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When Clay Becomes Fabric: Sonia Kallel’s Idol Dress Between Art and Tradition

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When Clay Becomes Fabric: Sonia Kallel’s Idol Dress Between Art and Tradition

Kallel’s “Idol Dress” diverts the fate of artisanal creation and the daily life of craftswomen toward a path of artistic, aesthetic, social, and critical expression. It generates a dynamic that transcends routine, habits, and rural lifestyles. In her approach, the artist draws inspiration from Sejnane pottery, reinterpreting and renewing it through a unique and innovative plastic language by staging it in a new context. Indeed, in this research project, we explore the dress form, which stands out for its design that resists any functional purpose. The “Idol Dress” thus questions identity, movement, posture, the object, and the human body. Kallel goes beyond conventional norms of fashion design by using clay art as a creative medium and by turning the Sejnane doll into a source of inspiration. In this article, we focus on the garment as a transgressive element that fits within an experimental and sculptural approach, questioning ritual, tradition, and craftsmanship associated with the art object, the Sejnane doll. Moreover, we show that the relationship between the potter’s body and the material (clay) is not limited to a purely physical interaction; it is enriched by myth and ritual rooted in a deeply traditional culture. The “Idol Dress” charts a new path for artisanal creation, integrating reflections on identity, gender, spirituality, transformation, and representation.

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