Rachel Snider: The Tea Project
September 8, 2011Rachel Snider, a fantastic London bases Performance Artist and theatre maker contacted me almost a year ago to help her with the set design and costume for her new solo show. Since then we have been developing a collection of otherworldly objects to enhance her captivating performance, as she tells stories from her life threading them together in a celebration of Afternoon Tea. The show after much careful crafting over the year in collaboration with Polona Baloh Brown, is now ready, with its first unveiling on the 25th May at the V&A. Then later in the month at Fortnums & Masons. Please come and see the show!
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- Our design process started with the english myth of the oriental of the willow pattern
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- Tea bags, strainers, sugar cubes, milk……
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- The Willow pattern was then applied to the base costume, but we wanted something with a modern twist…..
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- research, I love this pic
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- more research
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- Pattern designer Isobel Webster ( isobel@zebraworld.co.uk ) designed us this amazing fabric pattern wich could them be traslated to the leotard pattern
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- The legging pattern showing the 2 doves, with Isobels geometric style
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- The initial design for the tea dress- Rachel was going to climb into the hot water and dunk herselve and the teabags
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- scale drawings for the tea cup construction and the sugar cube shoes
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- The finished Fiberglass cup and saucer!
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- The next layer of the costume was based on the metal strainers in the tea process
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- Sketch of the metal strainer dress layer of the costume
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- making a paper mock up in silver mirror card
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- strainer bust detail
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- The cardbord mock up was then posed off to Nigel Carren a armour maker in a castel in France
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- The skirt in construction
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- The top being created
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- The dress rehursal…..
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- Rachel with the tea rabbit ears
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- One lump or two?
