Extra Ordinary Dress Code

The Big Opening

2009-12-14T04:57:00.000-08:00

A nice turn-out, audience to final Ex/O D Code event, "The Rest of Us" at Videotage.
To see more photos of December 10 at Videotage visit www.flickr.com/photos/extraordinarydresscode/

Next!:Extra/Ordinary Dress Code Conference

2009-11-17T19:31:00.000-08:00

The next event on the our schedule, after the successful opening of Ego Systems at White Tube, Hong Kong Arts Centre, is a three day conference featuring an exciting array of international speakers focusing on fashion, not solely as an "industry", but as an expression of various sub-cultural desires and situations.

You can link here, and access the conference website, where you can find the full three day schedule (December 8,9,10), information about registering for conference, and directions to the conference site.

Please come, enjoy, and participate!

And don't forget our final event - an exhibition and "Flash Cabaret" at Videotage, December 10, starting at 6pm. Food and beverage will be served!

Thanks for a successful opening

2009-11-11T06:06:00.001-08:00

Thanks to everyone, especially all the artists, who helped open the Ego Systems / 身份實例 exhibition - And the show continues until December 5!

Extra/Ordinary Dress Code Three Event Program

2009-10-11T03:44:00.000-07:00

(to recognize our sponsors please click on logos)

In out current banner please see advertised: Ego Systems / 身份實例
The first part of the three part Extra/Ordinary Dress Code program
which consists of:

Ego Systems / 身份實例
@ White Tube – The gallery of The Hong Kong Art School
白管子 – 香港藝術學院畫廊
November 6 - December 5, 2009

Extra/Ordinary Dress Code: Costuming and the Second Skin in Asia
International Conference @ City University of Hong Kong
一個探討主流及次文化時裝服式的國際研討會
December 8,9,10, 2009

The Rest of Us
@ Videotage
土瓜灣馬頭角道63號牛棚藝術村，錄影太奇
December 10 - 24, 2009

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON ANY OF THESE PROGRAMS STAY TUNED
OR YOU ARE WELCOME TO WRITE:
extraordinarydresscode@yahoo.com

"Dress Codes" at International Center of Photography, NYC

2009-10-11T03:37:00.000-07:00

It's all over the place . . . everywhere . . . We want to bring this show to Hong Kong.

Welcome to the Fantasy Fashion Festival

2009-09-22T20:27:00.000-07:00

We’re happy to announce the inclusion of TokyoFashion.Com in our program (What’s the program? See below) as a “live stream” from his flickr blog (no product endorsements . . . just the image) . . . one of those things that you come across, across the bandwidth (I was looking for something else . . . and this found me) . . . TokyoFashion.Com’s excellent tireless documentation of everything out there (a lot of humans out there) on the streets of Tokyo. We’re trying to do the same thing here in Hong Kong

TokyoFashion.Com will be included in our exhibition at Videotage beginning December 10, but you can start now:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/tokyofashion/

Updated descriptions and dates of extra/ordinary program activities

2009-09-08T09:29:00.000-07:00

Extra/Ordinary Dress Code: Costuming and the Second Skin in Asia

By way of academic and artistic endeavors Extra/Ordinary Dress Code explores local and global fashion and sub-cultural style - Focusing on modes of dress, aesthetic trends and cultural politics – Reflecting on gender, age, sexuality, lived experience, consumer habits and the ways a material commodity is integral to the creative industries –

1. A CONFERENCE held at City University of Hong Kong on December 8,9,10, 2009 with invited international scholars and artists, such as Vicky Karaminas, Louise Bak, and Hazel Clark. The conference takes a critical look at fashion in relation to the local and global histories of clothing, styles of appearance and dressing-up, the semiotics of mainstream society and deviant sub-cultures.

2. A GALLERY SHOW at Videotage on December 10, 2009 exhibiting a COLLABORATIVE PHOTO PROJECT documenting the everyday dress of the people of Hong Kong by way of full body size photos printed and exhibited on roll-up banners and A4 size prints. Models include a wide spectrum of Hong Kong types and lifestyles; ALSO the fantasy costuming of four local Cosplayers, along with live appearances by our "street models" and "Cosplayers” (not exactly a "catwalk", but most definitely a live interaction).

