Welcome to the 33rd insertion of DEMUR®, an analytical series highlighting the intricacies of the artistic world and the minutiae lying within. In this episode we unfold the story of Benjamin Shine, a multidisciplinary artist pulling at the seams of artisanal design in the shadows of Maison Margiela, Givenchy and Vogue.
Benjamin Shine, a maximalist, sculpture based artist, is pioneering a new triumph in fashion design, using a stiff, net based textile - ‘tull’ as his vessel. Born in London, England, Shine has been obsessed in finding a space between the traditions of art and couture, now residing in a grey area amid the two. Studying at Central Saint Martins in the year 2000, the creative has been steaming (and ironing) past all physical limitations in his field, working alongside industry favourites like John Galliano and Riccardo Tischi.
Shine’s roots in fashion trace long before his lifetime, tailors branching far and wide in the likes of his family tree. The descendant of craftsmen strays far from his heritage however, edging into a realm of abstract based creatives exploring the world of inordinate, ‘fabric painting’. By using an iron, Benjamin retreats from pigment and embraces the physical structure of tull, ironing portraits into a new walk of life. The ethereal structures are provoking, insightful and yet seemingly effortless, all ringing true to the eye of Shine himself.
Many of the works are cited as taking upwards of 100 hours, while rather extreme insertions can grip lengths of 1000 hours of intensive work. The English artist stumbled across the medium back in 2008, just 5 years after the dawn of his studio, and has persisted in experimenting with single length textile assemblies since.
Working alongside John Galliano for the Maison Margiela 2017 Couture collection, the team was able to create a three dimensional wearable dress which walked an illustration of a fleeting woman. The piece sent shockwaves through high-fashion critics and even reached mainstream media, cementing Benjamin Shine as a stellar artist of the modern era.
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