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Julie Brawley, Nelson, NZ
World of WearableArt™ 2010; Creative Excellence: The Art of Light Section; 1st WOW Factor

While some World of WearableArt™ entrants start designing their costume and then choose the materials, Julie Brawley did things the other way around. She considered the different materials she could use, decided to work with plastic and then explored how she might use it.

This was Julie's seventh WOW entry. Each has been a challenge, she says, and has involved her in using different materials or skills. First time around it was learning to weld, while for the second entry she worked with a piece of elastic bought from a junk shop. An earlier garment was rejected for WOW because it collapsed – a good lesson that a costume must be able to move and be robust enough to meet the entry criteria."If you couldn't dance around in a WOW garment in your lounge then a model isn't going to be able to move in it," Julie says.

After looking at the different types of plastic she might use, Julie bought a metre of the polycarbonate used for roofing and boat windows and took it home to experiment with. She tested different ways of transforming the material, such as melting, bending and soldering it, to see what it was capable of. During one "enthusiastic" test when she was burning the plastic with a paint-stripping gun, Julie accidentally dragged it along the concrete which left a scuff mark on the plastic. Thinking "I could use that effect", she got her dremel (engraver's drilling tool) and started drawing on the plastic. Although she initially encountered some problems doing this, she learnt to brace her hands to stop the tool "racing all over the place" and was able to get a more exact engraving and achieved, she says, some great visual effects.

Looking at the results of this testing, Julie was inspired to use a 'navigation' theme. "I could see the likeness to a computer screen, and how building up the layers gave a 3D effect." After putting these samples together to create a semi-human/alien effect, Julie decided to carry on the concept and develop some kind of navigator using symbols and icons for a mapping reference.

Although she had decided on the navigation theme, Julie says there was no "flash of lightning" to confirm that this was a great concept and she continued to consider possibilities as opportunities arose. She was walking through town one day and stopped to look at the Ashburton clock tower, and realised she had found the perfect solution. As she looked through the glass into the inner workings of the clock, Julie could see how she could use the engraved plastic to represent the look of the clock.

Julie had a visual diary in which she sketched her initial brainstorm ideas and designs for the navigator costume. These were just rough drawings or words, to record any of the ideas that came into her head and show her experiments with the plastic and new ideas for the different sections of the costume. Julie says that in terms of planning her design she didn't need to do much more once she decided on the clock theme, and started working to create a garment "as a reminder of time's inevitable passing and the need to appreciate every moment."

Timing was an important part of Julie's planning as 2010 was a particularly busy year. She juggled her day-job as a theatre designer and wardrobe artist with coordinating an 800-costume show for the Ashburton Operatic 50th jubilee show and developing her costume. "Time was of the essence and I have never been more aware of time management, and time passing, in my life". However, she says, all deadlines were met, and without a nervous breakdown!

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