THE ART DIVA
Visual ARTs • Performing Arts
PAINTING WITH TULLE
Imagine what can be done with tulle when it's in the right hands. Benjamin Shine, whose clients range from Coca Cola to the New York Museum of Arts and Design, does it for us. In four gorgeous videos, we get a beautiful tour of some of his work.
Tulle Installation 'The Dance' by Benjamin Shine
"The tulle work explore ideas of impermanence and a sense of the fleeting moment conveyed through the inherent qualities of the delicate material. This latest installation ‘The Dance’ takes the medium to new limits through a series of suspended tulle sculptures. The installation explores the idea of creativity as a powerful yet brief force of energy from which humans are born and able to perpetuate through artistic expression. A white circular vessel releases a smoke-like plume of colored tulle high into the air, engulfing the ceiling above. Charged with passion and energy, two faces take form, bursting from the source as if manifesting momentarily as the energy flows on through their dance. Constructed from over 2000m of tulle, each sculpture is created through a process of pleating, layering, compacting and hand-sewing the material into shape. Relying on the structural properties of the fabric alone, the works are entirely made of tulle and thread. Details of the faces and figures are only revealed through the contrast created by the back-lighting."
– Benjamin Shine
Benjamin Shine "The Dance" collaboration with Canberra Center
From Bergdorf Goodman and Givenchy to Sotheby's - and across much of the internet - artist Benjamin Shine's ethereal work with tulle has made him perhaps the foremost fabric sculptor in practice today. The Cut met with Shine in his studio to see, and try to understand, his process.
Entwined Ribbon Sculpture by Benjamin Shine
"Entwined' celebrates the idea of two souls taking physical form, falling in love and sharing every twist and turn along the way. The wedding sculpture and installation takes the form of two ribbons, floating from the air as they loop and converge to define each profile. The ribbons continue meandering around trees and over branches, into the forest where they entwine to form the wedding arch. Located inside the venue's entrance, friends and guests were asked to follow the ribbons which lead them to the ceremony and seating area, 200 m away in the forest. In total, over 4 km of handwork was required in bending and compressing the edging to create the ribbons, which were powder-coated in white." – Benjamin Shine