Designer Miss Sheets
Growing up on a farm in the Midwest, I spent much of my time in trees, around the garden and surrounded by creatures of the outdoors. A connection with the natural elements was a part of my everyday environment. There was not much to ‘do’ in the middle of a cornfield and I spent hours daydreaming and exploring.
I would excavate rusty tools from abandoned barns, sleuth for remains and spin tales from my finds. I have appreciated all things antiquarian and ancient for as long as I can remember. From the age of 3 I would not let my mother dress me, this being the only thing I would ever absolutely refute. I started reading both Vogue and National Geographic around the age of 10. I have always loved to draw but never identified myself as an artist. For much of my childhood I wanted to be a dancer than a fashion designer…than an underwater archeologist, and so on…It seems my loves for fashion and anthropology/archeology were bound to intersect and arc*hive presented itself to me.
My fascination with the ethos of the past has stayed with me, as I am captivated by artifacts that are weathered but full of story, aged yet sparkling and teeming with magic and life. The intention with many of the pieces is to evoke this quality and tether it with a modern and contemporary edge. The first spark for creating a line of amulets came during a shavasana in yoga class years ago. I started my first collection with the Hindu pantheon because of this and what the yogic arts have given me over the years.
The archetypal nature of a character, either mythological, fictional or sacred has been a central inspiration in my life. I find the relationship between art and religious or spiritual rituals intriguing and I wrote my graduate thesis on amulets. Bees especially have been on the forefront of my conscience for the last few years…all they represent, be it metaphoric or literal. The revival in awareness of what bees bring to the planet and our interdependence with them, I feel is vital. My intention is to express collective and personal story through adornment and the stories are endless. My wish is to create wearable art that not only holds beauty but meaning for the wearer and serves as a vehicle to express a part of his or her nature.
Love,
Miss Sheets
Last night, as I was sleeping,
I dreamt — marvelous error —
that I had a beehive
here inside my heart.
And the golden bees
were making white combs
and sweet honey
from my old failures.
~ Antonio Machado
Inspirations
Art
late 19th-early 20th century American adornment and illustration, Hindu art and architecture, Black Madonnas (via Lucia Birnbaum, Dark Mother), Medieval European reliquaries and shrines, Art Nouveau, American Circus and Magic of the late 19th-early 2oth century, Neolithic and Bronze age drawings (of Marija Gimbutas research), Goddess art and sculpture, Project Runway, Teachers: D’vorah Grenn, Dianne Jenett, poet Judy Grahn and Vicki Noble; Artists: Aubrey Beardsley, Max Ernst, Frida Kahlo, Corita Kent and Coco Chanel.
Subjects
emotion, faces, sunshine, ocean, fairy tales, the animal world, insects, bees, yoga, beauty, music, dreams, imagination, magic and you