3D Studio Arts Inspired by RBG

This fall, students in Seattle Academy’s 3D Studio Arts class created collars inspired by the legendary Ruth Bader Ginsberg. In her time on the Supreme Court, Justice Ginsberg became a judicial icon with a penchant for collars worn with her black robes. Beyond flair, each collar represented Ginsberg’s fierce feminism in a traditionally male-dominated court.  Her collars also served as a means of self-expression where sharing political opinions was frowned on.

For this project, each student chose a political word or phrase like bipartisan, “bleeding heart,” spin, or grassroots. Students defined their word or phrase and built a metaphor expressed tangibly in a collar.  Art teacher and Visual Arts Department Chair, Lily Hotchkiss, urged students to consider conversations the collars would stir from an audience and the feelings their collars would evoke when worn.

Project protocols required collars to be made to scale and wearable. Using recycled materials like paper and cardboard, the collars began with a flat base. Students built out from there utilizing more than one art technique, repeated patterns, and a variety of materials to illustrate the driving metaphor through color, shape, and texture.

Kudos to Lily’s class for creating a collar collection that is meaningful, creative, eclectic, and aptly reminiscent of Ruth Bader Ginsberg’s favorite collars.  

View our Seattle Academy students’ RGB inspired collars here.

Video of the RBG Collar Project as shown at the 2020 Fall End-of-Tri Performances