Art Meets Fashion: The Crossroads

Introduction: Nora Kassajikian, Teacher

2011-03-17T21:08:00.000-07:00

Nora Kassajikian was born in Beirut, Lebanon and moved to the United States at the age of ten. She was trained as a classical violinist from childhood all the way through age eighteen. She studied Fashion Design for two years after graduating high school in 1991. Nora then pursued her career in Accounting for twelve years while continuing her college education to complete her B.A. in Liberal Studies. In 2009 she decided to move to San Diego to attend San Diego State University to work on her teaching credential. Today, Nora is substitute teaching in four districts and tutoring. She is currently seeking a permanent teaching position while working on her second credential.

Place III: Nora Kassajikian

2011-03-17T20:36:00.000-07:00

Place Part III: The place that we chose to make our home speaks to who we are. The items we surround ourselves with and the manner in which we choose to arrange our living and work spaces-especially when the two overlap-can reveal insights into our everyday personas as well as the people we aspire to be. Here the place where educator Nora Kassakikian lives, creates, and sometimes even teaches...

Q: What do you love about your home?
A: I love the fact that I'm surrounded by nature. At the end of the day I feel as though I can relax and clear my head. It's the first time in my life where I've lived in an area where I can truly hear the sound of owls, frogs and crickets as well as the occasional howls of Coyotes. I can finally hear myself think instead of the chaos of the city.

Q: What are your thoughts on how traditional public classrooms are run/structured?
A: I believe that schools should have students spend more time learning outdoors. Many students do not take the time to investigate their environment. They don't take the time to question and observe. Learning by observation is a big part of life and a good life skill to acquire.
Many public classrooms are also dark. As a substitute teacher, I have walked into several classrooms where the first thing I've done is to open up all the blinds and windows. The students walk in and express that something is different but it often takes them at least half an hour to figure out that they are no longer learning in the dark.

Q: Describe your ideal classroom

A: I would love to have an outdoor classroom where students have the opportunity to learn from their environment. I believe an outdoor classroom would be ideal for me. I was able to experience teaching outdoors for Art Meets Fashion and I believe that it worked out pretty well. The students were engaged and the group had a lot of fun introducing their topic to the students.

Photographs: 2010 Melissa Au, Dandelion Dreams Photography

Place II: Cathy Breslaw

2011-03-05T14:44:00.000-08:00

Place Part II: The place that we chose to make our home speaks to who we are. The items we surround ourselves with and the manner in which we choose to arrange our living and work spaces-especially when the two overlap-can reveal insights into our everyday personas as well as the people we aspire to be. Here the place where artist Cathy Brelaw creates...

Q: What do you love about your home?
Cathy: My home is what I call my 'sacred space'--my safe place--my studio is also adjacent so it's important to me to create a space where I can also work--as well as just be.

Q: Tell me about the sign in your space, "If not now, when?"
Cathy: "If not now, when" means this is it--life in the present moment is all we have--we are not guaranteed anything more than the moment we are in. So, all my goals, dreams, art pieces need to be created now.

Q: Describe your physical working environment:
Cathy: My working environment is a space of about 400-500 sqare feet and well lit with specialized ful spectrum lights.

Photographs: 2010 Melissa Au, Dandelion Dreams Photography

Place: Stacie Taylor

2011-02-21T21:03:00.000-08:00

The place that we chose to make our home speaks to who we are. The items we surround ourselves with and the manner in which we choose to arrange our living and work spaces-especially when the two overlap-can reveal insights into our everyday personas as well as the people we aspire to be. Here the place where Stacie Tayor of Stacie May creates...

Q: What do you love about your home?
Stacie: All the things and people I love are right there. The structure itself doesn't matter when you have that.

Q: Describe your physical working environment?
Stacie: Messy. It's always messy. I try to clean up and organize between each project but there are always multiple projects going on at once. I believe that it's important to have a space where I can feel free to throw things on the floor, make piles of fabric scraps, have trims and sketches thrown about without feeling like I can't walk away and shut the door! The space itself is cozy and comfortable and provides the right inspiration.

