My friend and I were in a little arty clothing boutique a while ago. Something caught my eye–something colorful. It was a sweater with a patchwork design in purple, turquoise, and red. I took it off its hanger and slipped it on.  I was looking at myself in a floor length mirror when my friend said, “That looks like you!”

What did she mean that a piece of clothing looks like me?  

I didn’t argue. In fact, I’ve heard similar comments before.  Many years ago, a friend gave me a cotton jacket that she had in her closet and wasn’t wearing. She said, “I thought you would like it; it looks like you…”  I thanked her for her gift; she was right–I loved wearing that jacket.

I’ve been collecting beautiful clothes, many of them handmade, for many years.  I don’t sew or knit or crochet.  So the hands of other artists have made all my handmade garments. 

I’ve gathered my collection of clothes at art fairs and on trips: hand knit sweaters from Iceland and Scotland… silk tunics from the Uptown Art Fair in Minneapolis… batik outfits from Bali…  

By now, I own a large collection of clothes.  I wear my clothes for many, many years. Since they’re never really in fashion, they’re never out of fashion either, and my collection grows and grows.

In some fundamental, intimate way, our clothes really are us.  Our outfits exclaim to the world who and what we are.  

In one sense, we choose our clothes. My clothing collection reflects years of careful selection. I’ve looked at millions of items, and these are the ones I’ve chosen to own.  

But in another sense, our clothes choose us.  A silk scarf calls to me. A sweater knows my name.  I respond to certain colors and textures and designs. My blood tingles, my skin flushes, my hormones simmer…it’s a physical thing…

In my art, I create clothes for the figures that I paint. The clothes on my figures, like the clothes I wear, are colorful and individual.  One woman wears a lavender dress with red flowers, another has a blue jacket with gold trimmings…  The outfits are part of the design and texture of my art. 

But, to me, it’s something more. The clothes transform my painted figures and make them individual and distinctive. It’s as if they’re real people who have chosen these outfits for themselves.

What do your clothes say about you?