everything is dangerous: love/hate

This is my recent art project titled "everything is dangerous: Love/Hate." Works that hint at fashion rather than being fashion have the ulterior motive to link two people together; it is their complicity that the works will help improve their relationship with each other. Two hats sewn together and two pairs of boxing gloves that are also sewn together allow two people to interact and negotiate with each other.

The boxing gloves allows two people to duke it out. However, unlike a real match, the two will discover that rather than being opposing forces, their two bodies will move smoothly together as in the Tai Chi practice of “pushing hands.” The work invites cooperation and collaboration, rather than antagonistic individualism.

Lately the news has stories of Siamese twins attached by their heads, two separate individuals permanently linked together. In a playful way, two knitted hats join a couple together to experience couple-hood. Is it a happy experience? How do two people negotiate: body language, conversation? If the couple walks through a space together, have they gained better insight of each other? Did they have a meaningful experience together?

Paradoxically, the joined hats are more antagonistic to the wearer than the boxing gloves. In today’s world, individuality wins. Overall, this is not work to be looked at to appreciate its aesthetic qualities, but rather work that must be worn with another person to create a unique experience that is both physical and psychological.

So, can art be an experience? Can art be used to improve relationships?