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Tuesday , December 14, 2010
Love (and a Q&A): Vivien Cheng
Based in England, artist and designer Vivien Cheng takes vintage handbags and turns them into whimsical, utterly marvelous works of art. Literally -- she paints on them in painstaking and gorgeous detail, drawing designs and motifs that emphasize the beauty of their original designs while taking them into new, fanciful directions. I love how it's a bit Art Nouveau, a bit nature-whimsy -- and completely eye-catching. (And, needless to say, quite eco-friendly.) Vivien's work is carried in such London boutiques as Covet, and she's starting to make waves here in the U.S., being recently picked up at Sophie Roan in NYC. (She also has an Etsy shop -- yay for online shopping!) Her work is one-of-a-kind, serene yet vibrant -- and it's wonderful to see the care and attention paid on each item.
Not only is she talented and creative (our favorite type of being around here), Vivien was kind enough to answer a few questions about her work and process for nogoodforme.com!
+ How did you get started in art and fashion? Was it something you always pursued and dreamt about or was it something you discovered via doing something else?
Well, ever since I was a child, I've enjoyed being creative, whether I was drawing or doing something with my clothes. Now it just feels like I'm being creative on a more noticeable scale.
+ How did you come to use vintage handbags as a central part of your work?
It all began at the end of 2004 when I started a blog called 21 dresses. I had always been obsessed about revamping vintage clothing and the blog was a good place to demonstrate what I did - at the time, it was really just a side project. I had spray-painted a bag using lace as a stencil, and the experimentation eventually led to hand-painted motifs. A year and a half later, while I was working in Paris for Manoush, the head designer spotted my bag and asked me to customise a line for their shops under my own name, and that's when I began to see potential in this kind of design.
+ Who are some of your fashion/design/anything heroes and heroines?
Erte, Hiroshige, Alexander McQueen, Eley Kishimoto, Balenciaga. I also love traditional handicrafts and the artisans who make them, particularly those in Mexico, Panama and Japan.
+ What are some of your first memories in regards to clothes, fashion, etc?
I was into fashion from the start. As a kid I would sometimes change my outfits two or three times a day and I'd be quite stubborn about what I wore. Once, when I was about ten, I refused to go to classmate's birthday party unless my parents bought me a new jean skirt to wear to it. My parents won that one, of course.
+ What's next for your label/company? Do you want to stay in reworking bags, or expand into other directions?
For now, I am going to continue to hand-paint vintage bags, but I'm always interested in exploring other design avenues, such as collaborations with other clothing or product designers. I'm also toying with the idea of producing an additional label with eco-friendly materials so we'll see!
+ What kind of music do you like to listen to while you're working? How about the music when you're getting ready to go out?
At the moment this is what I'm listening to:
Working: Portishead, Goldfrapp
Going out: Cut Copy and Hot Chip
Tags: art, eco-fashion, eco-friendly, handbags, vintage, Vivien Cheng
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1 Comments!!
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By Hull34Melanie on July 12, 2010 4:01 PM