Photographs: 2010 Melissa Au, Dandelion Dreams Photography

Interviews: Part One

2011-02-21T20:00:00.000-08:00

List a few things about yourself that may be previously unknown to many around you?
Stacie:
1. I once met the legendary Clint Eastwood as his waitress in a restaurant in Savannah, Georgia.
2. I always wanted to be a figure skater.
3. I was a ballet dancer for 11 years.
4. I love listening to cheesy 70's soft rock.
5. I've visited 38 out of the 50 states.

Nora: I don't know how to swim (I sooo want to learn but I'm scared)

Day or Night?
Cathy: Day

Stacie: Night

Nora: Day
Melissa: Night

Awake or Asleep?

Cathy: Awake
Stacie: Asleep

Nora: Awake
Melissa: Asleep

Book or Movie?

Cathy: Book
Stacie: Moive

Nora: Book
Melissa: Book

Coffee or Tea?

Cathy: Coffee
Stacie: Coffee

Nora: Coffee
Melissa: Coffee

Chaos or Order?

Cathy: Order
Stacie: Controlled Chaos

Nora: Order
Melissa: Order

Plan or Whim?

Cathy: Whim
Stacie: Whim

Nora: Plan
Melissa:Whim

Busy or Idle?

Cathy: Busy
Stacie: Busy

Nora: Busy
Melissa: Idle

Inside or Out?

Cathy: Inside
Stacie: Both

Nora: Out
Melissa: Out

What interests do you take time for, other than fashion design/teaching/art?
Stacie: Movies, Music, Theater, Art, A little bit of traveling, occasional hiking and camping, paging through glossy fashion mags, spending time with good friends, my dog and my boyfriend.

Nora: Art, Outdoors and Culture.

Cathy: I am very self disciplined--I either run, bike or swim every day depending on what I am training for at the time (running or tri events) I find cardio and working out make my mind more focused and sharp and clear thinking. Some of my best ideas come while running. It's kind of a meditative thing where tons of thoughts float around and something becomes clear to me.

What do you fear?
Cathy: Not being remembered.
Stacie: Heights.
Nora: Making mistakes.
Melissa: Losing my loved ones.

Interview Questions by Melissa Au

Introduction: Melissa Au, Documentor/Photographer ~ Dandelion Dreams Photography

2011-01-12T11:25:00.000-08:00

I have been a photographer in the artistic sense for most of my life. I am in business as a family/child photographer under the name Dandelion Dreams Photography. I can sum up my passion for photography in this way: I am a light seeker...I admire the way a shadow wraps gently around a child's face or how sunlight halos a young girl's head. I love catching that 1/60th of a second glimpse into my lens as a baby wonders--just what is that big contraption I am holding. I strive to capture the real essence of my subject as opposed to a contrived shot…to catch a real moment in life, to document.

My biggest inspiration, is my family: inquisition, wonder, attention to the small things, unabashed enthusiasm, creativity, love. I think that a lot can be told in a photograph about the relationship of the family, the emotion of the individual, and I love to tell that story through the snap of the shutter. These are days to remember. My gift to the family is creating a keepsake of their moment together.

Awards:

3rd Place Portrait, 2010 San Diego County Fair

Donated Award for Portrait (awarded by Digital Photo Academy), 2010 San Diego County Fair

Honorable Mention Pet Portrait, 2010 San Diego County Fair

Honorable Mention Portrait, 2010 San Diego County Fair

Honorable Mention Digital Arts Image, 2010 San Diego County Fair

Melissa Au, Dandelion Dreams Photography ~ melissa@dandeliondreamsphoto.com ~ (858) 349.5946

Introduction: Stacie Taylor, Designer ~ Stacie May

2011-01-11T20:17:00.001-08:00

Stacie May is a San Diego based clothing company that offers women sustainable, season-less, timeless clothing for those who want to be unique and express themselves as individuals. Stacie May clothing is created in house, in the U.S., from sketches to samples. Pieces are not mass produced making each a limited edition. The inspiration for Stacie May’s graceful, feminine, yet classic looks can be attributed to an appreciation of antique and vintage collectibles, art, music, movies, history, and architecture along with an flair for experimentation with fabrics, colors, textures, and cuts that compliment curves.

