Fashion Exhibit Inspired by Alice in Wonderland

Film Director Tim Burton has already cast Johnny Depp as Mad Hatter in his upcoming movie of Alice in Wonderland, and now the students of the Arts Institute of New York are joining the fun with Eat Me! Drink Me! Now Walk with Me! - an installation of garments created in muslin which represent their modern interpretations of the characters in the Lewis Carroll classic. "As artists they have a vision and feel the pulse that surrounds the book's revival, explains Sandra Shafer, a fashion producer and a part time professor who is guiding the students' production which was inspired by the recent presidential election and ensuing ideas about personal responsibility in society. "They are swept away with emotions and aspirations and share the responsibility for change. As the new generation that has voted for change, they want to influence and be a part of the movement."

Each garment will symbolize the contents of the character and ask guests to reflect on notions such as madness of the Hatter and whether the Rabbit represents the time-chained work-alcoholic in all of us, so busy to get somewhere that he (we) lose sight of the present.

To convey the concept of ideas beginning in their natural form, muslin - a sand-colored fabric used to drape fledgling design ideas and turn them into garments - was chosen as the means of expression. The Arts Institute gallery itself will also be transformed into a NYC block full of her typical cast of characters: the neighbors, friends, and strangers we pass each day. "The exhibition will be the start in a series of fashion dialogues on the roles of designers in their community," acknowledges Amanda Lovell, Department Chair of Fashion Design, about this innovative interpretation of a timeless tale in the context of a fast-changing world.

Eat Me! Drink Me! Now Walk with Me! will be on display from December 18-25, 2008 at The Art Institute of New York City, 75 Varick Street, 16th Floor, NYC 10013. To donate to this cool educational project and be acknowledged as a fabulous patron of the arts, email Sandra Shafer at pele718@hotmail.com.

- Lesley Scott

(Johnny Depp as The Mad Hatter via JustJared.com)