Stockland Merrylands Teaches Fashion and Art
Australian shopping centers are heading into their autumn/winter fashion seasons, and with them come new opportunities for exciting campaigns. Take, for example, Stockland Merrylands’ 30 Days of Fashion and Art.
One might expect the “Art” in that title to take a backseat to the “Fashion” portion, but that is not so. Fashion is most certainly an important element of the 30 Days of Fashion and Art, but not exclusively.
The center has commissioned several works of public art to set off the campaign. Artists Peter Day and Kerrie Kenton have created Greetings, a work in bronze, glass mosaic and concerete. It celebrates the many ways different cultures welcome guests into their home, with coffees and teas, fruits and biscuits, all the comforting elements of a good welcome.
Social Fabric, by artists Susan Milne & Greg Stonehouse with Popperbox Collective is a work of electro-polished steel and LED lighting, and examines the way the humble shirt is represented in different cultures. Our Magic Carpet, by local artists Mazin Ahmad, is a carpet of bronze, brass and steel, with handcrafted and painted ceramic tiles.
Shoppers are also being given many opportunities to create art of their own. For two weeks, the center is hosting an Origami station. It has also held DSLR photography lessons, introductions to fashion drawings and Instagram walking tours throughout the center.
Stockland Merrylands shopper Caitlin Manganaro attended the DSLR photography class and came away very impressed. “I thought it was awesome,” she said. “I came with barely any knowledge about my camera and walked away with some. [It] was very fun and I can’t wait for the next ones!”
As part of some of the photography lessons, shoppers learned exactly how to manage a fashion shoot, learning about shutter speeds, lighting, directing models and more.
