Design with color cotton fuses Art and Fashion
The Second Skin project — natural colored cotton from Paraiba celebrates the production of the cotton grown in the state. In this context, joins Fashion and Art adding technicians in textile screen-printing, pattern makers, seamstresses, designers and visual artists to produce unique pieces with the ecological fabric.
The creative process takes as its starting point the cheongsam or Qpao. The piece originated in China (and Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore and Malaysia) was redesigned by Francisca Vieira, CEO and designer of Natural Cotton Color, with some adjustments so that it could be worn by people of all sizes. “The original dress is fitted only through the head, but I put a side button and a bracket on the shoulder. Finally, I turned the Qpao into pareô, so the piece can also adapt to any hip, “she explains.
The Qpao developed for the Second Skin project has built-in seam (as used in haute couture) and the alamar (type of closure made with cord) in silk—to maintain the link with the silk used in Japan. Sewing and finishing were carried out by Celina Luna and Maria da Paz Carvalho, with pilot by Edna Santos, all properly trained at Natural Cotton Color.
Images from the visual artists Dyógenes Chaves, Alena Sa and Margarete Aurelius were printed on the Qpao. The printing was carried out through manual screen-printing techniques.
“Second Skin is a demonstration of the demystification of works of art, transforming the work of artists into illustrations for the fashion industry, thus giving it more exposure,” says the artist and curator Dyógenes Chaves.
Chaves reveals that the pieces produced for the Second Skin will be used by people present at the vernissage in an open exhibition to the public, free of charge, as a result of the project, with guidance and production by Rhodium Geni Ribeiro. The consultant in development and adaptation of products to the domestic and international markets is directly involved in the production chain of the color cotton from Paraiba through consulting to local producers.
The Second Skin project is a reinterpretation of the project conducted by the BNB Cultural Program 2008 and was based on the Local Production project (João Pessoa and Marseille / France, 1997). At the time, the event was sponsored by Sebrae Paraíba (through Patme / Finep) and united visual artists, designers and fashion producers from Paraiba, such as Francisca Vieira, Eny Hall, Ricardo Olavo, Sandoval Fagundes and Dyógenes Chaves.
“The local manufacturing was the greatest inspiration for this new Art-Fashion partnership and in this case, adding another ingredient: joining the recovery and the revival of cotton growing in the state of Paraiba, and especially the spread of natural or organic color cotton”, said the curator.
Second Skin – Natural Color Cotton from Paraiba – April 5, 20h
Usina Cultural Energisa (Rua João Bernardo de Albuquerque, 243 – Tambiá – João Pessoa-PB)
Free entrance
Sponsor: editais 2015 do Fundo de Incentivo à Cultura FIC Augusto dos Anjos (Secult/ Governo da Paraíba)
Collaboration: Energisa Paraíba and Natural Cotton Color