Fresh Green Jewelry by Ceca Georgieva

The latest green leaf and vegetation experiments by Bulgarian eco textile artist, Ceca Georgieva. Ceca is represented in the US by Browngrotta Arts and is currently exhibiting her green jewelry in (Re)Fashioning Fiber. She also conducts workshops from her studio at the base of Mount Vitosha in Sofia. Stay tuned for more information on our upcoming fiber and vegetation collaborations.

(Re) Fashioning Fiber at Green Spaces NY

Xing-Zhen Chung-Hilyard and Melissa Kirgan of Eko-Lab's 'Trees In The Dark, Dresses In The Light' mixed media fiber drawings/sustainable fashion installation and Abigail Doan's 'Fiber Flotsam Colony' on table (photo by Abigail Doan)

Kaori Yamazaki's eco-fiber jewelry installation (photo by Emma Grady)

Sibyll Kalff's 'Little Books' along wall baseboard and Abigail Doan's recycled flotsam fiber forms on wall and floor (photo by Abigail Doan)

Gorgeously green and colorful Eko-Lab models Dina Liss (on left) and Danielle Bowen (on right) looking fresh in make up by Masae Satouchi (photo courtesy of Eko-Lab)

Eko-Lab designers Melissa Kirgan and Xing-Zhen Chung-Hilyard with models Dina and Danielle looking sustainably gorgeous

Fiber/textile installations by Atefeh Khas, Tara Goodarzy, Renata Mann, Michelle Vitale Loughlin (with soundscape by Matt Pass), Kaori Yamazaki, Meiling Chen, Brece Honeycutt and Abigail Doan in this view (photo by Abigail Doan)

Fiber/textile installations by Atefeh Khas, Tara Goodarzy, Renata Mann, Meiling Chen and Kaori Yamazaki in this view (photo by Abigail Doan)

Fiber/textile installations by Tara St. James, Atefeh Khas, Tara Goodarzy, Renata Mann, Michelle Vitale Loughlin (with soundscape by Matt Pass), and Meiling Chen in this view (photo by Abigail Doan)

Tara St. James' paired-ensemble, 'Skyline Skirt and Cobweb Bolero' (Study NY S/S 2010 Collection) created from (re)fashioned twill tape and design studio 'waste textiles'. Love her signature recycled zipper necklaces (photo by Emma Grady)

Michelle Vitale Loughlin's 'Towers 1-3' crafted out of recycled tomato stands, natural fiber knitted on the artist’s first knitting machine with an accompanying sound component entitled, ‘Tower Strings’ by Matt Pass in which three twelve-foot piano strings were strung and then played with wineglasses, mini fans piano hammers, and a French horn piece (photo by Abigail Doan)

Meiling Chen's Clothes Make the Man/’Coat of Many Colours’ embroidered garment crafted out of a vintage shirt donated by a friend, flea market threads, and recycled hanger from the laundromat - installed with Renata Mann Jewlery (photo by Meiling Chen)

Mixed media drawings/collages by Meiling Chen installed with Renata Mann Jewelry (photo by Meiling Chen)

Meiling Chen's Clothes Make the Man/‘Wear Your Heart on your Sleeve’ embroidered garment crafted out of a vintage shirt donated by a friend, flea market threads, and recycled hanger from the laundromat - installed with Renata Mann Jewlery (photo by Meiling Chen)

Mackenzie Frere's 'Study for Breathing 3' (detail). A gossamer-like net hand-crafted out of silk, safflower petals, and madder root

More photos viewable on Eko-Lab's flickr page. Detailed views and profiles of specific works to come. Coverage of (Re)Fashioning Fiber also appears on Treehugger and PLANET mag online.

This group exhibit will be on view at Green Spaces NY through August 13, 2010 with special gallery hours on Wednesdays between 4 -7pm throughout the summer.

(Re)Fashioning Fiber Friends

Kaori Yamazaki, her partner, and Renata Mann installing their suspended fiber and mixed media work (photo by Abigail Doan)

Renata Mann working on her knit rope floor piece prior to the opening. Works by Michelle Vitale Loughlin, Meiling Chen, Kaori Yamazaki, Brece Honeycutt, Abigail Doan, and Sibyll Kalff also in this view (photo by Michelle Vitale Loughlin)

I am resting a bit today after several months of passionate work surrounding the curation of (Re)Fashioning Fiber. Lovely feedback and exquisite photos are fluttering into my inbox. Thank you everyone for these thoughtful gifts. Prior to sharing images from the final installation and opening night celebration, I wanted to post a few photos from the behind-the scenes magic that was so much a part of this collaborative effort.

I loved working with the artists, designers, and Green Spaces NY staff on this exhibit. For me, it was the best of a barn-raising experience surrounding what is possible with natural (eco) materials in an urban setting. Somehow, I think that this is just the beginning of something even more beautiful and sustainable.

