KRELwear, Karell Levy's nomadic knitwear line-slash-conceptual art project, is back in New York this weekend for the New Museum's inaugural Festival of Ideas, a downtown cultural extravaganza.
The designer's friend and creative conspirator, Stephanie Pappas, has given Levy the run of her Bowery boutique, Eva New York, for the event. The shop has been turned into a knit cobwebbed lair stocked with limited-edition KRELwear, hand-loom black label items, shredded knit thigh-highs and knit "pick-my-brain voodoo dolls" -- handmade dolls stuffed with remnant fabric scraps.
The installation, called "Webs of Life," is emblematic of the web of connectivity Levy spins with her work during her travels. She recounts stories of people flipping through the volumes of Polaroids she has taken to document her Krel 2Go "Quickie Couture" project and discovering pictures of friends in other cities and countries.
"Everyone seems to be related in one way, shape or form," Levy muses.
The "Quickie Couture" project is where fashion really meets art: Clients choose a custom knit and dictate the design, then Levy creates a one-of-a-kind piece on the spot. The Polaroid photo she snaps of each customer wearing the garment is the only documentation she keeps of her ever-growing collection -- her catalog, so to speak.
"I can do anything anyone wants. I can create pieces for dogs, babies, grandmas... I've been known to make man thongs," Levy said.
The shop has been prepped for the opening reception tonight, where Levy will be stationed at her sewing machine, ready for an evening of "Quickie Couture."
Since launching KRELwear in 2004 as a part of GenArt's "Fresh Faces of Miami," Levy has booked a couple thousand hours on both the art fair circuit and fashion week circuit. Her summer itinerary includes stops at Bread & Butter in Berlin and Amsterdam Fashion Week.
"Webs of Life" opens Thursday, May 5 and runs through Sunday, May 8 at Eva New York.
Eva New York
355A Bowery
212-925-3890
-- Erin Lindholm
The installation, called "Webs of Life," is emblematic of the web of connectivity Levy spins with her work during her travels. She recounts stories of people flipping through the volumes of Polaroids she has taken to document her Krel 2Go "Quickie Couture" project and discovering pictures of friends in other cities and countries.
"Everyone seems to be related in one way, shape or form," Levy muses.
The "Quickie Couture" project is where fashion really meets art: Clients choose a custom knit and dictate the design, then Levy creates a one-of-a-kind piece on the spot. The Polaroid photo she snaps of each customer wearing the garment is the only documentation she keeps of her ever-growing collection -- her catalog, so to speak.
"I can do anything anyone wants. I can create pieces for dogs, babies, grandmas... I've been known to make man thongs," Levy said.
The shop has been prepped for the opening reception tonight, where Levy will be stationed at her sewing machine, ready for an evening of "Quickie Couture."
Since launching KRELwear in 2004 as a part of GenArt's "Fresh Faces of Miami," Levy has booked a couple thousand hours on both the art fair circuit and fashion week circuit. Her summer itinerary includes stops at Bread & Butter in Berlin and Amsterdam Fashion Week.
"Webs of Life" opens Thursday, May 5 and runs through Sunday, May 8 at Eva New York.
Eva New York
355A Bowery
212-925-3890
-- Erin Lindholm
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