ReDress: Upcycled Style by Nancy Judd

April 12 – June 15, 2014

Artist and environmental educator Nancy Judd of Recycle Runway creates couture fashion from rubbish, lacing each garment with conservation consciousness. Glamorous, shimmering evening gowns, appearing as fine couture and refined garments, are made from crushed glass and salvaged upholstery fabric. The Jellyfish Dress, an elegant frock constructed from dry cleaner, grocery, and newspaper plastic bags, serves as a fashionista’s reminder that these carelessly discarded bags can be fatal to sea creatures. Inspired by the challenge to “upcycle” and spark a wave of waste reduction, Judd has been commissioned by Target, Toyota, Coca Cola Company, and Delta Air Lines to encourage consumer awareness through her work. One of her creations, The Obamanos Coat, constructed from Obama campaign door hangers and tailored to fit the 44th president, has been accepted into the permanent collection of the Smithsonian Institution. This exhibition has been organized by Nancy Judd and is circulated through GuestCurator Traveling Exhibitions. The ReDress exhibition and programs at the Woodson are supported, in part, by a National Endowment for the Arts Challenge America grant; artist residency funding comes from a Community Arts Grant from the Community Foundation of North Central Wisconsin, with funds from the Wisconsin Arts Board, Community Foundation, and the B.A. & Esther Greenheck Foundation.

Exhibition Highlights

Nancy Judd, Eco-Flamenco, 2011, cereal boxes, recycled paint, parachute scraps, photo by David Astilli
Nancy Judd, Youth Eco-Dress, 2011, discarded hotel sheets, table cloths, recycled office paper, campaign yard sign frames, photo by Jay Sturdevant
Nancy Judd, Jellyfish Dress, 2010, plastic dry cleaner, newspaper, and grocery bags, photo by Jay Sturdevant
Nancy Judd, Recycling Fiesta, 2002, plastic Target bags, t-shirt, cardboard displays, photo by Sandrine Hahn
Nancy Judd, Tireless Couture, 2010, bicycle and car tire inner tubes, torn hotel sheets, photo by Jay Sturdevant

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