Miami’s Art Basel has over the years become one of the biggest celebrations of art in the world, with a who’s who of the art, design, fashion, and entertainment worlds converging on the art deco streets of South Beach for a full weekend’s worth of exhibits, events, and wild late-night parties. And while art and fashion typically go hand-in-hand, we have yet to see the two actually converge in an exhibit beyond the stylishly dressed attendees decked in their fashion-forward best. Until now.
Taking over Miami’s posh Temple House, London-based artist duo Studio Swine teamed up with Swedish fashion label COS to create a unique interactive art experience that went well beyond just the exhibit.
Inspired by the Japanese cherry blossom tree, the exhibit, titled “New Spring,” featured a 6-meter high tree sculpture that released mists of bubbles from its 30 branches. The milky-white bubbles expanded and bloomed like flowers before falling apart in an ash-like mist as they hit the heads and bodies of guests in attendance. Upon bursting, the bubbles then spread different fragrances designed to echo the scents of Miami Beach throughout the room.
“We wanted to create a moment, like the cherry blossom in Japan, which only lasts one week a year. People come out together and experience this ephemeral thing that reminds you of the passing of things,” said one half of the duo Alexander Groves.
So where does fashion label COS come into play? Well, for starters, the clean, minimalistic style of the Scandinavian label has long been a favorite amongst the art crowd, and as COS creative director Karin Gustafsson explained, “So far we haven’t felt that we wanted to collaborate on a project, but rather collaborate in a sense of giving back to the art world that gives us so much inspiration. It’s a way for us to talk to our customer.”
Indeed it is, and seeing Studio Swine’s Alexander Groves and Azusa Murakami stylishly dressed in the label’s wares certainly echoes that statement. Taking it one step further, there was also a Studio Swine pop-up shop created on the second level that offered 15-20 highly curated COS pieces inspired by the tree. And that wasn’t all. Moving on up to the rooftop pool, a bubble floaty could be seen gently floating in wait for those wishing to cool off in style from the Miami heat.
The exhibit marked COS’s first appearance at Art Basel, and judging from the response, it likely won’t be its last. “From day one we’ve done a lot of research on art and created our seasonal directions in-house,” said Gustafsson. “That’s not unique in the fashion world, but that’s the approach we’ve taken. Art is what makes us think and therefore we felt quite early that it would make sense for us to do collaborations.”
You can view a short clip of the exhibit below and purchase the curated clothing items inspired by the exhibit online here.
