An artist who specialises in creating unique hand-decorated masks, Sally Blyth make both wearable masks and masks that can be used for wall decoration. She says of her wall masks, “Traditional Venetian-style masks were my inspiration. I wanted to build on the theme of wine, women and song.”
Artist Sharon Finn collects the materials for her work from around the world. Her intricate designs are all handmade without her wearing gloves. “My hands are covered in calluses, but it’s worth it,” she says.
Kathryn Wilson is a footwear designer at C. Sills. “My inspiration was shoes,” she says of her mask. “I wanted to make a mask that was representative of my next coection, which is metallic and leather, with a collage in layers of colour.”
Designer and co-founder of the WORLD fashion label, Francis Hooper loves colour combinations that clash, and eccentric materials. Of his mask he says, “My inspiration was in seeing a magazine do something that’s so philanthropic. I thought it was an amazing thing to be involved in, so in terms of the design of the mask, I wanted to make it all about colour and theatre. It was layer upon layer upon layer of buttons. I thought instantly, what a neat thing for a magazine to support.”
A perfectionist who immerses herself in her craft, fashion designer Trelise Cooper’s style is a fascinating blend of contradictions and nonconformity. “Inspiration for my mask comes from my recent holiday in the south of France,” she says. “Since the 12th century, on Ascension Day, villagers make a two-hour pilgrimage into the bush to a grotto, where by candlelight they sing haunting hymns and carry masks and relics of saints in a procession that is full of singing and joy.”
Juliette Shannon is in her third year of fashion design at Whitecliffe College of Arts and Design. “The inspiration for my mask is art nouveau and shapes from nature,” she says.
