Fashion Is Art

Founded last year by former Henry curator Rhonda Howard and graphic designer Rebecca Richards, the slick art advocates at THREAD launch their first exhibition at Bumbershoot. They invited 22 mostly local artists to finish the sentence "Fashion is..." and the results range from silly to sensational. Sami Ben Larbi ("Fashion is Self") has made clothes that inflate to expand personal space and provide a portable seat, Jean Hicks ("Fashion is Facism: Style is Self-Defense") stands against mass-produced design with her Suessical felt hats (pictured above), and Yuki Nakamura ("Fashion is Form") has transferred her fixation on steps from her usual medium of ceramics to clothes, with her dead-pan, ziggurat-shaped "Red Stair" dress and matching hat. The free, ninety-minute runway show on Wednesday night promises to be a fun, colorful, noisy circus. After Bumbershoot, some of the pieces will be on display through October 5 at Hello Gorgeous, Kuhlman, and other clothing shops. Bumbershoot Visual Arts Kick-off Party with runway show, 6 p.m.-9:30 p.m. Wed. Aug. 27. Northwest Courtrooms, Seattle Center. Free. DAVID STOESZ

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