Famous Taos fashion designer Patricia Michaels visits TISA kids
Patricia Michaels brought more than garment bags full of her designs to the Taos Integrated School of the Arts (TISA) Jan. 10.
She had velvet-covered and carved wooden buttons and baskets of paint and water bottles, too. But most importantly, the Taos local brought what she considers the most important lesson of all for Taos kids: that they have value and can be whomever they wish.
“I believe in education from community members that value who we are in this multicultural town, different elements that come together peacefully. Christmas Eve at the Pueblo resonates that. Without our cultures, we are nothing. The world could learn a lot from Taos,” Michaels said.
As part of its visiting artists workshops, TISA students from grades four to eight were each able to create a uniquely designed wrist cuff of their own.
“I picked a project the kids wouldn’t feel overwhelmed with and [would] also allow them to express their self-identity. Art is not dictated. It’s what’s inside,” Michaels explained while measuring out her designs on the whiteboard. “What separated me from the rest of the designers on ‘Project Runway’ was that I don’t follow trends.”
Michaels led the students through a meditation exercise, which taught them to always hold a special place within — where they can go for inspiration to create — and then a short lesson on the use of armbands within Native American cultures.
The adaptation and creations of her new line of women’s cuffs are available on her website: pmwaterlilyfashion.com.
Michaels reinforced to the students how special their home of Taos is. “No matter where I travel, artists always want to know the secret Taos holds for people of all cultures, and I tell them it’s the ability to allow yourself to be true to who you are,” she said. “We Taos people are not going to be dictated to.”
The fashion designer shared some of her favorite designs, one of which was inspired by her grandmother, Manuelita Marcus, called “Bpoolulu — The Wild Plum.” Michaels said the flowing purple dress covered in balls of wool was drawn from a favorite childhood memory and also held a political statement. “My inspiration for this dress came from picking wild plums with my gramma. She made everything fun. We need to break the stereotypes of Native Americans being depicted as stoic, serious people. Anyone who knows Natives knows that we are a humorous people. Humor is always a part of chores. Nobody leaves without a funny nickname.”
Michaels is currently hard at work on her collection for New York — Style Fashion Week and the opening of her show at the National Museum of the American Indian in New York. She is also in the process of completing her uniform designs for Heritage Hotels & Resorts Hotel Chaco in Albuquerque and an international fashion show in China.
Bowers Avina is a TISA fourth grade/art curriculum coordinator and TISA mom.
