Wearable Art Window Display - Te Papa Store 2006
Sarah and Eloise
Queen Margaret College
Year 13 Materials Technology, Full year project
Teacher: Barbara Knight
Early in term One 2006, the Retail Manager of Te Papa Store, Colin McFetridge, approached Barbara Knight to find out if any of her students were interested in working on a wearable art window display project. This was a great opportunity for two of her Year 13 Materials Technology students to work closely with a high-profile national institution as a project client.
The aim was two-fold: to create a visually dynamic window display that would catch the eye of visitors and passers-by and draw them into Te Papa and the store; and to help promote the citywide celebrations for the WOW Wearable Art Awards to be held in Wellington in September.
This would be a high-profile project in a very public location - so there was some pressure to create a high-quality solution. It would be critically viewed by a number of stakeholders: the New Zealand public; visitors to Te Papa (including foreign guests); Te Papa Store staff and customers; the Te Papa Board of directors and its CEO.
The students who took on this project, Sarah and Eloise, both had a strong background in art, design and technology. The girls would work closely with Te Papa Store Window Display Manager Jan Morris, who would oversee project development and have the final say on the design 'look'.
The brief was to develop a wearable art window display environment. Each girl was to come up with their own theme and to fill two windows, and include the Te Papa thumbprint iconic brand into the design. One window was to hold a full-sized mannequin outfit, the other to hold a smaller accessory head-piece item - to tie in with the main theme. Timing was critical - the display had to go into the windows on 19 September 2006 (no extensions!).
The windows are regarded as the 'Eyes of Te Papa' and are the second most visited location in the whole museum. The students had to work closely with their key clients (Jan and Colin) throughout the whole process to ensure the design would suit the ethics, values, and beliefs of the Te Papa Store and Te Papa Museum.
The project required extensive research. The girls investigated the wearable art phenomenon. They researched how to present a visually eye-catching window display, potential themes, and, of course, the Thumbprint icon - what it stands for and it's importance to Te Papa. They had to work out how to interpret the symbol in a wearable art costume but still uphold the integrity/credibility of the brand. The girls carried out a wide investigation into possible materials, themes, construction methods, intended environment and the dimensions of the physical display space available. Their findings were critiqued by their clients.
Teacher comment
There were so many good things about the girls' work - the negotiation that went on, making and meeting business deadlines, making appointments with clients, agreeing to and meeting deadlines, using amazing creativity to satisfy the extraordinarily wide range of stakeholder interests that had to be considered.
Implementation day was really exciting - it took all morning to install the display - but it was lots of fun. The girls were on display themselves - they had to stand in the actual window display space to put up the exhibit - people were photographing them as they worked! It was likened to being in a 'goldfish bowl'.
Related links
Te Papa Souvenirs case study
Read an article on Sarah and Eloise's project from the Dominion Post
