Close-up detail of the more than 200 feet of fabric ruffles and custom ribbon trim that artist Stephanie Syjuco produced by hand to create the Civil War garment. (Photo by Jin Zhu)
Why is UC Berkeley Assistant Professor Stephanie Syjuco sewing American historical garments - all of them bright green - at her Richmond Field Station art studio while researching Hollywood Civil War movies? She's preparing an eye-catching, thought-provoking exhibit that opens in November at the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C. Berkeley News recently visited with Syjuco, who is internationally known for her large-scale sculptures and installations that combine handcrafting methods with digital technologies and social engagement. She teaches classes in the Department of Art Practice in sculpture, social practice, photography and experimental media. This slideshow requires JavaScript. You're outfitting three mannequins in your studio in period costumes - one in Pilgrim attire, another in American Colonial Revolutionary dress and the third in a Civil War-era ball gown. What's your project about? I'm an immigrant and naturalized American citizen from the Philippines - I came to the U.S. at age three, with my mother, and made the Bay Area my home. And over four decades I've absorbed and inherited a narrative of American history that I've come to see as my own. But the story of this country is primarily told through a lens that doesn't accurately reflect all perspectives.
TO READ THIS ARTICLE, CREATE YOUR ACCOUNT
And extend your reading, free of charge and with no commitment.