Women of all shapes and sizes have always loved Stacie May, she really understands women with and without curves. Stacie stays true to her collections by not going with what the latest trend is but by finding inspiration from different areas of her life. Stacie manages to maintain her artistic flair while balancing a home life and a full-time job as a design consultant for a local San Diego business.

Stacie May's Events and Credits include: Fashion Week San Diego 2008, Scottsdale Fashion Week 2008, Escondido Fashion Week 2009, Thread Runway December 2009, Project Ethos Incubator April 2010, Lovestruck at La Jolla Playhouse 2010, Haute Magazine, Fashion Chicago Magazine June 2010 and October 2010, Viva La Moda Magazine, San Diego Reader, Smashing Darling Featured Designer, USTrendy Top 100 Designers, Industry Showroom, Hunt and Gather Boutique, Local Boutique, 34Fourteen, Burbank.

msstaciemay@staciemay.com ~ www.staciemay.com

Photography by: Gail Bowman, Modern Eye Images ~ www.moderneyeimages.com

Tracking Down Some Wine Fabric

2010-12-30T10:47:00.000-08:00

Subject: FANTASTIC NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!SEE
BELOW!!!!!!!!
From: "cathy breslaw"
Date: Wed, September 15, 2010 6:11 pm
To: "melissa au" "nora kassajikian" "stacie taylor"

I SEARCHED AROUND AND FOUND THE GUY'S EMAIL ADDRESS WHO MAKES THE FABRIC FROM THE BACTERIA - SEE BELOW -

I AM GOING TO SEE HOW WE CAN ARRANGE TO GET SOME OF THE FABRIC! HE SEEMS REALLY APPROACHABLE -

I ASKED ABOUT SEEING IF WE CAN GET THE PROCESS OF HOW HE MAKES IT AND SEE IF WE CAN RECREATE THAT.

WE'LL SEE , BUT GOOD NEWS....

CATHY

From: Gary Cass

Sent: Wednesday, September 15, 2010 5:38 PM

To: cathy breslaw

Cc: donna franklin

Subject: RE: your project using bacteria of wine process into fabric

Hi Cathy

Thanks for the interest in our project. Yes the art side of the project has slowed over the last year as Donna has commenced her PhD and the project has taken on a more science focus.

We have processed the material and are now conducting scientific trials.

We have exhibited the project in different forms in Adelaide 2009 (thin light boxes with transparent images of the material on the body) and even at the FIDM in LA 2009. I have attached some images for you. We have been approached by a fashion museum in Belgium to exhibit the dress early next year.

Are you setting up an exhibition? We can certainly send you a piece of the material, however if you would like to freight the dress (we believe it to be the first dress in the world made from the bacterial ferment of red wine) in the barrel. Or a waist coat, that I so elegantly model, NOT! Check out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2RRCPmnKKQ at the end. This show was at ArtStays 2010 in Ptuj, Slovenia. We use the bacteria to skin the machine with the red wine material, engaging with the question – when will man become more machine like.

Check out our web page http://bioalloy.org/o/

Let me know what you would like and we will try our best to accommodate.

Cheers

Gary

Subject: Wine Fabric
From: "cathy breslaw"
Date: Mon, November 01, 2010 6:01 pm
To: "melissa au" "nora kassajikian" "stacie taylor"

Hi All

Today I received a few samples of the material made with wine.

I have no clue how to understand what they are! I asked my contact

for more clarification – I am sure he’ll answer my questions.

Nevertheless it was very exciting! As soon as I opened the package there

was a very stinky, kind of sour wine smell – interesting!

Anyhow, Stacie and I are planning to meet on Nov 16th later afternoon,

at my place.

