Leslie Leong: Artist in the Window

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Leslie Leong, "Milk Jug Dress," 2019

Leslie Leong will be Artist in the Window at the Yukon Artists @ Work Gallery the first week of July, bringing milk jugs to a form their designers never imagined. 

Leong will be creating the second in a series of milk jug dresses, cutting the milk jugs and reassembling them using pop rivets. It will be a wearable sculpture, modelled on a ball gown, created on a mannequin. Not for day to day wear, not very comfortable, but a spectacle to be sure.

Leong will work on the milk jug dress alongside an installation of other works made of recycled materials. The “Electric Powered Plant” combines pop bottles, egg cartons and milk jugs to create a “wild and funky plant looking thing.” Leong wants to “bring life to recycling.”

“We have so many materials in our world already, we have so many materials we can use for so many things, and they’re awesome!”

Leong champions the use of repurposed plastic, and thinks not only can it look great, but it is not often enough considered as an option. 

With Darren Holcombe, Leong has organized the re:design craft fair since 2015. She feels that has helped people look differently at the opportunities reclaimed materials offer us. “The stuff in that fair, it’s really nice looking. It’s not junky.” She feels that the more people who use these materials, the better, and the better the work that people are making with them. 

Leong made her first necklace of upcycled computer parts in 2005, so environmental concerns have influenced her artmaking for at least 15 years.

Leong was invited to attend the gala event after one of the “Sewing through the Landscape” residencies in Haines Junction and create a project. There, she made her first milk jug dress. It took a lot longer than she anticipated, although she had people helping her. Lyn Fabio modelled it, and it was featured in a performance created by Melaina Sheldon, worn with a raven mask. 

Making a grandiose dress form evokes amazement. Leong recalls that the first version of the dress inspired Minister John Streiker to offer a tribute to the re:design fair in the Yukon Parliament. She appreciated how his mention helped people to remember the fair, and what wonders can be made of recycled materials. 

Leslie Leong will be demonstrating in the Yukon Artists @ Work window July 8-10, 11-2 pm.

You can see her work featured in the window throughout the week. Watch Lillian Loponen, the week of July 15. YA@W will also host two nonmember artists the last two weeks of July. The Artists in the Window series continues until September 4. 

The Yukon Artists @ Work gratefully acknowledges the collaboration of Arts in the Park and funding from the Yukon Arts Fund in supporting this project. We will be broadcasting Arts in the Park performances at noon hours at YA@W 12-1 pm Tuesday to Friday.