An invitation to meet in the woods, it reads “You shall be expected to wear a costume of the highest quality, of a theme which is to you most meaningful.” There is a date, but no name given. I know not who sent this to me, but I shall start sewing right away.
“You will be named after your costume, for example: Miss Moon shall be wearing a costume of the moon.” I suppose I shall be Mrs Crow tonight, I wonder who else will be there?
From left to right, top to bottom: Mr Meteor, Mrs Crow, Mrs Appletree, Miss Barnowl, Mr Gargoyle.
This is an ongoing project, a series of sculptures between 23cm and 26cm tall. I sculpt the face, hands and feet out of clay. I use lighter, stronger materials for the body, which will inevitably get covered up later.
Then I am able to design their costumes. Using scrap fabric from my fabric collection, I create a costume to the individual theme of the sculpture. It must in some way embody their theme, but the goal is not for the theme to be easily understood by an outside observer. I think a key part of a costume is that only the person who knows its significance is yourself, unless you choose to explain it. I also like to incorporate elements which might allude to their personality. I think about why they would have chosen their theme and what it means to them. I also take inspiration from European historical costume, I like to use the silhouettes as a jumping off point, my goal is not historical accuracy.
I intend for this project to be based in fantasy, a world in which you may receive a mysterious invitation to a woodland party, to wear elaborate and outrageous clothing. The fantasy theme is largely inspired by the writing of Susanna Clarke, and the tales of the Fae featured in her books ‘Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell’ and ‘The Ladies of Grace Adieu and other stories’.
Another inspiration is theatrical costumes and stage design. The background of the photographs is a miniature painted curtain, painted with the design of a forest in the evening. I created a miniature curtain and curtain holder, with similar fantastical design elements. I can’t help but also think of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, though this was not intentional. I designed the curtain rail in a way where I can change out the curtain, so I am able to create new scenery later in the project if I choose to do so.
The curtain rail is 50 cm wide 39 cm tall and 30.5 cm deep.
Alice Biggadike 