We’ll keep you informed as to our progress, and if you are free and want

to meet with us, you are welcome to do so.

take care,cathy

Images of wine fabric ~ 12/2/10 ~ by Melissa Au

Fermented Fashion

2010-12-30T10:34:00.000-08:00

Abstract from: http://www.fibre2fashion.com/industry-article/11/1030/microbe-fermented-fashion-a-fabric-that-grows1.asp

Micro'be' fermented fashion: a fabric that grows….
A garment that forms itself without a single stitch!

By: Donna Franklin & Gary Cass

Imagine a fabric that grows ... a garment that forms itself without a single stitch!

The fashion that starts with a bottle of wine ...

The Micro 'be' project investigates the practical and cultural biosynthesis of microbiology - to explore forms of futuristic dress-making and textile technologies. Instead of lifeless weaving machines producing the textile, living microbes will ferment a garment. It smells like red wine and feels like sludge when wet, but the cotton-like cellulose dress fits snugly as a second skin. The material is very delicate, comprising micro-fibrils of cellulose. The colouration of the fabric will depend on the wine used, red wine - red fabric, white wine or beer - a translucent material. A fermented garment will not only rupture the meaning of traditional interactions with body and clothing; but will also examine the practicalities and cultural implications of commercialisation. [sic] This project redefines the production of woven materials. By combining art and science knowledge and with a little inventiveness, the ultimate goal will be to produce a bacterial fermented seamless garment that forms without a single stitch.

For full article: Fermented Fashion~A Fabric That Grows

Introduction: Cathy Breslaw, Artist

2010-10-11T21:05:00.000-07:00

My current work engages materiality in many forms. Twisting, stretching, wrapping, tapering, weaving, slashing, tucking, tying, gathering, folding, layering and sewing are ways in which the industrial mesh is

manipulated to create wall,floor and suspended installation works that often reference painting and sculpture.

Things that spark my work include global social platforms of communication - shifting paradigms of how we relate, uniting all cultures. By embracing dissimilar combinations of ideas simultaneously also offers us the

possibility of seeing concepts of space and time in unique ways. These ideas have extended my interest into

creating abstract drawings that precede the wall and hanging installations as well as becoming complete finished works. My definitions of space and time have been altered and enriched, providing me a wealth of visual ideas that are an ongoing transformation of materials into art pieces.

In my travels to Taiwan, I located an industrial mesh - rolls packed in room-sized containers ready for commercial shipping to ports worldwide. Fascinated by the mesh, I visited the factory in Shanghai, and brought materials back to my studio where I could experiment, explore and expand the possibilities creating art pieces that endure. I’ve also sought out and found similar kinds of commercial materials, transforming them from their original purpose.

Concepts of light, space and multiple dimensions form the undercurrent of my thought process as I create the work. Color and light play an integral role enhancing the atmospheric transparency of the materials. The often

large scale and placement of the work from wall to ceiling to floor, recontextualizes how the viewer experiences the work. Light originating from natural to artificial sources causes the exhibition space to glow,

often casting shadows on the walls and floor, lending a sculptural quality to the pieces.

The work, sharing forms of painting, sculpture and installation, leads the viewer to take an intimate look at seemingly ordinary materials that because of what has been done to them, transcends their function.

Born in Coral Gables, Florida and raised in Baltimore Maryland, Cathy Breslaw received a BA degree in American Studies from George Washington University in Washington D.C., an MSW(masters of social work) from Howard University in Washington, D.C. and an MFA from Claremont Graduate University in Claremont California. She currently lives and works in southern California. Breslaw is a contemporary visual artist who has had a series of solo and group exhibitions across the United States in museums, commercial galleries, art centers, college and university galleries and alternative spaces. Her work is a combination of drawings, wall, floor and installation pieces made primarily from industrial mesh but also includes mixed media of other types.