3. A CABARET style event, at the opening of the Videotage exhibition on December 10, 2009 inviting a mix of artists and academics to explain “fashion” as it stands right now within their lives and practices. Confirmed participants include Toronto based poet Louise Bak, Taiwanese filmmaker Mia Chen, Viennese artist Nino Jaeger, and local artist Him Lo.

4. A GROUP SHOW at The White Tube Gallery, Hong Kong Art Center in November/December 2009, exhibiting a juried selection of four different semester’s work from the SPEED Digital Imaging course at the Hong Kong Art School. Students were required to create an alternate or "fake" identity using themselves as the model, and Digital Imaging as their form.

二零零九年香港時尚款式

2009-08-02T19:57:00.000-07:00

Andrew Guthrie 與馮偉倫及其他多人的協助下，已開始了二零零九年香港時尚款式計劃。此計劃將會記錄香港人在二零零九年的時尚風格。由今年七月至十一月，項目將拍攝一百個人的等身全體肖像（立為暫時目標）。項目完成之後，畫像將於畫廊陳列展覽（地址有待宣布）。如果我們已拍了你的寫照，而你並希望拿取一份副本，請以電址郵件方式聯繫我們，寫上你的全名及通信地址，題為 “Photo Request”，寄發到電址郵箱 extraordinarydresscode@yahoo.com。

如果你想為此項目當模特兒，請寫信給我們的電子郵件信箱，寫上你的聯絡資料並附加一張你的小相片，題為 “I Want To Model”，發送到 extraordinarydresscode@yahoo.com。我們力求尋找的模特兒特徵無分差別，徵求特點包括平常或特別，富有或貧窮，年輕的或上了年紀的——我們追求的目標是盡可能密切地描繪香港的人口。

The Hong Kong Style Project 2009, which hopes to take 100 full-length portraits of “Hong Kong People” is not an entirely original idea (but still might fill a need or satisfy a desire), and has been undertaken at different times (in the history of photography) and has taken many forms (from the artistic to the bureaucratic):

American photographer Richard Avedon did a series of portraits while traveling around western USA, “looking for faces he liked”

American photographer Amy Arbus (daughter of the iconic photographer Diane Arbus) worked for The Village Voice in New York City during the 1970s and 80s producing a weekly series called “On The Street”

Japanese photographer Shoichi Aoki began in the 1990s to document wildly dressed teenagers in Harajuku in Tokyo in a series (and magazine) called “Fruits”

In addition, Hong Kong Time Out magazine features a photograph of “street fashion” in each issue. So how will we distinguish our project? It’s all in the subject matter, presenting Hong Kong in all its refined and/or ragged glory, looking for “faces we like”.

links about Hong Kong artist Movana Chen:

2009-07-29T21:29:00.000-07:00

video of perfomance/sculpture by Movana Chen outside clothing store Shanghai Tang in Central, Hong Kong

Coincidentally (or fortuitously), in relation to our last post about The Uniform Project, one of our presenters at the City University of Hong Conference (December 8,9,10 2009), Hong Kong artist Movana Chen is currently in an exhibition at the Gyeonggi Museum of Modern Art, in Ansan City, Korea (a short distance from Seoul) titled “Fashion Ethics – Wear Good” which runs from July 23 to October 4, 2009

Here’s something from their press release:

