#SECONDHANDSEPTEMBER INTERVIEW - Victoria McIntosh
What started your passion for pre-loved and secondhand?
A love of history.
When and how did you start integrating repurposed textiles into your work?
Since art school in the early 2000s - despite being in the jewellery and metalsmithing department.
Please tell us a love story about a favourite item/collection that you've created using repurposed clothing or textiles
My vintage underwear handbags make me very happy - I produced the first one in 2014 and continue to make them today.
A love of history.
When and how did you start integrating repurposed textiles into your work?
Since art school in the early 2000s - despite being in the jewellery and metalsmithing department.
Please tell us a love story about a favourite item/collection that you've created using repurposed clothing or textiles
My vintage underwear handbags make me very happy - I produced the first one in 2014 and continue to make them today.
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What is your favourite medium/ textile to work with and why?
Vintage underwear in shades of beige.
Do the materials you find secondhand inform the work that you create or do you have an idea of what you'd like to make then find the materials to fit?
Both.
Where do you go to source your materials?
Dunedin's op shops.
What are your thoughts about upcycling and repurposing old items? Why is it important that we start looking at how we, as a society, can reuse what already exists?
Our existence on the planet depends upon it.
Vintage underwear in shades of beige.
Do the materials you find secondhand inform the work that you create or do you have an idea of what you'd like to make then find the materials to fit?
Both.
Where do you go to source your materials?
Dunedin's op shops.
What are your thoughts about upcycling and repurposing old items? Why is it important that we start looking at how we, as a society, can reuse what already exists?
Our existence on the planet depends upon it.
What are some of the challenges when using repurposed textiles?
Not having quite enough or running out of a favourite piece of fabric.
And what are some of the joys?
The hunt, the sense of history it may carry.
How do you see potential in some textiles and not in others? What makes an item pop out when you're hunting for materials?
Colour and texture, often a tactile response - both of attraction and repulsion.
Any other wisdom or words of advice that you'd like to share with people during #secondhandseptember
Go forth and discover the joy.
Not having quite enough or running out of a favourite piece of fabric.
And what are some of the joys?
The hunt, the sense of history it may carry.
How do you see potential in some textiles and not in others? What makes an item pop out when you're hunting for materials?
Colour and texture, often a tactile response - both of attraction and repulsion.
Any other wisdom or words of advice that you'd like to share with people during #secondhandseptember
Go forth and discover the joy.
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A collector and hoarder by nature, Victoria McIntosh has always been drawn to objects that carry a sense of history. Dunedin’s second hand shops provide rich hunting grounds for overlooked treasure that form the basis of much of her work. You can find out more at www.victoriamcintosh.co.nz
Keen to hunt out some op shops for yourself? CLICK HERE to order a pre-sale copy of Collector's Anonymous, your handy glovebox sized guide that lists over 1500 antique, secondhand and charity stores around Aotearoa.
Keen to hunt out some op shops for yourself? CLICK HERE to order a pre-sale copy of Collector's Anonymous, your handy glovebox sized guide that lists over 1500 antique, secondhand and charity stores around Aotearoa.