Solo Exhibitions

2010 Truckee College, TMCC Main Gallery, Light Moves, Reno, NV

Rose Center for the Arts, Lower Columbian College, Weightless, Longview, WA

Florida Atlantic University, John D. MacArthur Library, Material Resonance, Jupiter, FL

Gallery 825, Light Play, Los Angeles, CA

2009 West Valley Art Museum, Light Moves, Surprise, AZ

Chico Art Center, Chico, Discovery Series: Cathy Breslaw, Chico, CA

Charleston Heights Art Center, Main Gallery, Weightless, Las Vegas, NV

Earleville Art Center Opera House, East Art Gallery, Recent Discoveries, Binghamton,NY

Southern Oregon University, Stevenson Union Gallery, Tapestries of Light, Ashland, OR

Fitton Center for Creative Arts, Bever West Gallery,Topographies, Hamilton, OH

2008 University of St. Mary, Goppert Gallery, Reflections, Leavenworth, KS

Riverviews Artspace, Casting Rhythms, Lynchburg, VA

Waterworks Visual Arts Center, Novell Gallery, Suspension: Color and Light, Salisbury, NC

2005 Claremont Graduate University, East Gallery, Claremont, CA

2001 Falcon Arts Gallery, San Diego, CA

2000 First National Bank Building, San Diego, CA

2000 San Diego State University, Corporate Governance Institute, San Diego, CA

1999 First National Bank, San Diego, CA

1998 Wyndham Hotels Corporate Offices, Emerald Plaza, San Diego, CA

1997 Offtrack Gallery, Leucadia, CA

1995 Wyndham Hotels Corporate Offices, Emerald Plaza, San Diego, CA

1994 First National Bank, San Diego, CA

Corporate Collections

American Graphics Inc., San Diego, CA

GEA Power Cooling Systems, San Diego, CA

ADC Telecommunications, Minneapolis, MN

Che Bella, Phoenix, AZ

Frontier Analytics, La Jolla, CA

Maxwell Technologies, San Diego, CA

Residential Wholesale Mortgage Inc., Solana Beach, CA

Saign & Associates, Los Altos, CA

Amerigraph LLC, San Diego, CA

Selected Awards

2004-05 Sue Arlene Walker Memorial Fellowship, Claremont Graduate Univ,Claremont, CA

2003-04 Fellowship, Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, CA

1997 International Exhibition, Society of Experimental Painters, Sarasota, FL, Merit Award

1997 Twenty-ninth Annual National Art Exhibition, San Francisco, CA, Gold Medallion Award

cathybreslaw@roadrunner.com 858-692-2351 cell www.cathylbreslaw.com

Meeting: September 13th Rancho Bernardo Winery

2010-09-21T16:08:00.000-07:00

Origins of the Phrase

2010-09-17T11:02:00.000-07:00

In vino veritas:“in wine [there is the] truth".

It is also known as a Greek phrase “Ἐν οἴνῳ ἀλήθεια” En oino álétheia, which has the same meaning. The author of the Latin phrase is Pliny the Elder; the Greek phrase is attributed to the Greek poet Alcaeus. The Greek poet Alcaeus is the oldest known source for the phrase. The Roman historian Tacitus described how the Germanic peoples always drank wine while holding councils, as they believed nobody could lie effectively when drunk.

The phrase is often continued as, "In vino veritas, in aqua sanitas", i.e., "In wine there is truth, in water there is health."

Similar phrases exist across cultures and languages. In Chinese, there is the saying, "酒後吐真言" ("After wine blurts truthful speech"). The Babylonian Talmud (תלמוד בבלי) contains the passage: "נכנס יין יצא סוד", i.e., "In came wine, out went a secret".

It continues, "בשלשה דברים אדם ניכר בכוסו ובכיסו ובכעסו", i.e., "In three things is a man revealed: in his wine goblet, in his purse, and in his wrath."

(Information taken from Wikipedia)

The Crossroads: The Theme at Which We Will Converge

2010-09-17T10:37:00.000-07:00

IN VINO, VERITAS...

