With this dress, I wanted to represent the traditional costume of Venezuela. You might find women wearing flowing ruffled dresses at national celebrations while men dress up with liqui liqui.
Recalling that I made the dress to participate in a cultural celebration at Anglia Ruskin University, I based this first creation on my beloved country's folkloric dress.
The garment contains hundreds of fans that together simulate the waves of the Venezuelan folk dress. From top to bottom, the centre of the upper part of the dress contains Venezuelan Bs.f 100 (Bolivares Fuertes) notes which have printed Simón Bolívar's face. Bolívar is recognised as one of the most important heroes in Venezuela and Latin America's history, and that is where the official name of the Venezuelan currency ("Bolívar") comes from. The skirt was made with more than 2.000 units of (Bs.F) valid between 2007-2018 and Bolivares Soberanos (Bs.S) 2018-present.
An interesting fact: The (Bs.F 100) bills used to make this piece were taken out of circulation by the government in December 2017. The Central Bank of Venezuela printed two new paper-notes with Bolivar's face - one was the Bs.F 20,000 and the other the Bs.F 100,000. In this way, it is easier to hide the phenomenon of hyperinflation in Venezuela.
Where has the money dress been displayed?
At the Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) during the Global Week
At the ARU's Faculty of Business and Law
At the Ruskin Gallery in the Sustainable Art Prize (SAP)
At the Soka Gakkai International (SGI) monthly chapter study meeting in Cambridge
At the Histon & Impington Feast Festival
At the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge
What are the future plans with the money dress?
This dress can be exhibited on a mannequin in different venues like museums, galleries, universities, high-street events, and others.
My wish is that it will be part of an exhibition at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge or even at the Tate Modern gallery in London one day.
I will continue wearing it on any occasion that allows me to speak out for my Venezuelan people and whether possible to raise money to help my homeland.
I would love to continue visiting universities in the UK, doing demonstrations and delivering speeches.
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Thanks for reading!
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