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Nicole Dextras
Shirt in Ice
Short sleeved sunny orange shirt in a block of ice, in contrast to an abandoned amusement park, stands on a blustery winter day. Love the palm tree cutouts.
CastAways is a series of frozen garments placed in the context of a landscape, inviting the viewer to construct their own narrative. Like an isolated silent film still, they exist only for a moment, and then the movie continues on.
Icicle Slip
Icicle Slip was an installation on the wintery shores of Lake
Ontario. The garment was placed on a branch, and it was slowly encased in
ice as the cold water splashed onto it. Eventually the entire area was
covered in ice, obscuring the slip; and when the thaw came, erosion caused
the branch to fall in the water, releasing the silk slip to the watery
depths of the lake.
Pharos is an installation at the 2012
Winterlude Festival in Ottawa, Ontario. It consists of 6 blocks of ice with
clothing frozen in them. It represents a lighthouse that reassures and
guides travelers in the night. Pharos represents the passion of those
who live in the northern hemisphere, who have adapted to the harsh
climate by creating a rich culture of artistic activities during the
dark winter months. The spirit of our resourceful forefathers, who
initiated the first outdoor winter Carnivals is represented by six
figures that dance to entice the sun to return. They stand as a beacon
of hope, from the dark towards the light. Follow Nicole on FB: www.facebook.com/ndextras
Pharos, detail.
Pharos, detail.
Tall Tales
Arrested movement of a cotton dress emerging from the red door of a lighthouse.
Kali Blues
Hybrids is a series of deconstructed garments frozen in blocks of ice. These are often created outdoors because of their complexity and size. Vintage shirts, nylons, gloves and various fabrics.
Surfacing
Something Andrew Wyeth about this...
Print available for sale: www.nicoledextras.com
Uncover 2
Print available for sale: www.nicoledextras.com
River Sprites
5 foot high blocks of ice installed in Pemberton Meadows, Alberta, on the banks of the Lillooet River.
Ice in the Winter -- Vegetation in the Summer --
Weedrobe made from lilacs. Wearable sculpture constructed from local and renewable plant materials.
EcoMan feels alienated in the concrete jungle, and he seeks refuge in the city's urban landscaping. His suit made from laurel, magnolia and yucca leaves, which protect him from the harmful rays of polyester that bombard him daily as he walks the streets searching for a place to call home. Nicole hopes to inspire people to think about their own clothes and where they come from. www.nicoledextras.com
With time, EcoMan returns to his roots in the artist's garden.
Cabbage Smock
Various cabbages, gunnera leaves, beans and thorns. The edible smock was left for the local bunnies the next day.
Cabbage Smock - close-up.
Camellia Countessa is a wearable garment made entirely from camellia flowers, lilac flowers, yucca leaves, laurel leaves, willow branches and Thorns. The design is based on the French pannier (basket) dresses, which were originally constructed from willow branches.
The dress faded with time and withstood 3 months of rainstorms, wind and
sun bleaching, each plant turning into a succession of golden brown
hues.
Hydrangea Débutante is a wearable garment made from laurel and magnolia leaves with the collar, cuffs, ruffle and bustle constructed from hydrangea flowers.
Hydrangea Debutante made from laurel and magnolia leaves with the collar, cuffs, ruffle and bustle constructed from hydrangea flowers. Flowers were guerilla harvested from abandoned house lots.
Source
Nicole also writes with nature in nature.
Vault - Green Words Series
The word Vault under the vaultlike canopy of the forest and under the arch of a fallen tree.
View, 2007.
These words were made out of ice and set out in the landscape and left to melt. Six-foot high wooden forms were filled with water and left to freeze for two weeks. High winds on the lake made the project difficult. The high winds off Lake Ontario sometimes blew individual letters over before they had time to melt.
All images courtesy Nicole Dextras, www.nicoledextras.com
Nicole Dextras is a graduate of the Emily Carr University of Art in Vancouver, BC, Canada,
where she has been a sessional teacher for the past 8 years. She has created art
installations in Mongolia, Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Dawson City, YT and Bellevue, WA.. During 2010 Olympics, Dextras presented The False Creek Bride, a storytelling event based on sustainable practices for the Winterruption Festival, Granville Island, Vancouver, BC.
Nicole states: "My personal interest in the fashion industry stems from growing up in my
mother’s ladies-clothing store where I learned how to discern quality
manufacturing and the importance of shopping local. In my teens, I
witnessed the poor working conditions in garment factories and the
effects of chemicals used in treating fabrics, while working in a
non-union sweatshop. Years later, as a costume designer, I was
fascinated by the notion of psychological transference into clothing and
this informed much of my early artworks."
Buy prints of Nicole's work here: www.nicoledextras.com
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Reply #1 on : Mon April 29, 2013, 16:01:19