In wine, there is truth. Wine, as a universal beverage around the globe, appeals to people across all cultures, tracing back to ancient times. In ancient Greek mythology there is the God of Wine, Dionysus, as well as stories in Roman history of Bacchus, God of Wine. Throughout time, wine has been used in religious ritual as well as an accompaniment to meals and for social gathering. Wine, in a way is an art form, stimulating and encouraging conversation with its sensuality and enticing mystery. Its aroma excites our senses of taste and smell. Its aesthetic fascination originates from the visual beauty of the vines growing in fields with bright green leaves and sumptuous grapes to the wine glasses it fills at our dinner tables. Behind it all is the chemistry, the science, at the basis of the long process of cultivating the most perfect sensuous nectar.

At the essence of Art and Fashion, there is truth. Art and Fashion, like wine, dates back to ancient times and they too stimulate the senses, and spark conversation with their aesthetic mystery. The process of creating wine, Art and Fashion possess parallels - from the planting of the seed growing into a beautiful plant that grows fruit to the harvesting, picking, and fermenting resulting in fantastic worldly creations of color and texture. It is Team Crossroads’s intention to create clothing, accessories and visual art that references the sensuality and beauty of wine, the science of the wine making process, story-telling through photography, and the teaching of the science of wine making, demonstrating the artistic process.

A few preliminary inspired pieces by Cathy Breslaw and design sketches by Stacie May below...

Mosaic

2010-08-26T20:06:00.000-07:00

August 24th, 2010 meeting in pictures:

Inspiration abounds at our gallery space...

Mosaic Wine Bar & Gallery
3422 39th Street,
San Diego

Our theme is taking shape...Fashion, Art...Science?...

The blank gallery space upstairs...

The Challenge

2010-07-21T23:49:00.000-07:00

I am an accused and a self admitted reality tv show addict...I will watch almost any television program that is thinly veiled as "reality"...I especially like those shows like Project Runway, Work of Art, Top Chef...What draws me in are the open-ended challenges that contestants are faced with: design an outfit from supplies found at the hardware store, make a piece of art from recycled electronics, create a tasty dish using duck testicles...I love to see each participant take the challenge and feed it into the machine that is their internal creative process and see what comes out the other side...I love that both the processes and end products can be so vastly varied from person to person and from what I would have dreamed up had I been given the challenge...oh and I must admit that I also enjoy the guilty pleasure of voyeuristically watching the group dynamics of when creative processes and personalities clash...

I walked into the Microsoft store tonight to meet my Art Meets Fashion project group and immediately felt like I was embarking on my own reality tv show challenge...the room was milling with creative types, inspiring people...The challenge: to create a multi-dimensional visual presentation consisting of works of art, apparel, lesson plans, and a documentary of the whole process...all encompassed under the umbrella of one, unifying theme...aimed at engaging at-risk youth into the arts and fashion design (and it would be great if we could incorporate science and technology)...to be showcased at no less than two venues, the San Diego International Airport and Mosaic Gallery at Mosaic Wine Bar...

The cast of characters in my reality tv show: Stacie Taylor (fashion designer), Cathy Breslaw (artist), Jan Janus (educator) and me, Melissa Au (photographer/documenter)...I cannot wait to see how our group dynamics unfold...to see how our creative processes mesh, or if they do clash, how we will choose to resolve...to see the unknown and undoubtedly amazing creations that we, working separately but also in collaboration, will produce...I am so excited to take part in this journey...though I must admit that I am ever so grateful that the timeline is nine months, rather than 24 hours...and that there will be no camera following me around (that's my job--to follow my teammates around with my own camera!)

And guess what? Two seats to my right, sat a real-live reality tv show star from a past season of Project Runway...this is gonna be fun!

Crossroads

2010-07-21T23:09:00.000-07:00

Crossroads:
Pronunciation: \ˈkrȯs-ˌrōd also -ˈrōd\

Function: noun

Date: 1686;

1 usually plural but singular or plural in construction
a : the place of intersection of two or more roads
b (1) : a small community located at such a crossroads, a group of people living in a particular local area-the team is drawn from all parts of the community (2) : a central meeting place
c : a crucial point especially where a decision must be made
d: a representation of common ground between theories or phenomena