Aware: Art Fashion Indentity

Meschak Gaba

Exhibition at Royal Academy but actually display as Haunch of Venison round the corner. Really excited to see this exhibition and it didn't disappoint from the opening view of the Grayson Perry coat as you climbed the stairs, and the stunning Helen Storey dissolving dress to artists that I hadn't heard of but all made me think and nearly all were valid inclusions in this well ordered and inciteful exhibition.

The Meschak Gaba head pieces in the room where I had only recently seen the Polly Morgan Psychopomps were really captivating the use of traditional weaving techniques with fake hair and taking these forms into traditional African head wrap styles was fascinating and I really enjoyed the display form.

The Helen Storey dissolving dress made strong reference to the fact that we need to rethink how we produce and use clothing yet in its form looked as a beautiful piece of art or theatre as the dress was lost into the pool of seaweed water.

I had seen the Susie Macmurray piece Widow at Platt Hall, in the Haunch of Venison it took on an even more beautiful glow and stature; though still in a mansion house setting it had a lot more space around it to weave its spell and the lighting made it shimmer and shine making the starkness of the needles more vibrant when looked at closely.

Sadly I have no more photos as I was then told not to take photographs. I am quite happy to follow such guidelines, (though there were no signs up) if there is the opportunity afterwards to buy a catalogue or images. I thoroughly understand the need not to project an artists identity with bad images etc etc but I feel this needs a rethink as there is often the need for an aide memoire and many museums you sign a photography disclosure form to ensure that they are for educational purpose only. So I wrote lots of notes.

Things I really loved - the Dai Rees -Carapace Tryptych:The Butchers Window 2003, using 1950's vintage Vogue patterns and creating leather 'garments' that resemble carcasses. Beautifully curated space. Andrea Zittel A-Z Fibre Form Uniforms 2003-06 hand made felt done exquisitely; Gillian Wearings film of policeman sitting for a photograph really subtle and enlightening. The Yoko Ono and Marina Abramovic's pieces from the 60's and 70's performance art were really poignant and relevant as was the Cindy Sherman Doll's Clothes.

Well worth a visit and the £5 entrance fee. The space at the Haunch of Venison is superbly used and allows you to  see all the pieces effectively without them crowding each other.