Fashion Ethics - Wear Good will be presenting artworks, costumes, images and installations that either propound ethical messages or follow "ethical" production methods. Participants of 19 teams from 6 countries (UK, France etc.) consisted of fashion designers, architects, installation artists, designers and photographers. Orsola de Castro and Fillippo Ricci uses left over or piece-meal stock fabric; Yun Jin Sun, Hong Sun Young and Chae Soo Kyoung dissemble and reconstruct old clothes donated by various supporters; Movana Chen's installation is composed of paper scraps from document shredders; and Lee Kyoung Jae exhibits dresses made of alternative fiber from eco-friendly materials such as corn or nettle. Of course, some of the works draw their inspirations from the topic of fair trade; Ana Paula Freitas displays bags and dresses made of recycled aluminum can parts produced with third world labor recruited through fair trade, while g:ru, Hong Sung Wan experiments with eco-friendly clothes, also produced by fair trade. Works such as Yoon Mee Jin's architectural costume - a Mobius Strip wrap made of felt - or, Yoon Jung Won's maron doll installation wearing recycled materials reflects in-depth contemplation on the basic action of "wearing clothes" within the context of fashion ethics.

link to The Uniform Project :

2009-07-26T06:55:00.000-07:00

Pictured above (click on pic for larger image) is July 22, 23, 24, 25 at The Uniform Project a political fashion project, or fashion project for economic equality, or how to maintain an aesthetic on a low budget project . . .

From their website:

Starting May 2009, I have pledged to wear one dress for one year as an exercise in sustainable fashion. Here’s how it works: There are 7 identical dresses, one for each day of the week. Every day I will reinvent the dress with layers, accessories and all kinds of accoutrements, the majority of which will be vintage, hand-made, or hand-me-down goodies. Think of it as wearing a daily uniform with enough creative license to make it look like I just crawled out of the Marquis de Sade's boudoir.

The Uniform Project is also a year-long fundraiser for the Akanksha Foundation, a grassroots movement that is revolutionizing education in India. At the end of the year, all contributions will go toward Akanksha’s School Project to fund uniforms and other educational expenses for children living in Indian slums.

Visitor Information:

2009-07-17T23:48:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Hong Kong:

Hong Kong is a compact, congested city, with seemingly endless highrise apartment complexes, offices, and shopping malls. Yet it also has much open park land, hiking trails, and of course beaches, being located on the South China Sea. The landmass of Hong Kong SAR (Special Administrative Region) consists of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and The New Territories. There is a border crossing into mainland China at Lo Wu / Shenzhen, approximately 25K from Central, HK.

In the above photo you are looking at Hong Kong harbor from Lantau Island (where international airport is located) with Hong Kong Island on right, and Kowloon (specifically buildings in and around Tsim Sha Tsui) on left. Click here for Google map of Hong Kong.

City University of Hong Kong (location and maps):
http://www.cityu.edu.hk/cityu/visitors/location.htm
City University of Hong Kong is located on the MTR Kwun Tong Line at Kowloon Tong station and/or on the KCR East Rail at Kowloon Tong station. There will be signs at station directing you to City U, which you will find after passing through the Festival Walk shopping mall.

Discover Hong Kong –
Official Travel Guide from Hong Kong Tourism Board :
http://www.discoverhongkong.com/eng/index.html

Visa Requirement:
Most travelers do not need a visa to visit Hong Kong.
For detailed visa requirements please check the Hong Kong Immigration Department website: http://www.immd.gov.hk/ehtml/hkvisas_4.htm#part1
If you are planning to visit Mainland China, a visa is necessary in most cases and you are strongly advised to obtain your visa before your departure to Hong Kong. Please consult your travel agent for details.

Transportation:
Hong Kong has a well-developed public transport system. Trains, buses and ferries runs frequently at intervals of minutes. Taxis are ample and can be hailed on the street. An overview of the Hong Kong transport system is available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transport_in_Hong_Kong

And for MTR train system:
http://www.mtr.com.hk/eng/train/system_map.html

From and to the Hong Kong International Airport:
* Airport Express : special train linking the airport on Lantau Island to Kowloon and Hong Kong Island. They also have free shuttle buses taking you from their Kowloon or Hong Kong station to different locations (after you have taken the Airport Express train, or are planning to take train to the airport). There are 6 shuttle bus routes.
The Airport Express train is a comfortable ride of about 25 minutes to get from the airport to the Central District, Hong Kong. It takes a slightly shorter time to go to Kowloon Station. It generally runs every 12 minutes and costs HK$100 (~US$12.50) one way.

