Elisa Jimenez rules!

Eliza Jimenez and her models: Fall 2008

I attended a discussion with Eliza Jimenez yesterday afternoon at the Arts Council as part of the week's HATCHfest events here in Asheville. At some point I couldn't hold back from telling her how much I loved her in Project Runway - A show she called a "conceptual art performance." Then I asked her a question about her process and how she works one on one with a client. She proceeded to pull out a piece of material she had stained and infused with oils and essences and all sorts of wonderful stuff. She gracefully clipped the material with holes, and knotted some loses ends all the while quipping about the false myths perpetuated by the fashion industry. We all looked on thinking WHAT is she making? When she held up the finished product it appeared to just have holes and some lose cords of fabric, but when she put the piece on, it was stunning. She showed us all the different ways to wear it. Then she took it off and twisted it into a ball and looked at me and I heard her talking about how the keeper of this piece is coming into a dawning of a new era....I saw her walking towards me with the piece, and I watched as she gave it to me, We kissed cheeks and hugged. One of the most brilliant things ever.
Here's the thing - I do not consider myself a fashionista by any stretch of the imagination. But I am fascinated at the creative process and how, for artists like Jimenez, Life IS the creative process. Her spiritual, personal, creative and political experiences are all woven together and nothing is disconnected from anything else. It's a very beautiful and inspiring way to see a life lived.

My new magical garment

I really believe that if you do something with genuine love, the universe will reward you." ~ Elisa Jimenez