GARMENT DISTRICT — Fir is fashion for this Brooklyn-based artist.
For the next two weeks, artist Mary Ivy Martin will be deconstructing old Christmas trees at the Chelsea gallery Chashama 266 and creating “wearable sculptures” from the remains.
On Feb. 13, when the costumes are finished, Martin will wear her creations and “ritualistically return” to where she first found the trees.
The show, "Arboreal Anxieties," marks "an attempt to relate to the natural world through photography, performance and sculpture. Martin offers an intimate view of her practice to observers and unsuspecting passerby," the gallery said in a release.
“Martin and the trees embody each other and the tree is re-animated with a new form of life,” the gallery added.
The artist, who got an MFA from SUNY Purchase and a BFA from the University of Arizona, has previously shown her work at exhibits in Berlin and Toronto.
Martin's pieces focus on her “ongoing exploration of nature in a dense urban environment,” Chashama 266 said.
“Through her work, Martin strives to find a place for nature in her own life while finding a place for herself in the world — a sense of belonging,” the gallery added.
The studio where Martin is constructing the Christmas tree costumes, located at at 266 W. 37th St., is open from noon to 6 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The closing reception will take place on Feb. 13 from 6 to 8 p.m.
