Eugene Rooks - Polka Dot Party, Fabric Stash, and Glow Party

Hello, my name is Eugene Rooks & I am a tailor by trade, and an artist & fashion designer as a creative outlet.  When this exhibition came up, I took it as opportunity to explore outside my comfort zone, use up fabric I already had & just have fun.

For my art contributions I knew I wanted a black/white contrast look which became my Polka Dot Party.  I felt a tuxedo look would connect to a formal party setting but the contrast polka dots would add some whimsy. 

My fabric stash piece was an opportunity to use a lot of the scraps  & odd buttons, i have been saving for years. From small scraps to big, I Stripped them on grain and stitched half inch rows to add uniformity to the chaos. It speaks to the idea that as creatives we store or hoard bits & pieces that we may never use, but given the time and attention something wonderful can be created. 

The final piece glow party was my first attempt at using tulle as a fabric of choice. I knew it adds fullness, but I wanted this piece to be a soft sculpture, and use the tulle to bring about a silhouette that I normally would never think to build. 

My ultimate hope is that looking at these pieces brings joy to the viewer.