Aurora´s Lips don’t lie. I can really assure it as I attended the grand opening of her latest collection in the JF+SON boutique on Kenmare Street. A delicate and perfectly tailored collection, “Lips by Aurora”, was showed to a selected group of people, interested in traditional handcrafts juxtaposed with contemporary designs and cuts. As the show went on, everyone was amazed with the contrasting of high impact colors with neutral ones, energizing the entire place around.
Aurora Pellizzi, a Mexican-American artist and textile designer, was influenced by traditional Mexican techniques of painting and weaving as well as the unique, New York style. Working by the hand of Travis Boyer in a special project series at JF+SON called MFT (My favorite things), both having a strong interest in fine arts, textile traditions and crafts, they worked together in this unique collection.
“We used a series of twenty-three lips-shaped paintings of mine to apply to fabric using traditional and contemporary techniques. We created a variety of textures and surfaces that resulted in expanding and contracting fields of color and adornment,” said Aurora about the concept and inspiration of the collection.
Using lip-shaped embroidered accessories as complementary wearable objects to garments and silk-digital printing was used as an innovative way to express through fabrics their story.
Aurora is currently based in Bogotá, Colombia looking to study the practices of craft and textile design, both traditional and contemporary, with the desire to incorporate new forms into her practice.
Interview
LD: How has been the experience of working and developing a collaboration project by mixing inspirations, and styles, with JF+SON?
AP: I have been extremely fortunate to work with a company that shares my interest in natural fibers, traditional craft, and innovative design. JF+SON has a studio in India with excellent craftsmen, who can fabricate just about any idea, image, texture, shape, or form. The talented and creative individuals behind JF+SON have created an expansive community of artists, musicians, performers, and designers, both friends and collaborators, of which it is great to be part.
LD: Why are you interested in working with handcrafted and traditional techniques of beading, embroidery? Does it have something to do with your cultural backgrounds, or any special taste for simpleness?
AP: As an artist, I am invested in making images and objects with my hands, so it is natural for me to trust and value the innovation inherent in craft. I grew up exposed to both the handcrafted traditions of Mexican painting, silver-smithing, and weaving, as well as to the freedom and originality of NYC.
LD: For you what does ‘looking forward clothing’ mean; is there any environmental consciousness involved?
AP: I believe in clothing that looks in all directions. The past is really important to me, because I believe in preserving tradition and putting it to good use.
LD: As a fashion designer and label, what has been your biggest challenge, besides competition?
AP: My biggest challenge has been considering the problem of translation between the different cultures and visual traditions that I am fluent in. I have had to develop a personal cross-cultural visual language in order to communicate with my different audiences.
LD: How can you describe Aurora Pellizzi and what makes you different from the rest?
AP: I approach fashion, not from the perspective of trends, sales, or markets, but rather from my interest in color, texture, and surface. I am interested in traditional methods of production and the intelligence inherent in them.
LD: How would you differentiate NY from any other fashion capital city like Paris or London? Is there a unique difference for new and young designer?
AP: New York is a city of immigrants with a growing Latin American community. It is made up of both the Old and New Worlds. In New York you have influences from all around the world, but you don’t have any tradition of decency and there are no dress codes to be broken. Anything is valid, and sometimes the results can be extraordinary.
LD: What would be your advice for students and young designer dreaming about making their fashion projects a reality here in NYC?
1) Travel.
2) Draw every day.
3) Collect fabric.
4) Create a blog.
