Work from the Collection

Metamorphosis

Artist: Mary Ping
Date: 2016
Medium: Mixed
Materials: Leather, Sewing thread
Dimensions: Variable dimensions
Collection: Lafayette anticipations - Fonds de dotation Famille Moulin
The Metamorphosis project from the Slow and Steady Wins the Race line, is about thinking of the handbag as an everyday object that has become primarily a social symbol and a fascinating cultural phenomenon within the contemporary anthropology of fashion. Initially, the bag had a utilitarian function: it was transportable and reliable. Today, bag design has evolved rapidly as a result of evolving trends and marketing, affected by the transition from artisanal practice to industrialised production. Throughout the Faisons de l’inconnu un allié exhibition, in collaboration with Made in Town and Monteneri’s finest artisans, Slow and Steady Wins the Race produced and presented live each day the production sequence of a leather handbag on a worktable designed in collaboration with Bureau V, leading to the production of ten handbags. This choreography of making emphasises the importance of knowledge, craft, and technique while criticising the dilution of creativity caused by the commercial industry. The profound metamorphosis of the now hybridised bags becomes strange, sculptural, and allegorical.

Work produced by Lafayette Anticipations – Fondation d’entreprise Galeries Lafayette for the exhibition Faisons de l’inconnu un allié (13–20 October 2016).

Exhibitions

Items : Is Fashion Modern?
MOMA - The Museum of Modern Art , New-York (États-Unis)
from 01 Oct 2017 to 28 Jan 2018
Faisons de l'inconnu un allié
Lafayette Anticipations - Fondation Galeries Lafayette, Paris (France)
from 11 Oct to 23 Oct 2016
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