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Fashion show draws in the curious

Avant-garde outfits take center stage, helping attract a crowd three times larger than organizers anticipated.

By MEGAN SCOTT
Published August 1, 2005

DUNEDIN - Never underestimate the power of a dress made out of condoms.

Or an aluminum skirt and corset ensemble - enhanced with electrical conduit accessories.

Those avant-garde fashions helped draw 450 people to the Dunedin Fine Art Center on Friday night, a record for the center and three times the number organizers had anticipated.

In fact, the show was so packed that some audience members never got to see any of the models strut their stuff on the catwalk.

"We have never had this many people here," said Kaya Parwanicka, who organized the event. "When I was organizing this, I was like, "Are people going to show?' We had no idea this many people would be here."

Perhaps it was curiosity that brought people out to the first Wearable Art Fashion Show in Dunedin.

The event showcased nine local designers who get their muse from making clothes out of nontraditional materials: newspapers, metal and even curtains from a thrift store.

"All my pieces are one of a kind," said Bonny Lau, a designer who owns a shop in St. Petersburg. "They're eclectic and make you feel beautiful and feminine in a not so mainstream way."

Eclectic was the key word for the evening, which started with a wine and chocolate tasting.

One designer, Carly Champagne, had an entourage of models wearing dresses, belts and underwear made from packaged condoms. She had condom purses, neck ties and belts for sale.

Another designer went for floor-length sleeves, striped knee socks a la Pippi Longstocking and platform Mary Jane shoes. "It's supposed to be creepy vintage, circus clown type of style," said Orianna Kurrus of Tampa, who had eight models in the show. "But sexy, too."

It was the metal, though, that stole the show.

Frank Strunk III, an industrial artist in St. Petersburg, had three models wearing aluminum outfits specifically designed for them.

Jade Skinner of St. Petersburg wore a metal skirt with two gas pumps on each side, electrical conduits winding around her body and aluminum C-cups for her bra.

"I'm full service," she said.

Johanna Krynytzky, a professional belly dancer in St. Petersburg, sported a metal-pleated skirt, a corset and bustier.

She had switches in her hands that she could use to make two alarms on her breasts ring. Two cones in her hair dispensed glitter when she hit a button.

The whole show was, umm, interesting, said John Espey, who lives in Dunedin.

"They really looked uncomfortable to me," he said. "Let me put it this way: I don't think some of the outfits would pass the new school dress codes."

Parwanicka, the associate director for education at the center, said the show brought people to the art center who may have never known it was there. People of all ages attended.

The show coincided with a quilting exhibit, and the $10 admission went to the center's educational programs.

"This kind of art scene is vital to economic development," said Peter Kageyama, who is on the board of directors for CreativeTampaBay. "We work hard, we play hard, we want interesting things to do in our community. This shows that museums have to get out of their traditional paradigm and do something different."

--Megan Scott can be reached at 445-4167 or mscott@sptimes.com

[Last modified August 1, 2005, 00:59:12]