Mon Idee de Genie originated in 2002 with the debut of my Le Mariage Shibori Collection, and the kind help of my french instructor, David Milroy (an Irishman, no doubt..."Go figure")! Life does have its little amusements, doesn't it?
I had fallen in love with creating textiles in silk and linen, was discovering the colors and patterns of my vision along the way, and needed a name for my debut presentation of the clothing line. I knew I wanted the title to be in French, and I wanted it to have a double entendre of some sort. I immediately called David, and explained what I wanted to do.
As always, I had intensely poetic visions for expressing the look and feel of my new line, and as always, David (ever the teacher) explained that English does not directly translate into French. So, there was the issue of creating a title that was poetically satisfying to me and, accurately, French as well. I wanted the title to suggest and encompass the strokes of a brush, such as "Stroke of Genius" (I am a painter at heart), or perhaps to imply an epiphany that I'd had. That is, combining all of the painting techniques I had learned, in my, then, thirty-some years as an artist, with the techniques of shibori and batik. Epiphany, right?
After much deliberation, and David's patient listening to my selection of titles, he commented, "You have a great idea as usual"... "A tres "bon idee", as a matter of fact." "Why not call it Mon Idee de Genie, (My Genius Idea)?" "Oh, mai oui", I exclaimed. That's it! Merci, beaucoup, professor. That's just the ticket...and precisely the title I was looking for.
And, so, "Mon Idee de Genie" was born in the year of 2002. The butterfly had emerged from its cocoon and taken flight. Les reves du papilon had wings! "Fly...fly butterfly." Yes, "Mon Idee de Genie" soared from my head and heart to glisten, radiant and iridescent, in the sun.
Artist's Private Collection
Logo Ensemble for "Mon Idee de Genie" debut
Le Mariage Shibori Silk Organza Kimono in Bronze/Orchidee Grid
and Faux Batik Crepe de Chine "Butterfly" Tunic (OOAK)
Read my blog of January 18, 2011, "Mon Idee de Genie" and the sequel to it, "Back to...Mon Idee de Genie", posted on January 21, 2011 for the full story behind the development and creation of Le Mariage Shibori Collection, and the debut of "Mon Idee de Genie".
