Lady Dior As Seen By is Dior’s ongoing initiative which invites artists from all corners of the world to reinterpret the iconic Lady Dior bag. One such artist is Grace Tan, who is among just three Singaporean artists who were commissioned to contribute to this growing project. Just in time for the unveiling of Lady Dior House in Singapore, the French luxury house’s travelling exhibition that explores and showcases the legacy and perennial style of the bag, too.
The multidisciplinary artist looked at the Lady Dior, and saw, at its very core, the coming together of parts. Underlining the Lady Dior bag as a piece of wearable art, The Sum Of Many Parts is a sculptural creation crafted from blocks of handmade Carrara marble. Tan went back to her intrinsic roots as an artist—considering concepts of geometry and construction—for this project, diving into the iconic Cannage design of the object of desire. Augmenting the two-dimensional pattern in different cuts of solid marble, the work takes on a life of its own.
Each prism of marble playfully casts shadows and illuminates certain subtleties in its composition—a nod to Tan’s fascination with tactile nuances. In this piece, “matter reveals itself”, says Tan. From the curvature of the top handle to the structural form of the bag’s main, each delicate detail of the Lady Dior makes itself known through Tan’s artistic vision.
Ahead, we chat more with the local artist about how her formative fashion education impacted the way she approached this project with Dior.
GRAZIA Singapore (GS): Congrats on having an art piece commissioned for the Lady Dior House exhibition! It’s so nice to see this opportunity for a Singaporean artist.
Grace Tan (GT): Thank you!
GS: How would you describe your artistic style? What are some of your major sources of inspiration?
GT: I don’t really have an artistic style. Instead, I would say that over the years, I have developed a way of working spontaneously that is based on a hands-on approach and guided by the materials I work with. I am constantly inspired by structures and formations in nature. Things like cloud formations that appear like huge grotesque rocks or the geometry of crystal structures are all very interesting to me. Natural phenomena also inspire me such as how light is refracted off certain surfaces to create structural colours!
GS: Can you tell me more about how the collaborative process got started?
GT: I was invited to submit a proposal for Lady Dior As Seen By. Hearing how it is a commission of an original artwork [not a bag!] with artistic carte blanche based on the Lady Dior got me very excited. It also meant being in Dior’s collection of amazing one-of-the-kind creations. This made me think of what Lady Dior really meant to me and how I see it. Hence, I presented 3 ideas with different interpretations of the iconic bag and I was pleasantly surprised that Dior picked this concept!
GS: The Lady Dior is a signature design from the brand. What about the Lady Dior resonates with you?
GT: Interestingly, I really appreciate how the Lady Dior is a rather unassuming bag [in a good way]. It has a certain presence that is enduring, perhaps due to the proportions and clean lines. It also has a good balance of elegance and fun. But the Cannage pattern on the bag intrigued me—why is there a woven rattan pattern on the bag!? I am personally interested in this woven pattern. And that got me thinking about what happens when all these parts come together—what do they become?
GS: Can you talk to me about the piece for the exhibition? And how was your creative process different when working with fashion specifically?
GT: The Sum of Many Parts is about transformation and dimensionality. With the Cannage pattern as the starting point, I envisioned the 1-dimensional lines converging to make the 2-dimensional patterns of the Cannage [triangles, squares, pentagons and octagons]. Then these patterns are extruded into 3-dimensional prisms of varying depths, evocative of building blocks. When these prisms are assembled, light and shadows add [a fourth] dimension to the irregular surface of the work.
Actually, there wasn’t any difference in my creative process when working on this work. I don’t see it as a fashion piece but as a physical expression of my artistic interpretation. I am glad the Cannage pattern provided that critical point of entry to explore the concepts of transformation and dimensionality that foreground the legacy of the Lady Dior.
GS: In your past pieces, you’ve worked with many different mediums and materialities. Why did you select Carrara marble for this Lady Dior project?
GT: Marble or stones in various forms are materials that I have been working [with] for some time. For The Sum of Many Parts, Carrara marble was chosen because it is a material that resonates with the concept of this work. Being a metamorphic rock, it suggests some sort of transformation and strengthening over time. Carrara marble is also closely associated with classical antiquity and this again sits well with how the Lady Dior is an enduring icon and a work of art.
GS: Has there been a specific experience or time in your life that impacted the way you approach your work?
GT: I reckon the way I approached my work is shaped by my formative education in fashion. My sewing instructor studied French couture techniques and shared with the class how a couture waistband with a plaid pattern was shaped from a straight band into a curved band purely by steam and hand. That left a big impression on me, revealing the dedication, skills and techniques that the haute couture artisans were pursuing and [practising]. It also revealed the structural potential of woven materials to me, and this has stayed with me ever since. So when I started my practice in 2003, I was driven to push how far I can challenge the construction of clothes and what fabrics can become.
GS: And finally, what’s next for you? Any upcoming projects?
GT: I just installed a 5-tonne sculpture that will be unveiled sometime in August 2024. So I’m really excited about it because it is a material that I really wanted to work with for a very long time. There are a couple of art projects in the design development phase, which is always interesting because I get to work closely with the technicians and fabricators. I am also trying to make some new works in my studio.
You can view Tan’s work at the Lady Dior House exhibition at 5 Jiak Kim Street, from 18 July to 11 August. Book your appointment here.
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