MARY STORRAR

“AN INVITATION TO TRAVEL

THE TRAVELING READER

The book allows one to travel without moving, enveloping the reader in a new world. In the cape I designed, she enters a cocoon of words and softness. Like a blanket, it protects and enables the journey. Its shape, reminiscent of a hot air balloon, with seams bordered by the poem of Charles Baudelaire, becomes a means of escape and an invitation to dream.

The gilding and symmetrical stitching recall the subtle richness of the Nolinski Hotel’s decor, and the gold of ‘An Invitation to Travel’. The ‘ice’ dye of the cape’s collar connects the traveling reader to the clouds of her dream, echoing the movement of the grand staircase in the Parisian hotel.

THE STATIONARY JOURNEY

“The space where the traveling reader finds herself is peaceful, allowing for a stationary journey. She is unaware that this world is shaping her. In an elegant nightgown, within the room of the Nolinski Hotel, magic takes place. The journey is inscribed on her garment. The gilded moldings of the walls delicately adorn her outfit, and the space reshapes her.

The hem of her dress crosses the pages of her book; the geometry of the décor and the folds of her clothing merge unconsciously. The white of the ensemble gives her the appearance of a cloud, separating her from reality and evoking her journey. It reflects the colors of her cocoon: the walls, the cover, and the whiteness of her page.

THE METAMORPHOSIS

“The Reader has chosen the book for a quiet journey within her hotel room. Her garment is covered with white silicone-applied scales—a subtle transformation, a trace of her voyage. She becomes a chimera, a blend of the world she inhabits and the one within her book. Pages, like fins, reshape her silhouette.

She melts into the décor of the Nolinski Hotel—still and calm—a gentle metamorphosis.

The charm of the hotel carries her away, elevates her, and enhances her.”