10 (Literally) Bright, Shiny, and Splashy Pieces from #Techstyle at the MFA
Mary Katrantzou’s ‘Expandit’ dress. / Erik Madigan Heck/Trunk Archive courtesy of MFA Boston
More than 60 one-of-a-kind pieces appear in the MFA’s new exhibit, #techstyle, which looks at how artists and designers are using new technologies to present innovative ideas for the future of fashion. The exhibit has high impact and overloads the senses in the best way possible. Everywhere you turn, there’s fire, water, snakes, and spikes. Some fashions respond to their environment, and many are environmentally friendly.
With works commissioned and collected from around the world (and our backyard), #techstyle gives visitors a glimpse of what our closets might one day look like. The future, apparently, is literally bright. Check out some highlights below, and see the exhibit for yourself now through July 10.
The Spike
Viktoria Modesta
A segment from pop artist Viktoria Modesta’s music video “Prototype” is shown at one of the entries into #techstyle. “The Spike” is on view nearby. Due to an accident at birth, Modesta experienced lasting problems with her left leg and opted for amputation in 2007. Since then, she’s embraced her disability and uses art to shift people’s perceptions about amputation and prosthetics. Modesta attended the opening reception with Hugh Herr, MIT’s “bionic pioneer.”
MFA Dress
CuteCircuit
Commissioned by the MFA, this dress designed by London’s CuteCircuit really is gosh darn cute. Make selections on the adjacent tablet, and the dress is flooded with the pattern of your choice: hearts, stars, and so on. How? LEDs, my friends, 10,000 semiconducting microLEDs.
Photo by Ronald Stoops courtesy of MFA Boston. / Closeup via Instagram @mfaboston
Anthozoa 3-D Cape and Skirt
Iris van Herpen and Neri Oxman
Van Herpen partnered with Oxman of MIT Media Lab to create this provocative piece, which was made with a Stratasys Connex 3-D printer. The nature-inspired design was shown on the Paris runway in January 2013.
Photo courtesy of MFA Boston
The Bird
T H E U N S E E N
Leather jackets coated in reactive ink change color in response to touch, heat, light, air flow, and pressure. THEUNSEEN founder Lauren Bowker, a “material alchemist,” says “it’s about changing the way people see material and see product…We just want to show people data and the stuff going on around us that you don’t normally see.”
Image courtesy of Nick Knight/SHOWstudio.com and MFA Boston, dress photo via Instagram @CCYoun
Water Splash
Iris van Herpen
From a burning Phoenix to a cool splash of water—filmmaker Nick Knight and SHOWstudio staff used high-speed cameras to capture model Daphne Guinness being splashed with water. Then Van Herpen used the footage to make a solid dress out of plastic and acrylic spray that looks like a floating splash of water.
Image courtesy of Nick Knight/SHOWstudio.com and MFA Boston
Plato’s Atlantis
Alexander McQueen
Above, Raquel Zimmerman wears an ensemble from Alexander McQueen’s Plato’s Atlantis collection in 2010. Yes, those are snakes. Footage from the original runway show—where Lady Gaga’s single “Bad Romance” also premiered—is shown in #techstyle too. Sing it with me: Ga, ga, ooh la la…
3-D Steam Stretch
Issey Miyake
If McQueen’s iconic animalistic heels above make your feet hurt just looking at them, let designer Issey Miyake calm your nerves. His origami-like pieces are a joy to see fold, unfold, and fold again. In #techstyle, check out his 3-D Steam Stretch at work and other flat-to-fab fashions.
Kinematics 8
Nervous System
Somerville-based Nervous System has a 3-D-printed dress inspired by petals on view at the MFA. The design is created from a body scan and can be customized using an online app. The “Kinematics” dress is not the only notable fashion endeavor for Nervous System. The team has also been working with New Balance on 3-D-printed shoes.
Photo by Ron Kedmi courtesy of MFA Boston
Bodysuit
Noa Raviv
Raviv came up with the idea for this design while still a student at Shenkar College of Engineering and Design in Tel Aviv, entering commands the computer could not compute. She then re-created those patterns for “Bodysuit” using traditional techniques, laser cutting, and 3D printing.
Incertitudes
Ying Gao
Feeling prickly? There’s much more to this ensemble than what meets the eye. The pins on the outfit move when triggered by nearby sounds. The piece will be “turned on” every Wednesday 1-2 p.m. and 6-7 p.m.
#Techstyle, March 6-July 10, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, 465 Huntington Ave., Boston, 617-267-9300, mfa.org.
