Kicking off this Saturday, September 17th, Anita Sue Kolman Gallery will host "Fashioned: One Becomes Another," an exhibition that explores transformation. Minneapolis2night had the opportunity to sit down with Patrick Kemal Pryor, the mastermind, whose actual paintings were transformed into dresses by former Project Runway contestant Christopher Straub.
1. Patrick, tell us a little about how you got involved in your art work?. I'm a self-taught artist. I've had a few other careers, and I decided to pursue art after watching the movie Pollock. The timing was right, I quit my job, went to Home Depot and bought a bunch of paint to sling. I felt like life was too short to do anything else.
2. I've seen some of the amazing work you have done, specifically for Target, how did you get involved? I participated in Target's Design United this year by creating five different paintings interpreting Target's logo. I think I was 'discovered' via an internet search for artists that already use red circles in their work.
3. What’s the concept behind “Fashioned: One Becomes Another”? The concept behind the show is the idea of one thing becoming another thing through transformation or rearranging. Nancy MacKenzie transforms ordinary materials like onion bags into other forms, Kate Casanova transforms an old chair into a mushroom bed, and Christopher Straub rearranges my canvas paintings (which you can see at patrickpryor.com) to make beautiful little dresses.
4. How did you team up with former Project Runway contestant Christopher Straub? I met Christopher at a fashion show. He was a judge and I'd won an award for a dress I designed. It was my first time designing a dress, and I was inspired to do more, and so I asked him to collaborate and he said "yes" and within one meeting we had the whole project planned out like we'd been thinking the same thing all along. I painted 8 large canvases and Christopher transformed each one into a beautiful dress inspired by the canvas material's rigidity and his reactions to my designs.
5. What can guests expect for this weekend's show? Guests should plan on getting there between 7:00 and 7:30pm to catch the beginning of the show. Professional models will be wearing the dresses to display them for our viewing, and unlike a typical fashion show our models will be standing still upon pedestals.
Come down to the Anita Sue Kolman Gallery inside the Northrup King Building (1500 Jackson St. NE, Studio #395, Minneapolis, MN) this Saturday. Free Admission. Busy this Saturday? You can stop by any Saturday during the day from 12:00pm-4:00pm when the gallery is open to the public.
