Daily Sitka Sentinel

Sewing Candy? It’s All About Wearable Art

By SHANNON HAUGLAND

Sentinel Staff Writer

Suzan Brawnlyn tells a story familiar to many who have created garments for the annual Wearable Art Show.

Models gather on the catwalk at the finale of the 2014 Wearable Arts and Runway Extravaganza. (Sentinel file photo)

“I was sewing the Red Vines into the sleeves, and the rest of the candy starts popping off,” said Brawnlyn, who is participating in her second show next weekend. “I was like, ‘NOOO!’”

Last-minute breakdowns, wardrobe malfunctions, the manic gathering of one item or another, and many a broken sewing machine needles are among the experiences.

But the artists say it’s hard not to get hooked on the challenge of creating a unique garment every year that will be worn down the runway before an audience of hundreds.

The Greater Sitka Arts Council will host the 7th Annual Wearable Art Show Saturday, March 7, at Centennial Hall. There are two shows this year, a matinee at 3 p.m. and an evening show at 7 p.m.

For the show, artists are invited to create functional – or not so functional – pieces of wearable art using any type or types of visual media. Work is exhibited in the runway show, with artists picking music and sometimes choreographing a dance for their two minutes on the runway.

The theme this year is in honor of the seventh year of the show: “Seven Seas, Clean Seas.” Artists are encouraged, but not required, to create pieces along the theme. Each year the theme is around the number of years of the Sitka show.

“Our theme is used for staging the show, but not intended to limit entries,” the GSAC website says.

While you may run into a few in Sitka who entered their first Wearable Art Show without seeing a single “runway extravaganza,” most say they wanted to participate after seeing their first show.

“I went and watched, and got hooked,” said Cinthia Bustos, describing her first Wearable Art experience in 2013. “I like how people made their things to show everybody else. Last year, there was different denim (pieces) but they did them so different. I like that you can make so many different things with the same things.”

She came back the next year with her own creation, “Just for the Taste of It,” that used pull tabs and other materials from Coke products. She also created a garment for someone else to model.

She said after the 2014 show wrapped up she started brainstorming for 2015. But since that time she has been emphatic about keeping her garment behind closed doors until it debuts on the runway. She said she plans to attend the dress rehearsal in street clothes in order to preserve that element of surprise for the first show; however, she would reveal that she is using dryer sheets.

“I have a big family,” Bustos said of the plentiful supply of the material in her house at any time. “My (4-year-old) daughter always is playing with them.”

Bill Foster has been in four of the six shows so far, debuting with his “I’ve Been Everywhere” garment made from his extensive license plate collection. Another year, the retired Sitka High science teacher used Alaska Airlines baggage tags. The garment is now on display at the airport, where he works. Another show featured Foster’s suit of nautical flags, now up at Harry Race Pharmacy. 

For last year’s show, Foster used old Kodachrome, and threw out photographic slides as he took his final stroll up the runway with the group, marveling later that many kids had no idea what they were.

“I don’t know (why I participate),” he said. “It’s fun to get together. The best part is just working on it, trying to solve some problems so you don’t have a wardrobe malfunction. You need to try it out before you go down the runway. ... The crowd is so welcoming and good and it’s just fun. The crowd doesn’t know what to expect.”

Foster said he likes the ever-changing pace of the show, with some of the pieces and presentations loud and uplifting, and others slow and graceful. He said including kids in the show is also fun.

“I could say something positive about everything,” he said. 

Most people try to keep their creations a secret until dress rehearsal, although Bustos said she likes the big reveal just before heading down the runway.

“I just like seeing people’s faces when they haven’t seen it, and they’re, like, ‘Wow,’” Bustos said.

Brawnlyn entered a clothespin dress last year, with her model, Cori Schumejda, as her inspiration. “After she said yes, the image came in,” Brawnlyn said of the tall counselor from Sitka High. Brawnlyn was also pleased to have found a good companion musical piece, “Clothespin Blues,” to accompany her artwork.

This year, she designed a garment for a specific 8-year-old girl who had been “begging, begging, begging” to be in the show since she saw her first runway extravaganza at age 4. 

Brawnlyn had ideas for four garments but due to her hectic schedule is going to end up with the single sweets-inspired piece.

She said in the shows she’s seen, there seems to be no end to the number of items that can be sewn, or the last-minute work that can be accomplished, given a needle and sometimes a glue gun to finish.

“Yes, you can sew candy,” Brawnlyn said. “You can sew it if you have to ... I was nervous about the candy.” She brought along a glue gun to last year’s show, as backup for the clothespin creation.

Budd started the Wearable Art show here after being the emcee for the oldest wearable art show in Alaska – and one of the first in the world – in Ketchikan. The Ketchikan show goes back 28 years, two years ahead of the most famous show in the world in New Zealand. Budd said he believes the breakthrough moment in Ketchikan’s Wearable Art history came with an entry from Ray Troll, who designed a vest made of 2-by-4 lumber.

“Everyone went ‘Ah! We can do whatever we want and there’s no limit,’” Budd said. 

Budd has modeled various garments over the years here, including an Xtratuf vest, a pirate boat, a blue tarp suit, and an aloha cowboy outfit made by other artists. 

“I like them all,” Budd said.

Those who spoke with the Sentinel this week said they enjoy most of all seeing the variety of garments and artists, and the widespread support from the community at every show.

“Like Bill says, it’s fun to see what people come up with,” Budd said. “It’s a good fundraiser, all ages can do it, it’s a challenge to put together. And the whole scene – it’s fun to see people smiling.”

“For me, I know we have a creative community, but I’m always blown out of the water,” Brawnlyn said. “It just comes off the stage. To be part of the community that’s that creative, that’s exactly what I love about it.”

After the show there is a reception where the audience has a chance for an up-close look at the garments.

The show is coordinated by the Greater Sitka Arts Council, with sponsorships from Guardian Flight, Alaska Airlines and Club 49, Holland America Line, Wells Fargo, FNBA, Ben Franklin store, UAS, Old Harbor Books and SEARHC.

Tickets are $15 for adults and $5 for kids under 12, at Old Harbor Books.