TATU
THESIS 2014-2015
The body is a scrapbook, with tattoos (and scars) as imprints of our travels;
a living, breathing chronicle of our life’s story.
The body is a map, both private and public,
revealing intimacies in layers, one of a kind,
and tattoos highlight a treasured spots.
Tattoos are quite literally a blood pact,
a pledge of permanence, dramatized flesh.
Tattoos mirror memory, transforming and evolving as the body ages,
becoming stains of significance.
a living, breathing chronicle of our life’s story.
The body is a map, both private and public,
revealing intimacies in layers, one of a kind,
and tattoos highlight a treasured spots.
Tattoos are quite literally a blood pact,
a pledge of permanence, dramatized flesh.
Tattoos mirror memory, transforming and evolving as the body ages,
becoming stains of significance.
My introduction to tattoo, piercings and body modification began at an early age. I grew up in a city north of Philadelphia, PA; it was filled with a number of artistic and independent individuals: fine artists, hair and makeup talent, tattoo artists and other free spirited people. I was aware that each person’s bodies represented a story: of who they were, where they’ve been, what they stand for.
Pursuing my two bachelors degrees simultaneously, in Fashion Design and Psychology really opened my eyes in the specificity and precision with which people make decisions in life. Everyday we make choices on how we want to present ourselves to the world, who we want to be that day: through our clothing, haircuts, makeup, and tattoos/piercings.
For my pre-thesis collection in Spring 2014, I designed a 15 look collection inspired by the way people change their bodies around the world: tattoo, henna and tribal scarification. Cultures across the world since the beginning of time, have used body modification as indicators of their tribes, religions and personal traits.
Fascinated by the universality of tattoo art and body modification, I continued to explore this idea throughout the rest of 2014 and into 2015 for my senior thesis.
The resulting series has been a 6 piece lingerie collection with select RTW elements and accessories, each covering and revealing intimate or unusual parts of the body. The main focus of this collection has been the inclusion of lasercut leather- cut to look as if it were lace, but giving a sexier and more dominating edge to the lingerie pieces. Many of the pieces can be layered over one another to make a seamless bedroom-to-outwear transition. The lasercutting patterns must be painstakingly laid out by hand for each piece, creating a seamless marriage between the patterns and the garments.
Tatu celebrates the woman’s body- It is the woman’s body.
Pursuing my two bachelors degrees simultaneously, in Fashion Design and Psychology really opened my eyes in the specificity and precision with which people make decisions in life. Everyday we make choices on how we want to present ourselves to the world, who we want to be that day: through our clothing, haircuts, makeup, and tattoos/piercings.
For my pre-thesis collection in Spring 2014, I designed a 15 look collection inspired by the way people change their bodies around the world: tattoo, henna and tribal scarification. Cultures across the world since the beginning of time, have used body modification as indicators of their tribes, religions and personal traits.
Fascinated by the universality of tattoo art and body modification, I continued to explore this idea throughout the rest of 2014 and into 2015 for my senior thesis.
The resulting series has been a 6 piece lingerie collection with select RTW elements and accessories, each covering and revealing intimate or unusual parts of the body. The main focus of this collection has been the inclusion of lasercut leather- cut to look as if it were lace, but giving a sexier and more dominating edge to the lingerie pieces. Many of the pieces can be layered over one another to make a seamless bedroom-to-outwear transition. The lasercutting patterns must be painstakingly laid out by hand for each piece, creating a seamless marriage between the patterns and the garments.
Tatu celebrates the woman’s body- It is the woman’s body.
PROCESS BOOK:
a huge thank you to: Alicia & Rob Wozniak, Patricia Porter, David & Amanda Rambo, Ryan Woodring, Edward Shaughnessy, Greg & Susan Schuyler, Caroline Eppinger, Jesse Eppinger, Tracey Colonna, Rebekah DeFreest, Yvette Hendler, Kathleen Weber, Alice Kwiatkowski, Alyssa Renck, Catherine Burton, Mary Boykoff, Jean & Rob McFarland, Andrew McFarland, Lynne Holden, Sydney Day, Matt & Tara Donahue, Dawn Talmadge, Marisa Flacks & The Style Almanac, Kimberly Niyogi, Christina McElhenny, Janine Fox, Mary Chimenti, Elinor Levy, Kaylee Boyer, Maria Petrova, Tatiana Ka, Daniela Casado, Lady Gray, Irina Simeonova, Yoon-Jong Chang