Entering the first gallery room, the enclosed walls are lined with black rubber strips, while vintage McLaren and Westwood garments from the '70s are partnered with current renditions in knitwear, tartans and leather.

“For punks in the street, the style was motivated as much by poverty as by rebellion and was distinguished by all kinds of DIY customization: cutting, lettering and safety-pinning, often evoking the anger of Dada, the French Situationist and even early Conceptual art, while foreshadowing postmodern deconstruction.” ~ Suzanne DeChillo of The New York Times

The last gallery is Destroy with slashes, rips, slipped-knits, odd piece-togethers and lots of holes - the ultimate finale of deconstruction for the extravaganza.

Let's go from New York City to southwestern New Jersey. We set the destination in the GPS for the Academy Square Galleries to see Fashion as Muse, on view until August 12th, an uncommon view of fashion as the inspiration for art. When we arrived in downtown Montclair's art district, we expected to find a gallery for the address provided on the website, but after parking on the street nearby, we double checked and ventured cautiously into the building. No big signs, no lights, no fanfare, yet here we were! The eclectic exhibit produced by Studio Montclair lines the first and second floor hallways of the newer building filled with attorney offices - a quiet and unexpected setting for this wildly unique collection from area artists. The display is dominated by female artists voicing a bold statement that attests to fashion's beauty, oddity and controversy.


Claire Rosen's photographic pigment prints named Aves (pictured above, #5 is one of three) are some of the more jarring works in the exhibit featuring women in long black gowns and bird's heads in place of their own.

Intriguing textile sculpture, like this one from Linda Brooks Hirschman entitled Americana, is highly detailed and imaginative in classic red, white and blue shades and patterning.


"In today's world of genetically engineered foods and genetically engineered animals, as well as 'Designer' everything, I present my Designer Flora, one-of-a-kind flowers for the plant collector who desires a fashionable garden." ~ Linda Brooks Hirschman


Fancy Free #2 in leather and mixed media by Alice Harrison is stunning in the combination of stitching and fabrics. "These pieces of leather hung in my studio waiting to be fashioned into figures or clothing. I was not sure which. I had recently returned to doing the art I had been doing for years - returning from a temporary period of creating and decorating clothing for sale at craft shows, trade shows, etc... although the clothing was whimsical - it was 'serious business'."

On the controversial side of serious business, Kathryn Eddy's Pig Blindness collages represent an "artist whose work explores the human relationship... pointing out our obsessive fashion voyeurism and our blindness toward our farmed food animals".

In Fancy Free #4 from Alice Harrison "the leather pieces became my carefree creations - some with no thought to the subject, some were - southern belle, western and ballet dancer whose tutu was drier lint. And so the assemblages / collages became Fancy Free - a joy to do and I hope fun to behold".


Baby Gaga by Linda Brooks Hirschman, another fabulous botanical creation in felt, crochet and bead work.


"There is something delightfully empowering about ripping images of beauty and opulence from fashion magazines and transforming their meaning in a work of art... (mine) are reflective works contemplating existential issues and the pursuit of making art inspired by the plethora of images and ideas found in fashion and style magazines. " ~ Elizabeth Jane Munro, creator of Salty Siren above.


Muse in Iceberg Dress, also by Elizabeth Jane Munro, is a colorful and detailed mixed media work.

My favorite pieces in the whole exhibit were these three by Christine Parker, in acrylic on canvas, simply named Runway White Dress, Runway Blue Dress and Runway Orange Dress. These clean and sophisticated modern arts were inspired by  the Narciso Rodriguez Spring 2013 collection.