/FAWDA/

CONCEPTUAL LEATHER ACCESSORIES

Falda (/fawda/) is a polish word that can describe the in-between state before folding that can refer to a material or a fold of skin. The project title, Falda is a reference to the theory of Fold by French postmodern philosopher Deleuze. This project looks to translate Deleuze's ideas into fashion practice. The aim is to explore through leather craft the relationship and mutual influence between the fashion artefact and the wearer - the perception of his/her body.

To shape the final pieces I am using a technique called leather wet free-forming. Typically while wet-forming leather, a last is used to create the shape, leather then takes the shape of the last) and ideally keeps it as it dries. Free-forming allows much more creative freedom in giving the artwork its form while in the process as the material can be hand-shaped spontaneously creating a variety of folds and organic shapes. This method of working with leather supports the idea of primarily surrendering to the material and the process while also exploring the full potential of unique properties that leather has, therefore fully embracing the precious material that it is. In my process, I work with pre-moulded copies of my hands that I use as tools to help me achieve the desired effect.