New York Field Work - Lunch with Debra Rapoport
After the whirlwind of meeting Julie for lunch and then zipping off to the Met Archives, I had a quiet evening in to myself. I’m glad I did, I needed all my strength the next day for a marathon of fun and frolic with Debra Rapoport and surprising number of other new friends!
Who is Debra?
Debra has been a disruptor and a titan in her field for decades. One of her earliest and most influential feats in the world of art-to-wear was back in 1971. In Lausanne, Switzerland, at the Fifth International Tapestry Biennale. A turning point in the history of fibre art and wearables, several artists exhibited challenging new forms aside from 2D constructions to hang on the wall. Armoire was a metal construction not unlike a wardrobe frame, with half-jackets sewn onto it. Debra’s Fibrous Raiment with Conical Appendages was a body-shaped construction with long tendrils of woven fibres. When hung on the wall, or on a mannequin, it challenged the 2-dimensionality of tapestry and fibre art as ‘high art’. But in the now-infamous words of Jack Lenor Larsen, reviewing the show for Craft Horizons magazine: “We thought we’d adore it but damnit she wore it.”
Debra’s wearing of the tapestry shattered the perception of it as ‘fine art’, demoting it to the mere status of a garment. This was an early step towards wearable art becoming an accepted and celebrated practice within the American art tradition, and Debra helped to lead the charge. In the intervening years she has been inventing all kinds of wonderful pieces, championing sustainable fashion and what she calls “Trashion”, making garments and pieces from found objects. You can watch a short video about her brilliance by clicking here.🔗
An image of one of Debra’s garments at the 2019 Off the Wall: American Art to Wear exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, placed in front of the famous image of Debra wearing Fibrous Raiment with Conical Appendages
Photo by Timothy Tiebout, courtesy of Philadelphia Museum of Art 2019
And so lunch!
I had spoken to Debra in 2023 on the phone, just to chat and contextualise her experiences and the world of wearable art as background. She didn’t know Marian personally, but they moved in the same space and circles, especially with Julie Dale (see the previous post for more information on Julie). Julie had mentioned going to the flea market in the morning before lunch and I thought that sounded like a marvellous idea, so I hoofed it down to the Chelsea Flea Market around 10 in the morning to hunt for treasures. Treasures I found! And Julie! We agreed to head down to Debra’s and arrived at the same time. Debra had put on a fully realised party, with guests beyond just the little lunch I had envisioned.
I met Michelle, a now firm friend from the Met Museum, as well as Debra’s sister Cydonia and another of her friends named Ioanna who runs a museum in Greece but was only stopping by. Julie and Debra hadn’t seen each other in years, and so they had a nice catch up while I chatted with Michelle, who had a million helpful ideas about new lines of enquiry in the museum space. Julie also told us about her recent dramas with a barn upstate she had repurposed burning to the ground! Luckily a replacement was found.
We sat for lunch and laughed and chatted away about all kinds of things, but I made few notes other than the brilliant suggestions Michelle brought. Mostly it was just a great opportunity to eat Debra’s delicious soup and get to know one another better. I talked about the rest of my trip, and Michelle and I promised to keep in touch. Naturally I couldn’t let the day pass without a photo, because we all looked exceptional! What else do you wear to lunch with Debra Rapoport but your very finest and fun?
From left to right: Michelle, Julie, Debra, and yours truly.
After several hours laughing and carrying on we parted ways reluctantly but with promises of many lunches to come! It was a delightful day and one I’m keen to repeat.