March 4- June 5
MOCA Pacific Design Center, We-ho
The sisters of Rodarte Curate "States of Matter"
watercolor on paper by emily wagner 2011
The Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) presents Rodarte: States of Matter, the first West Coast solo exhibition of the work of fashion and costume designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy of Rodarte. Renowned for its expressive use of textiles, Rodarte creates unusual works through a highly elaborate and intensive processing and reconstruction of materials. Fabrics are often subjected to unusual, sometimes alchemical methods of alteration—dyed, stretched, stained, burned, or otherwise manipulated—before being reassembled as sculptural ready-to-wear. Materials are woven, knitted, or layered together as assemblages of plaid scraps, vinyl, cheesecloth, wool, cobweb, Swarovski crystals, macramé, leather, and more. Rodarte’s designs are inspired by sources uncommonly approached in fashion design—its Spring 2010 collection was based, in part, on the California condor. Other idiosyncratic influences include local landscapes, Japanese horror films, Boris Karloff as Frankenstein, and the work of Gordon Matta Clark.
