Om kunstneren

Mitt navn er Adele Finsrud. Jeg er 23 år gammel og studerer klesdesign i København. Jeg er nå på mitt siste år av en bachelor ved Scandinavian Academy of Fashion Design. I mitt arbeid lar jeg meg inspirere av samfunnsproblemer og sosiale ulikheter, samtidig som miljøkrisen har en stor påvirkning. Dette har dannet grunnlaget for mitt visuelle uttrykk og arbeidsmetoder, som ofte kan bevege seg nær linjen mellom mote og kunst.

Jeg mener at man som designer har et stort ansvar for å gjøre smarte og miljøvennlige løsninger. Jeg setter materialet i fokus, og ønsker å kun bruke naturlige tekstiler med god kvalitet, gjenvunnet materiale, eller se etter nye og innovative løsninger.

Bidrag

Om bidraget

WITHERED BEAUTY

My contribution is a mini collection I have named “Withered Beauty”. As a starting point, I looked to the tuberculosis epidemic between 1840 and 1850, or consumption as it was called back then. This disease was highly romanticized at the time, as its symptoms reflected the coveted female beauty standards in the western world. The infected would be struck by high fever, heavy weight loss and pale skin. They could easily live with consumption and its symptoms for a few years, before it ended in a “good death” for many. This made it easy to get their last affairs in order, and to prepare family and friends for a period of mourning before one passed away, which many also believed would save them from purgatory. The disease inspired quite a few artists, whether it was depicted on canvas or on stage in the form of a tragic love story. The latest fashion helped to achieve the ideal razor-thin figure, and many women voluntarily exposed themselves to dangerous chemicals such as arsenic and charcoal in their skin care routine to whiten their skin and teeth.

There are countless examples of how people put themselves in danger to achieve short-term goals, whether it concerns a desirable appearance or how we have long since used up nature’s resources for short-term pleasure. With this collection, I want to reflect on humanity’s own mortality, and how nature breaks down and reacts in the face of man-made threats. Through the beauty ideals of the 1840s and 50s with a modern approach, nature’s many processes and forgotten treasures, and metals left behind, I want to tell a story about nature’s resilience and the enormous consequences today’s society can have for the uncertain future.

I have chosen old techniques to color and design the fabrics, like natural dying and eco printing, as well as newer and unconventional materials, like kombucha leather. The whole collection is made from vegan, natural fibers and materials that will eventually be a part of nature once discarded. I have also opted for metal instead of plastic, to avoid spreading of micro-plastics. Most of the metal used is pieces I have collected from the side of the road.