Artist, writer, and curator Kathy Bruce visits the exhibit prior to the opening (photo by Michelle Vitale Loughlin)

Sibyll Kalff's 'Little Books' being unpacked from a storyteller's suitcase

Final details for fiber vignette 1. Works by Brece Honeycutt, Ceca Georgieva, Meiling Chen, and Renata Mann (photo by Abigail Doan)

Final details for fiber vignette 2. Works by Atefeh Khas, Tara Goodarzy, Abigail McEnroe, Renata Mann and Abigail Doan (photo by Abigail Doan)

Stay tuned for more images of work by Eko-Lab, Mackenzie Frere, Meiling Chen, and Tara St. James as well as all of the other artists and designers above.

Michelle Vitale Loughlin: Wool Punk Extraordinaire

'Cast' by Michelle Vitale Loughlin (Casa Terra Residency, Puglia, Italy)

'410 Bergen Lafayette' (detail) by Michelle Vitale Loughlin

I am thrilled to have artist Michelle Vitale Loughlin exhibiting one of her woolpunk installations in the upcoming exhibit, (Re)Fashioning Fiber at Green Spaces NY.

'Towers' by Michelle Vitale Loughlin

Michelle's subversive use of fiber craft interventions really typifies the spirit of wool punk attitudes and the layered urban environment. As the artist highlights on her website: "Let threads be articulate, and find a form for themselves to no other end than their own orchestration, not to be sat on, walked on, only to be looked at." (Anni Albers)

Word on the street: Michelle's Towers (pictured above) may just take on a sound dimension for (Re)Fashioning Fiber via a collaboration with sound artist, Matt Pass. The two recently collaborated on 'Water Falls' and 'Hydrolace' at Greylock Arts in Adams, Massachusetts.

'Water Falls' by Michelle Vitale Loughlin (Hunterdon Art Museum, NJ)

*Wool Punk Studios

Eko-Lab: Living Life in True Color

I had a lovely visit with Melissa and Xing-Zhen of Eko-Lab yesterday at their Lower East Side studio and design shop.



We chatted about details for the installation of their art/fashion project for (Re)Fashioning Fiber opening Thursday, May 20th at Green Spaces NY in Tribeca.



In addition to the textural delights of their hand-crafted accessories and latest sustainable fashion designs, we also sipped aromatic tea, ate delicious Chinese yams, and mused on the the organic realm and spun web structures.


All I can say is that my senses were tingling in a way that they never do when I visit a traditional fashion venue.

Do not miss Eko-Lab's participation in the upcoming 'Sustainable Exchange Workshops With Local Eco-Designers', May 6-9 in NYC. Eko-Lab will offer beginner crochet demonstrations in conjunction with the natural dye workshop on May 6.

*Eko-Lab

(Re)Fashioning Fiber with Atefeh Khas, Tara Goodarzy, and Persian New Arts

'Mashalak Jangel' (photograph by Rahele Zomorrodinia)

(photograph by Rahele Zomorrodinia)

(photograph by Rahele Zomorrodinia)

I am thrilled to have Iranian fiber/environmental artists, Atefeh Khas and Tara Goodarzy, participating in the upcoming exhibit that I am curating, (Re)Fashioning Fiber at Greenspaces NY.

Portuguese Castle/Hormoz Island, Iran (photograph by Rahele Zomorrodinia)

I have been in touch with Atefeh over the past year or more - thanks to another outstanding Iranian environmental artist, Dr. Ahmad Nadalian at the Paradise Art Center in Polour, Iran. Atefeh and Tara have particpated in a wave of environmental art festivals in Iran (organized by Nadalian) as well as being founding members of The Persian New Art Collective. I also featured Atefeh and Tara's fiber 'peace bracelets' on Ecco*Eco in March.

Fiber installation in progress on Hormoz Island, Iran (photograph by Rahele Zomorrodinia)

Environmental fiber installation on Hormoz Island, Iran (photograph by Sharnaz Zarkesh)

Fiber installation at Orumieh Lake/Tabriz, Iran (photograph by Sharnaz Zarkesh)

These exquisite images really speak for themselves, and this for me, is the beauty of the site-specific, eco-crafting work that Atefeh, Tara, and their contemporaries collaborate on. Even though Iran is worlds away, these green forests, distant shores, and ancient salt lakes seem like they are all glistening and spun from the same elements and fiber as ours.

(Re)Fashioning Fiber opens on May 20 in NYC.

(Re)Fashioning Fiber with the Women of Iran

photo by Shahnaz Zarkesh

Beautiful, handcrafted fiber 'peace bracelets' being distributed by Iranian artists, Atefeh Khas and Tara Goodarzy.

photo by Shahnaz Zarkesh

Atefeh and Tara have been reviving the domestic arts of their grandmothers and mothers via eco crafting initiatives meant to promote community building and environmental awareness. They are also part of the Iranian/Persian New Art Collective.

photo by Rahele Zomorrodinia

Atefeh Khas and Tara Goodarzy will participate in the upcoming group exhibition that I am curating for GreenSpaces NY in TriBeCa called (Re)Fashioning Fiber. Details to come.

You can also read more about my involvement with the Paradise Art Center in Polour, Iran here.