Southampton Arts Center (SAC) hosted a special Toast to the Artists of Second Skin, curated by Estrellita B. Brodsky, which featured a live “Fashion Interventions” performance by Gabriela Galván on December 20th.
Visitors brought in their worn garments to be transformed by Gabriela Galván in real time, creating unique, one-of-a-kind looks for the “Fashion Interventions” performance. The participative action explored human connections, highlighting how sustainable action can change our perception of consumerism and the relationship of clothes with our bodies.
“We were truly excited to welcome the community to engage with the artist Gabriela Galván in this fun, exciting, and inspirational journey,” said SAC Executive Director Christina Strassfield. “Each participant left with a smile and a newly unique ‘altered’ wearable art piece!”
Following the live performance, guests, including Corrine Emi, Curator of the Parrish Art Museum, art critic Justin Spring, Mayor of Southampton William Manger, Peter and Jamee Gregory, and Dan Brodsky, enjoyed a festive reception and discussion with the artists and curator of Second Skin, Estrellita B. Brodsky.
Estrellita’s Second Skin exhibition is on view at SAC until December 28th, showcasing approximately 30 works from the early 1950s to the present, with a strong emphasis on Latin America. The exhibition includes photography, sculpture, textiles, wearable objects, and archival material, with highlights including works by Martine Gutierrez and Andy Warhol.
The concept behind the exhibition is a powerful reflection on how fashion can serve as a canvas for personal and political expression. Through Second Skin, participating artists have redefined the boundaries of what fashion can signify, not just as a form of adornment, but as a tool for identity exploration, resistance, and empowerment. Each piece in the exhibition pushes the conversation beyond conventional beauty standards, using materials, textures, and symbolism to speak to broader issues like political violence, cultural appropriation, and the commodification of the human body. As such, Second Skin provides more than just an aesthetic experience; it presents a layered dialogue about self-expression, cultural heritage, and the forces that shape both.
Felix Beaudry and Nazareth Pacheco have created their own garments to explore identity and protection against political or sexual violence. While Joiri Minaya and Stephanie Syjuco appropriate commercial ethnic and tropical motifs to challenge racial and colonial narratives and critique fashion’s beauty standards and commodification of bodies. The exhibition explores how fashion functions as a site where identities are constructed, commodified, resisted, and critically reclaimed. Artists spotlighted in Second Skin include Antonio (Antonio Lopez and Juan Ramos), Felix Beaudry, Andrés Bedoya, Miguel Fernández de Castro, Sylvie Fleury, Martine Gutierrez, Gaspar Libedinsky, Carole Frances Lung, Raúl de Nieves, Joiri Minaya, Nazareth Pacheco, Bárbara Sánchez-Kane, Stephanie Syjuco, Milagros de la Torre, WAR BOUTIQUE (Kevin Leahy), and Andy Warhol.
For more information, please visit Southampton Arts Center’s website or contact info@southamptoncenter.org.
Lead Sponsor:
- JAF Foundation
- Jürgen and Anke Friedrich
This exhibition has been sponsored in part with General Operating Support by the New York State Council on the Arts, with the support of the Governor, the New York State Legislature, and the Suffolk County Office of Cultural Affairs.
Gallery Hours:
Friday – Sunday | 12 – 5 PM
25 Jobs Lane Southampton, New York 11968
631.283.0967
About Southampton Arts Center
Southampton Arts Center is committed to community building through the arts. We present and produce inspiring, inclusive, socially and regionally relevant programs across all disciplines – welcoming, connecting, and collaborating with the diverse members of New York’s East End community and beyond. SAC is a not for profit 501(c)(3) organization.
For more information about Southampton Arts Center, located at 25 Jobs Lane, Southampton, New York 11968, visit southamptonartscenter.org or call 631.283.0967. Follow SAC on Facebook and Instagram @southamptonartscenter for updates, events, exhibitions, and more exciting activities.
