AUSTRALIA’s sole representative at a prestigious international art competition is intent on taking a sledgehammer to the fashion world’s expectations of women.
Cannington resident Rimsha Shakir is a finalist in the Arts of Fashion competition and is set to exhibit her entry at the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco in December.
She said her confrontational entry took aim at societal expectations of women framed through the prism of beauty and fashion.
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READ NOW“Looking perfect is enforced on women and this ideology is all around my clothes,” Shakir said.
The Curtin University graduate said her “eye-opening” studies helped her tackle the competition’s theme of ‘Verticality’, which she aimed to represent through growth.
“Has there really been progress for women? These issues are there forever, society pressures and cultural norms mean there hasn’t been any growth,” she said.
“The concept in my work of distortion and disguise come from my masters degree in applied design and art.”
“This concept of having that perfect body, being a size zero, looking 10/10, I want to distort that, because it doesn’t matter how you look or what you wear.
“Paleo, Keto, fat, they’re words used words in the print section of my design, disguised by a pretty array of flowers.”