* Airbus/Cityflyer: they take you from the airport to the urban areas
Hong Kong International Airport is well served by public bus routes, taking passengers to and from most parts of Hong Kong. Comfortable and relatively inexpensive, they offer a convenient transport option.
A11 – To Causeway Bay, Wanchai, Central, Sheung Wan
A22 – To Yau Ma Tei
E22 – To Kowloon Tong / City University of Hong Kong

* Taxi - they can take you from anywhere to the airport. But you need to get the right taxi when going from the airport to your destination. It is probably the fastest way unless there is a traffic jam.
There are 3 kinds: red, green, and blue.
The red ones can go anywhere except for outlying islands not connected with a bridge. The green ones can only operate in the outerly New Territories.
The blue ones can only operate on the Lantau Island (where the airport is located), where the Disneyland is.
The approximate costs to go from the airport to the City University of Hong Kong is HK$280, to Mongkok is HK$300, to Tsim Sha Tsui is $300, to Central is HK$350.

Octopus Card – stored value card:
Conference participants can obtain an Octopus Card for convenience during their stay in Hong Kong. Octopus Card is a handy alternative to cash for small payments. It is widely accepted in Hong Kong on almost all public transport, fast food chains, convenience stores, vending machines and the university campus canteen where meals will be served during the Conference.
Visitors may obtain Octopus Cards at customer service centers of all train stations and the Airport Express Line customer service centre at the Hong Kong International Airport. The minimum initial value of an Octopus Card is HK$150 (US$19.20) inclusive of HK$50 deposit for the card and HK$100 stored value. Upon return to the customer service centers at the train stations or the Airport Express Line at the airport, the HK$50 deposit and the unspent stored value on the card will be refunded with a small handling fee of HK$7 (US$0.9).
Stored value of the Octopus Card can be topped up at train stations, fast food chains and convenience stores, and the balance value is shown each time the card is used.

Additional Visitors’ Tips :

Weather :
During Hong Kong winter you can expect temperatures to be around 17C or 63 F, with little rain. You may want to bring a sweater, or jacket.
http://www.hko.gov.hk/wxinfo/currwx/current.htm

Banks :
ATMs are easy to find in Hong Kong, and most accept foreign bank cards. There is a Hang Seng Bank on City U campus next to the Library, and an HSBC in the Festival Walk shopping mall (next to campus). The current rate of exchange (July 2009) between US and HK dollar is HK$7.75 to US$1.

Hotels:
An extensive list of hotels can be sent via email upon your request. Write us at: extraordinarydresscode@yahoo.com

Language:
Hong Kong is supposedly a tri-lingual city (Cantonese, Mandarin/Putonghua, and English), though the majority language is Cantonese. English and Putonghua are widely spoken and understood, but occasionally you’ll run into an impass. It is a good idea when traveling by taxi, to have a business card for addresses, or the address written in Chinese characters.

Museums and Movies:
Leisure and Cultural Services Department - Museums
http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/en/cs_mus_lcsd.php
Para/Site Art Space:
http://www.para-site.org.hk/
Hong Kong Film Archive:
http://www.lcsd.gov.hk/CE/CulturalService/HKFA/english/eindex.html
Broadway Circuit (movies);
http://www2.cinema.com.hk/revamp/html/index.php?lang=e

link to Louise Bak article

2009-07-17T07:21:00.000-07:00

Hu Ming is a renowned Chinese artist who joined the People’s Liberation Army during the time of the Cultural Revolution. She was instructed to paint heroic portraits of Mao Zedong repeatedly, but one day she was fascinated and petrified to encounter a book by Michelangelo. It featured male nudes and, while reprimanded for this, Hu went on to paint sensuous Chinese women with physical vigour.

Just thought I'd throw this into the mix . . .

