Kendra Jo

Thursday 12 April 2012

Touched By A Rose

We have all been touched by a moment, a song, movie or a person at some point in our lives. This moment often shapes who we are and the things we value most in the world.

Love, beauty and fantasy. These things are a large part of who I am as an artist. Disney movies had a large role in this, mainly Beauty and the Beast. The rose in the movie is the epitome of these three words. It represents the ability to love and be loved, it is a symbol of beauty. It also gives off the idea that we can win the heart of a prince and live in a castle.

This is a series of both the un-wearable and the everyday. It is intended that each piece in this series makes a statement. These roses are meant to tell a story about how each individual has their own fantasy they carry with them. The colors and the silver add a certain precious and delicate quality to the piece, much like that of a rose.

It is about a moment we want to remember, cherish and fantasize about. We want to take these ideas and memories with us. It is about that moment that can help decide and guide our lives.

Touched By A Rose

Photographed by: Steffi Lord

Modeled by: Emmeli-Sue Klumpenhower

Beauty and the Beast

Photographed by: Kendra Jo

Modeled by: Emmeli-Sue Klumpenhower and Wade Ames

Dragon Claw by Wade Ames

Bellona 2011

Bellona was an ancient roman goddess of war. Bellona's attribute is a sword and she is depicted wearing a helmet, armed with a spear and torch. Gods and goddess were depicted as beautiful and untouchable and meant to lead those who are lost along their rightful paths.

This piece is a representation of the untouchable power that gods and goddesses instill over us. Bellona is a piece made up entirely of brass wire. These wire pieces chaotically surround the face in a way that both highlight and mask the skin. The chaos of the wire represents the war. It is a war against yourself, the never ending battle to find your way through the madness of the world.

The idea of making yourself into a god or goddess is one that helps fight the battle. Bellona is a piece that represents the fight to find yourself in a world that strives to make you into something you are not. We are constantly pushed to conform, hiding bits of who we are. We need to fight to be ourselves and have the strength to accept and know that we are truly beautiful when we are ourselves.

Bellona

Photographed by: Steffi Lord

Modeled by: Patricia Zyrinn

True Self 2011

To be yourself in life is hard. We are constantly being ambushed with this idea of who or what we should be. There is the “ideal” person. What are told we are meant to be both in personality and looks. We rely on our friends to support us and to be the people who will accept us no matter what. They are the people who want to be around you because of who you really are.

True Self, is about letting your inner self shine through. It is about being yourself surrounded by people who truly care for you. The people you surround yourself with are the ones who pick you up when others try and tear you down, tell you that you are not good enough. When trying to be bigger than things people say to get you down, you often go through stages of anger, a quest for strength and finally acceptance.

The flower is something that makes no apologies for itself. They give of a feeling of strength and power yet they are fragile and easily crushed, their beauty destroyed. These can be related to people who are trying to accept who they really are. Like a flower we constantly grow and change and we develop into the person we are meant to be.

Each flower has a meaning that it embodies. The three that are depicted in the piece True Self are the petunia, representing resentment anger submission and grief, the bayleaf, representing strength and courage and the lily of the valley, representing daring and a return to happiness. The combination of these flowers show the journey to become who we are.

The transition between the flowers as they flow across the bodies of three very different individuals depicts our journey. By linking each flower to the from one individual to the person next to them we see the support that friendship gives in becoming who we are. By standing together and finding our inner strength we can become our true selves and make no apologies for who we are.

True Self

Photographed by: Amie Le Blanc

Modeled by: Wade Ames, Jason Murphy and Steffi Lord

One Hour Projects 2011

The purpose of each of these pieces was to work on our speed and decrease the time it took us to create a piece. I took this opportunity to experiment with new and interesting materials.For me it wasn't about making the piece that would last but about trying new materials and working with the body!

Warrior

Bison Bone

Modeled by: Kim Samson

Photography, Hair and Make-up: Kendra Jo

Animalistic: In a World Not One's Own

Grass

Modeled by: Emmeli-Sue Klumpenhower

Photographed by: Steffi Lord

Hair by: Patricia Zyrinn

Make-up: Kendra Jo

Coming Soon... Bang, Bang

Tuesday 10 April 2012

Seduction of the Dark 2012

ArtaWEARness XII

Seduction of the Dark
A Collaboration between Kendra Jo and Steffi Lord

Betrayal, passion, and revenge.

A sequence of seduction in it’s darkest form.

Vulnerability.

Pursuit to the point of ruthlessness.

Instability, lust and aggression.

This is a Seduction of the Dark.

These pieces were inspired by the relationships we have, the dependency we can put onto another human being and the repercussions that can result from them. The cages around the bodies (created by Steffi Lord) represent the barriers we put up in order to protect ourselves. This structure is brought into the construction of the clothing (created by Kendra Jo) to bring the looks together.

Each couple represents a different dynamic, Passion (Purple), Lust (Red), and Aggression (Blue).