Andrea Singer: Exhibit Uncovers Fashion History
February 8, 2005 | Levent OZLER
Andrea Singer's interest in ladies undergarments is more than a passing fancy.
She designs underwear based on fashions from past eras, oversees their construction and has assembled a display that opens today at the Guy B. Woodward Museum.
Singer calls her installation "Ophelia Rising," after a character in Shakespeare's "Hamlet."
All of the pieces in the exhibit are designed by Singer, an associate professor at San Diego City College. Singer teaches fine art and graphic design there.
"The exhibit is about the social construction of women, where we were in the past," she explained.
Singer scans history books to discover what types of clothing women wore and what they wore under their clothing.
The styles in the exhibit date back to 1770 and extend through the 1960s. Many of them are elegant enough to be worn on the outside.
When Singer finishes drawing a design, she turns it over to her cutter, Lorna Harris, who creates a paper pattern. From there, it goes to a master stitcher.
The installation includes a variety of underwear, such as the awkward half-hoop skirt that extends out from the sides.
"You'd have to turn sideways to go through a door," Singer said. "You couldn't sit in a chair with arms. You couldn't sit in a carriage without collapsing the hoops."
Even more awkward is the hobble s
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