Updated list of presenters:

2009-07-15T18:56:00.000-07:00

Here is a more complete list of presenters and topics (in no particular order) AS IT STANDS NOW
for the City University of Hong Kong conference: Extra/Ordinary Dress Code: Skin Skin and Costuming, December 8,9, & 10 2009.

Viki Karaminas - Über Men: Fashionable Heroics, Costume and Masculine Style in American Superhero Comics

Ellen Pearlman - Sexuality and Costume as Power and Individuation

Tim Sedo - We are not Athletes!

Xavier Tam, Siu Yan - Globalizing Yaoi: Tracing Boys Love across Chinese Cinemas

Holly Alford - The Influence of African American Hip Hop on Japanese Youth Culture

Luke Sharp - MAID UP: An Exploration of the Cosplay Maid Character in Japan

Gillian Davies - Urban Warriors 2009

Isaac Leung - Queering Sex machines: The Re-articulation of Non-normative Sexualities and Technosexual Bodies

Movana Chen - two-way communication

Ali Khan - Bollywoodization of American Pop Culture

Damayanthie Eluwawalage - Fashion and Popular Culture: a Philosophical Approach

Nesterova Maria, Spitsyna Ksenia - Victorian costume as a trend of contextual fashion in Japan: cultural and aesthetic analyses

Katalin Medvedev - From Waste to Taste: Cambodian Street Kids Craft Stylish Items From Garbage

Mathew Chew, Lu Chen - The Subculture and Subcultural Capital of Cosplay in China

Emily Schwarzwald - Dresscode. What Dresscode?! Styles in QueerLesbianWomanTrans BDSM Subculture

Tsang Kim Wa (Kim Peacock) - am as a text

Sophia Erray - The Past is Another Country

Silvia Fok - Nudity as Self-fashioning in Chinese Performance Art

Kazumi Nagaike, Kaori Yoshida - Cosplay Discourse in Japanese Girls’/Women’s Manga Comics

Kate Lingley - Cross-dressing and Silk Road Fashion in the Early Tang

Rodolfo Canete (Jun) – TBA

Gina Marchetti - LUST, CAUTION, Fashion

Farhana Ibrahim - Cloth, Identity, Meaning

陳世樂 (ah3) - 「乜你今日有打扮過咩？！」⎯⎯香港跨性別人士的衣飾觀念與打扮策略

Ma. Bernadette Bravo - Pinoy Cosplay: Defining the Filipino Take on the Cosplay Subculture

Theresa M. Winge - Modern Domesticity Tied in a Bow at the Back of the Zoku Apron

Gabrielle Chang - Western Vogue, Chinese Chic: Fashion Illustration in Early 20th Century China

IN ADDITION I list four of our featured speakers with links to their blogs OR to online articles:

Mia Chen - http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/feat/archives/2005/09/16/2003271933/print

Louise Bak - http://individual.utoronto.ca/betts/eng356/LouiseBak.htm

Hazel Clark - http://www.popmatters.com/books/reviews/o/old-clothes-new-looks.shtml

Sharon Kinsella - http://www.kinsellaresearch.com/

another take on Second Skin

2009-07-11T03:08:00.000-07:00

What is the second skin? We have many layers of epidermis on our fantastic (biological) bodies to protect us from the harsh environment of our beloved earth. So why would we need a “second skin” (especially since, biologically speaking, it is far from number two)? Of course clothing keeps us warm (so we can evolve in harsher climates). So why do we wear clothing in Hong Kong (average temperature 25 c)?

Coincidentally, other creative types (other than yours truly) have considered the “second skin” from their own unique vantage points. Here is an up-coming show of two Hong Kong (showing in Singapore) artists worthy of attention: http://www.osagegallery.com/

Tokyo Research Trip

2009-05-30T01:30:00.001-07:00

In late May (2009) the three organizers of Extra/Ordinary Dress Code took a successful and highly simulating trip to Tokyo.

If you would like to see some more pictures visit Andrew Guthrie’s blog:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/andrew_g_tourist/collections/72157618776501561/

OR Katrien Jacob’s blog:
http://libidot.org/blog/