In episode 285, Kestrel welcomes artist and illustrator Kelly Lottahall to the show. An artist and illustrator, Kelly incorporates preloved textiles and scraps into her unique works of art.
“It’s so like not that significant to most people, but for me — when it’s an item, a shirt, anything that’s used … this doesn't have to be vintage, I’m talking about stuff that’s just regular old stuff people don’t want. Not like vintage that’s 30 years old and super cool because it’s another era — no, I’m talking about like 10 years ago and you don’t care about it anymore. I’m like no, but I do — that could be really really cool, are you kidding me?” -Kelly
Have you ever noticed how the fashion world often orients itself as very separate from the art world?
They are obviously intertwined, and we see some overlap in the mainstream, but there tends to be a very distanced relationship – especially in the way that the fashion industry disregards the artistic aspects of fashion.
Here’s a couple examples –
Garment construction has been devalued and not treated as though it is a REAL art form – both in the way sewers are paid (so often less than a living wage) when they are true artists; and also in how the industry has reduced our perceived *value* of garments through fast fashion and lower prices.
There is the way that traditional fabrics and garments (which literally ARE art) have been disrespected and/or appropriated for the sake of commercialism – so stealing cultural fashion art and then replicating it in a way to simply make a profit off of it (in turn, totally detaching it from its artistic roots).
This week’s guest is literally BRINGING the fashion and art worlds together through her unique craft, and she’s repurposing quote unquote *trash* while doing it.
As she says –
“I like finding old things and turning them into new things. I like gadgets that used to work that don’t anymore. I like clothes that are too old to wear the original way, that can be recreated in a new way.”
Quotes & links from the conversation:
“I think there is something in me — there’s just this natural connection with somebody’s lived in story.” -Kelly (9:36)
“The biggest thing we need to understand is that our culture — we just consume so much, excessively consume so much stuff that we just don’t have to have. But we also have to understand that brands — fast fashion brands — they also know this about us, and they’ve made it so easy for us to just click and buy the second we think about it.” -Kelly (32:14)
“A Photographer, A Stylist, And An Artist” collaboration
Kelly’s Website >
Follow Kelly on Instagram >
Nadia Bunyan of Growing A.R.C. on how cultivating community led to the collective cultivation of the flax plant for linen
S06 Episode 279 | Jono Salfield of Afends on DIY hemp farming for textiles & why hemp rules (from both a farming & carbon-capture lens)
S06 Episode 278 | Why we must approach waste holistically & how Material Library Of India is reimagining & documenting neglected materials while advocating for systems change
S06 Episode 277 | Questioning how we *value* garments & respecting the limits of partnership across fashion with Jesus Herrera
S06 Episode 276 | Fashion psychology, contextualizing our buying behaviors amidst today's *speed* & how shopping is not equal to happiness
S06 Episode 275 | The Or Foundation's take on their recent agreement with SHEIN, how these grant funds are/will be used within the Kantamanto community & extended producer responsibility (EPR)
S06 Episode 274 | What are biosynthetic dyes & could they replace the toxic petroleum-heavy ingredients in today's predominant indigo garment dye?
S06 Episode 273 | Kesiena Onosigho on slow art as a tool for liberation and why sustainability isn't passive – it's something you live
S06 Episode 272 | Revealing lipstick's dirty little secrets & questioning the beauty industry's lack of regulation with Angela Weinberg of Kolorete
S06 Episode 271 | Anuj Sharma on button masala and questioning cut & sew as the primary way to join garments together
S06 Episode 270 | Doctoral candidate Timnit Kefela on the rise of plastic fashion & the journey of microplastics that come with it
S06 Episode 269 | Ngozi Okaro of Custom Collaborative on fashion cooperatives & how they can shift power dynamics, counter overproduction, and support local economies
S06 Episode 268 | Venetia La Manna on the need to *Remember Who Made Them* (our clothes) & whether we should buy fast fashion secondhand
S06 Episode 267 | Sally Fox on breeding naturally colored organic cotton
S06 Episode 266 | The challenges of navigating supply chain minimums while intentionally building regional systems with Leah of Wol Hide
S06 Episode 265 | Summer Dean (@ClimateDiva) on slowing down influence & building community instead of obsessing about analytics
S06 Episode 264 | Greenwashing in fashion and the need for mandatory measures & regulation
S06 Episode 263 | Dr. Sandra Niessen on *sacrifice zones* & the layers of erasure in fashion
S06 Episode 262 | Roland Geyer on why we should we be focusing on LABOR, not MATERIALS in the quest to reduce fashion's environmental impact
S06 Episode 261 | Can fashion and degrowth coexist, and specifically — do high heels exist in a degrowth world?
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