Artist Statement: 

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 The parameters of this project were to focus on creating a conceptual garment that references 1950s Abstract Expressionism Paintings. When searching for artwork, I was fascinated with Philip Guston’s work, especially his color choices and bold brushstrokes, and I chose to work with ‘Painting,’ made in 1954, for the project. The material I wanted to focus on for this garment was yarn and wire initially, but then I quickly pivoted to yarn getting a crinoline. 

   

 His personal experiences profoundly shaped Philip Guston’s art. His early life was marked by personal tragedy as his father dealt with depression and later committed suicide, leading him to immerse himself in a lifelong engagement with art. Art history significantly influenced him, and his work emphasized the brushstroke as the essence of what makes an artist unique. In the 1950s, his abstract paintings were reminiscent of atmospheric abstractions inspired by Monet, such as his work in ‘Painting.’ This work and many others create a “plus and minus” composition that focuses on the center and works with a limited color palette of black and whites, grays, blues, and reds. 

   

 For this project, I emphasized mimicking his brushstrokes and thought knitwear would wonderfully represent his “plus and minus” technique. I dropped varying amounts of stitches for the looser knits to make ladders, emphasizing the cross-hatched brush strokes more. When flipping the painting sideways, I found inspiration for the silhouette as the red portion resembles a person wearing huge sleeves and a wide overskirt, which I used a crinoline to create this volume. Finally, for the color, I dyed and painted the garment with fabric paints to get the exact colors used in the painting and focused the red towards the center.
 

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