Kai is a fiber artist and garment designer interested in applying painterly concepts to tactile objects. Their art background consists primarily of illustration-based work which greatly influences their fashion designs. Despite the vast differences between paint and fibers, Kai is drawn towards the material guidance that these mediums both provide. By adapting her creative process to fit a multitude of mediums, she intends to merge her experiments in paint with tactile and wearable forms.
Fear of the Feminine
Collection Notes
My line, Fear of the Feminine, is about the intersection of femininity, Black girlhood, and gender-based harm. I aim to explore how Black childhood experiences have been shaped by Western beauty standards. More specifically, the lack of protection that a proximity to femininity grants Black women in comparison to our white counterparts. For Black women and femmes, ‘femininity’ is often considered out of reach and can even become dangerous due to the stereotype of the Strong Black girl and the Jezebel. These stereotypes enforce the idea that Black girls are inherently more sexual, mature, and responsible than other children and permits predatory behavior. I want to represent the worry of never feeling fully dressed–or protected, by your clothing as a woman or femme-presenting person and how this feeling can be amplified due to one’s skin.
Materiality has been the driver of my collection which is why I was drawn to lace. Lace is said to have the ability to “reveal and conceal” its wearer. The preexisting connotations of lace and the sexualization of girl’s uniforms has allowed me to play with the idea of garments as protective or provocative layers.
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