The Niagara Artists Centre’s (NAC) 2014 STRUTT Wearable Art Show was outlandish, bizarre and like nothing you’d ever seen before. STRUTT took place on November 22, 2014 at the WS Tyler Factory in St. Catharines, ON. Doors opened at 8 p.m. for the first edition of the Niagara Exotic Bazaar and the runway show began at 9 p.m. The show showcased over 40 pieces of wearable art performed by acrobats, aerialists and break-dancers to a live musical score performed by Chiac hip-hopper sensations, Radio Radio. The runway show will also include the debut performance of the mini trip-hopera, Unstrung, featuring music by Paradise Animals, contemporary hip-hop dance troupe Bboyizm, and remarkable masks created by local artist, Clelia Scala. The event website is www.struttwearableartshow.ca.
“We pack a whack of WTF into this thing. We don’t care who you are, or where you’re from, you come to STRUTT and you’ll get your head spun,” says NAC’s Minister of Energy, Minds, and Resources, Stephen Remus. “The artists make fantastic work, the performers tear it up, and we turn the factory into a hedonist’s palace. I don’t think it can be doubted, STRUTT’s the single annual occasion where Niagara genuinely surprises itself.”
STRUTT was a surreal party scene where the absurd is commonplace. As Doug Herod of the St. Catharines Standard reflects, “STRUTT rocks! STRUTT is a wearable art show, but that description doesn’t do it justice. It’s music, it’s entertainment, it’s theatre — and a lot of fun.”
In addition to the runway show, STRUTT included the Niagara Exotic Bazaar, a showcase of all that’s weird and wonderful and originating in Niagara, from wine to designer clothing to glassware. The Niagara Exotic Bazzar was sponsored by Shannon Passero and co-presented by NAC and the Garden City Food Co-op.
