from Zoë Ryan, Fashioning the Object (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago 2012), 40-41. ........................................................................................................................... 18 Figure 5: Bless, BLESS N°43 Know Howowow, Fall/Winter 2011-12, published in mono.kultur 28 (Summer 2011). Reprinted from Zoë Ryan, Fashioning the Object (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago 2012), 6. .................................................................................... 19 Figure 6: Boudicca, stills from film Motion Capture Sequin Dress from Fragmented Dream, Spring/Summer 2011. From The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, USA, http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/exhibitions/Fashioning-Object/Boudicca (accessed April 24, 2014). ................................................................................................................................. 22 Figure 7: Boudicca, stills from promotional film for Wode, 2011. Reprinted from Zoë Ryan, Fashioning the Object (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago 2012), 70-71. ........................ 23 Figure 8: Boudicca, still from the Tornado Dress, Fall/Winter 2009-10. From The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, USA, http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/exhibitions/Fashioning-Object/Boudicca (accessed April 24, 2014). ................................................................................................................................. 24 v Figure 9: Sandra Backlund, Pool Position, Spring/Summer 2009. Photograph by John Scarisbrick, 2009. From The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, USA, http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/exhibitions/Fashioning-Object/Backlund (accessed April 24, 2014). ................................................................................................................................. 27 Figure 10: Sandra Backlund, In No Time, Spring/Summer 2008. Photograph by Ola Bergengren, 2008. From The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, USA, http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/exhibitions/Fashioning-Object/Backlund (accessed April 24, 2014). ................................................................................................................................. 27 Figure 11: Alexander McQueen, Ensemble of corset of brown leather; skirt of cream silk lace; prosthetic legs of carved elm wood, No. 13, Autumn/Winter 1999. From The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA, http://blog.metmuseum.org/alexandermcqueen/ensemble-no-13/ (accessed April 24, 2014). 36 Figure 12: Hussein Chalayan, Afterwords, Autumn/Winter 2000. Reprinted from Zoë Ryan, Fashioning the Object (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago 2012), 42. ............................. 37 Figure 13: Bless, BLESS N°19 Uncool, Spring/Summer 2003. Reprinted from Zoë Ryan, Fashioning the Object (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago 2012), 28. ............................. 41 Figure 14: Bless, BLESS N°28 Climate Confusion Assistance, Spring/Summer 2006. Reprinted from Zoë Ryan, Fashioning the Object (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago 2012), 48. ................................................................................................................................. 42 Figure 15: Bless, BLESS N°43 Know Howowow, Autumn/Winter 2011, published in mono.kultur 28 (Summer 2011). Reprinted from Zoë Ryan, Fashioning the Object (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago 2012), 52-53. ............................................................................. 44 Figure 16: Boudicca, stills from the film Couture 03: Essays, January 2009. Reprinted from Zoë Ryan, Fashioning the Object (Chicago: The Art Institute of Chicago 2012), 69. ........... 49 Figure 17: Still from the film Couture 03: Essays, January 2009. From The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, USA, http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/exhibitions/Fashioning- Object/Boudicca (accessed April 24, 2014). ..........................................................................