Summer may be over the hump, but it’s not over yet, dammit! That’s
why the team that brought you the Mercury‘s spring fashion show,
Forecast, is rallying once more for the Last Splash, a
pool party and experiment in avant garde swimwear designs commissioned
not just from apparel designers but from visual artists working in
various mediums. Throw any notion of practicality out the
window—I along with Connie Wohn, Kirk Sutherland,
Frances May owner Pamela Baker-Miller, and freelance
fashion writer Brett Glass encouraged participants to think big
and way outside the box.
Readers of this column will recognize some of the artists, like
apparel designer Adam Arnold, Paperdoll Fashion‘s
Heather Treadway, Hecklewood‘s Sam Huff, and
Dana Bruington, whose show-stopping textile designs were part of
the Forecast emerging-designer showcase. In addition, Last Splash will
feature swimwear entries from artists like Dana Dart-McLean,
whose past work has included gouache, ink, and graphite; Fritz
Mesenbrink, who’s designed for local hot spots like
Stumptown and Clyde Common, among many others; multimedia
artist Israel Lund; Jeremy Pelley and Philip
Iosca, both of whose past work includes commissions for the
Portland Ace Hotel; painter, sculptor, and animator Jo
Jackson; sculptor Kent Richardson; art collective Oregon
Painting Society; Russell Short, AKA stencil artist
Klutch; and Plazm‘s Sarah Gottesdiener.
Few of the pieces will actually be swim-friendly, and will parade on
a custom floating runway built over a junior Olympic-sized pool by Kent
Richardson and Justin Gorman, where audience members can watch
either from poolside or in the water itself. Dundiggy will
soundtrack the event, and Por Qué No, Koi Fusion, and Fifty
Licks will provide food. (Peninsula Park Pool, 700 N Rosa Parks, Sat
Aug 22, 6 pm, $8)
Thinking beyond summer to fall, Portland Fashion Week is
getting ready for its October run, this year with the addition of an
emerging apparel designer showcase, wherein new designers can benefit
from the event’s exposure at a reduced participation fee of $350 to
show seven looks. Open auditions are taking place this week, and I will
be serving on the jury alongside the Art Institute‘s director of
apparel design, Sue Bonde; Physical Element‘s Jo
Carter; designer Anna Cohen; Sofada‘s Alice
Dobson; Saturn Style Studios‘ Marie Saturn; Modi
Soondarotok of IDOM; and Lisa Radon of the
Portland Monthly/Spaces Culturephile blog. (Art Institute of Portland, 1122 NW Davis, Room 263, Sun Aug
23, 2-5 pm—be sure to bring fully completed samples!)