A Girl’s Guide to Fashion Evolution

Ginny Ruffner, A Girl's Guide to Fashion Evolution, 1987, glass and acrylic paint, 19 1⁄4 x 13 7⁄8 x 9 5⁄8 in. (48.8 x 35.3 x 24.5 cm), Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Carol and Don Wiiken, 1999.57.17

Artwork Details

Title
A Girl’s Guide to Fashion Evolution
Artist
Date
1987
Location
Dimensions
19 1⁄4 x 13 7⁄8 x 9 5⁄8 in. (48.8 x 35.3 x 24.5 cm)
Credit Line
Gift of Carol and Don Wiiken
Mediums Description
glass and acrylic paint
Classifications
Subjects
  • Architecture — other — campsite
  • Emblem — heart
  • Object — furniture — chair
  • Dress — accessory — shoe
  • Monument — tomb — pyramid
  • Dress — accessory — jewelry
Object Number
1999.57.17
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/1999.57.17

Artwork Description

Ginny Ruffner's sculptures take the viewer on a bizarre and fantastical journey through her stories. In A Girl's Guide to Fashion Evolution, Ruffner explores what it means to be female. The ribbons, jewelry, and lace seem frivolous when placed next to objects that evoke adventure and excitement, such as a pyramid, campfire, or squid.

Works by this artist (2 items)

Ginny Ruffner, A Girl's Guide to Fashion Evolution, 1987, glass and acrylic paint, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Carol and Don Wiiken, 1999.57.17
A Girl’s Guide to Fashion Evolution
Artist
Date1987
glass and acrylic paint
On view
Ginny Ruffner, Inventing the Music of Beauty, 1991, glass, oil paint, colored pencil, and ink, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of Ann and Thomas Cousins, the James Renwick Alliance, and museum purchase through the Smithsonian Institution Collections Acquisition Program, 1992.81
Inventing the Music of Beauty
Artist
Date1991
glass, oil paint, colored pencil, and ink
On view

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      From the elegance of fruit to the structural beauty of coat hangers and the evolution of the bra, Ginny Ruffner offers insight into the artistic decisions behind two of her painted glass sculptures, Inventing the Music of Beauty and A Girl’s Guide to Fashion Evolution.

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