Fashion designer is next Pfister artist
The Pfister Hotel’s 10th artist in residence will be Milwaukee-area fashion designer Stephanie Schultz, the hotel announced in a news release Monday.
Schultz will move into the artist workspace in the hotel’s lobby April 1. She was selected by leaders in the local arts community and a public vote, according to the release.
The current artist in residence at the Pfister is tintype photographer Margaret Muza.
Schultz started her own fashion label, Silversark, in 2005. Her designs are inspired by antique art and architecture. The label began with counterculture streetwear and evolved to include couture and avant-garde fashions.
Her work was featured at the Racine Art Museum in the exhibit “Go For Baroque: Opulence and Excess in Contemporary Art” two years ago. She sells her wares online and also creates custom work.
During her residency, Schultz plans to draw inspiration from the hotel’s Victorian art collection to design a fashion line. She will create wearable art by photographing, compositing and printing replicas of paintings in the hotel’s collection on fabric.
“What I value above all else is learning through experience, and my time in this residency will certainly teach me a lot,” Schultz said in the release. “I tell stories with my garments, specializing in historically-inspired couture, and what I learn through my emotions and inspiration is channeled into the fabric. As The Pfister Hotel’s next Artist in Residence, I cannot wait to use this opportunity to share my work with a broader audience and create truly unique pieces inspired by the 125-year history of this iconic hotel.”
Her residency will culminate with a fashion show next year.
Past artists include painters Pamela Anderson, Todd Mrozinksi and Reginald Baylor; fashion designer Timothy Westbrook; and feminist multimedia artist Niki Johnson.