Social Fabric(actions) is a “first” in many ways: the first-time for the curator to organize an exhibition solely ‘inhabited’ by the creations of fashion designers; the first time for Spiridonakos and Khabab to exhibit in an art gallery setting; and the first time for the two artists to engage in a collaboration.
Saadia Khabab lives in Doha, Qatar, yet her Pakistani heritage has had a fundamental influence on her artistic practice. The patterns she used to create the designs presented in the gallery pay homage to the incredibly rich and complex ‘truck’ art, a Pakistani tradition with an extraordinary history dating back to the days of the Raj.
Andrea Spiridonakos, born and raised in Connecticut, lives in Miami. Before becoming interested in fashion design, she was a professional ballerina, performing throughout the US and Europe. The intrinsic dynamism of her collections is a clear testament to her fascination and understanding of how the body moves and inhabits the space around it.
The two have been in conversation for over a year, a dialogue that led to the creation of the joint installation that welcomes the audience as they approach the gallery, merging the visions of these two gifted and unique creative talents.