Julia Peerson Carpenter
BFA/Montevallo University, Montevallo, AL

Julia Peerson Carpenter started building metal dresses when in school at Montevallo. There, in 2000, she developed a project called Metalwear, which consists of life size dresses fabricated from scrap steel. Her works, which vary in pattern and style and color, started as abstracted self portraiture. Over time her focus has shifted more towards the design of the dresses. But their purpose still stands to illustrate the balance between strength and elegance that Julia finds to be so important. The Metalwear project is meant to push the underlying difficulties of womanhood to the surface without losing necessary feminine qualities.

The process is similar to that of a seamstress. Each dress is pieced together on a hollow steel form that was built to fit the artist’s shape. She makes her own fabric by painting designs on sheet steel. She uses hand-made paper patterns in the construction, as well. Every piece of steel is cut, hammered, and welded into place, one after another onto her dress form. Each dress is cut from the form and placed on a stand. And all of them are kept closed with hinges and latches.

Julia had the idea to create jewelry from the Metalwear project, because she could not bear to throw out her burned and beaten scraps. She feels that every tiny piece of steel deserves scrutiny and that every tiny piece of scrutinized steel deserves to be worn.