Bag your art

Bag your art Staff Reporter (news@khaleejtimes.com) / 30 May 2013 Fancy a painting to match your handbag? A new exhibition, claiming to be the first-of-its-kind in Dubai to showcase art-as-fashion, is opening next month. Pro Art Gallery will be showcasing the collaboration of the works of Hong Kong-based handbag designer, Piecco Pang (PP4E) and New York-based painter Antoinette Wysocki for a month, kick-starting June 5. The exhibition, entitled ‘Full Spectrum’, will present and sell paintings and handbags of the same print. Pang first met Wysocki at her art opening in Hong Kong, where they formed a strong creative connection, and decided to collaborate on a series of limited edition handbags, designed by Pang and featuring abstract paintings by Wysocki, which combines their passion for fashion, function and art.  Curator Nabil Sammer said this was something new for Dubai art and fashion fans and collectors to see. “It is happening more and more around the world (but) it’s something that hasn’t been done before here, so it’s special to see. “(And) fashion here in Dubai interests a lot of people. It’s also interesting to see the fashion and artwork of other regions coming here.” The paintings and bags were intended to be sold together, he said. There are about 25 paintings and bags on display, with prices ranging from Dh25,000 to Dh60,000. Each bag is signed by both artists. Gallery owner and founder Tatiana Faure said this was the first time the gallery, based in Jumeriah’s Palm Strip Shopping Mall on Beach Road, had showcased such a combination of not only great artists, but two diverse art forms. “The collections are set to make a huge mark in the art world in the UAE and we foresee a tremendous amount of interest in this unique exhibition,” Faure said. The collection represented a growing trend around the world, of collaborations between luxury firms and artists such as the corporate Vuitton/Yayoi Kusama collaboration a few months ago, she said. “Art has even inspired Art fashion: Yves Saint Laurent had that Mondrian Collection, Elsa Schiaparelli worked with Salvador Dali.… Everybody remembers the Vuitton/Takashi Murakami collaboration.” Wysocki is an expressionistic painter who employs mixed media on organic materials, including canvas and rag.  She has shown internationally, including in London, Hong Kong and New York. She works with multiple layers, beginning with gestures and washes and moving to controlled brush strokes with more detail. Meanwhile, self-proclaimed perfectionist Pang began designing and creating clutch bags for a close group of personal friends while working as a private banker. He has now become one of Hong Kong’s top bespoke clutch designers, and sells his bags in Paris, London, Milan, Berlin and Dubai Mall.   Taylor Scott International