Wearable Art Blog

Bettina Tizzy's Not Possible In Real Life

I never considered the notion of wearable art in virtual worlds until I got a Tweet from Bettina Tizzy just a few short weeks ago. Tizzy, the founder of Not Possible In Real Life (NPIRL), lives by the mantra, "Madly, wildly embracing the impossible made possible in virtual worlds." I decided to be open minded and take a look at the fashions on Tizzy's blog, Not Possible In Real Life. To my surprise, I liked what I saw and thought that you might, too. Pictured here is Eshi Otawara’s POPI dress and hat. Curious? Read my interview with Betinna Tizzy to see some of the leading NPIRL fashions and learn more about the movement. Please let me know what you think!

Glass Jewelry with Lights

Check out this glass collar with lights from German-born Information Technology (IT)consultant and designer Marc Mann. Back in the 1990s, Mann stumbled on some old hand-blown perfume bottles at a Frankfurt flea market. This led him to combine his IT expertise with his love of hand crafted beauty to develop illuminated collars. The value of Mann's glass jewelry, like other jewelry made out of unconventional materials, is its stunning form and novel mix of glass and light. You can see more of Mann's work at the Hilde Leiss Gallery for Jewelry.

Wearable Technology Dress from Studio 5050

Here is the Masai Dress from Depsina Papadopolous of Studio 5050. This dress is inspired by the wedding collars of the Masai, who live in Kenya and Tanzania. What makes this dress unique is that when the beads of the dress brush up against someone or something they emit a series of sounds. Papadopolous and her team create fashions that explore the relationship between design, fashion and technology. Curious? Read the interview with Despina that I conducted earlier this year.

"Threads" Fashion Show with Wearable Technology

Threads: Wearable Art Fashion Show is taking place at the Jersery City Museum in NJ on Sunday, February 24 at 2:00. The show includes the work of designers who use technology to create wearable designs. One of the featured designers and preshow guest speaker, Despina Papadopoulos, is an interactive designer who has been creating clothing embedded with electronic elements since 1995. Finally, fashion that incorporates technological components as core elements of a garment is coming into vogue.

Pictured here are Papadopoulos's 'love jackets'. The jackets are programmed so that when they come within 10 feet of each other, the two emit a beep and LED lights blink. Each jacket only responds to its unique pair - with the aim of creating an unexpected interaction. Papadopoulos and others are designing clothing embedded with circuits, wires and lights to demonstrate how the pairing of technology and fashion can lead to joyful and playful experiences and freedom of expression.

Fashion, Wearable Art and Technology

Seamless is a fashion event featuring innovative and experimental works in interactive clothing and technology-based fashion taking place at Boston's Museum of Science on January 30 at 8:00 p.m. Each 'project' strives to 'seamlessly' connect technology and fashion. One of the featred items is JACKET ANTICS, by Barbara Layne. Jacket Antics is comprised of two handwoven garments that have unique texts and designs scrolling through the LED arrays woven into the backs of the fabrics. When the wearers hold hands, the LED arrays presents a third, synchronous message scrolling from one to the other in a new pattern of communication. Another creation is Layne's Tornado Dress. The fabric of the Tornado Dress features a mimaki print of a funnel cloud and tornado. Three small photocells detect ambient light and trigger a variety of flashing patterns in an LED display embroidered onto the lining of the linen dress. Intriguing to say the least. What's next?