Reclaim Thy Self Coat

Art Couture design and creation by Tarmi Clarke

This art couture piece is inspired by nature’s ability to reclaim the man made and beauty in decay.

I like to look at things in a different way, creating conceptual art that is authentic and expressive at the same time. For this art couture piece I have taken pre-loved clothing and fabric, and combined them with natural elements, such as a clusters of fabulously textured fungus flowers throwing out their spawn tassels sitting in small ledges, or rusted/paint peeling surfaces inspiring an almost tortured fabric.

“I love fabric manipulation, I love fashion and I love bringing these together in Art Couture I do.”

Socially conscious fashion has inspired me to be an up-cycle enthusiast, where I consider the environment by reducing the use of new raw materials, and using ‘waste’ instead.  As a continuation of this philosophy, much of my art couture, and assemblage installations, have been inspired by the fact that nature will ‘RECLAIM’ almost anything over time. Whether it be a shipwreck or an abandoned building, given the chance nature’s force will slowly take it over. It’s a unique juxtaposition of man and nature, using intuition to bring it all back together. This art couture design is a blend of formal construction and deconstruction that is tempting to hold it in your hands to appreciate the intricate textures and visual surprises attained from countless hours of painstaking work.

With a unique blend of art meets nature meets fashion, this fashion art couture is one of many creative ideas that have been realised through my Reclaim Thy Self Exhibition.