'Fig Leaf' wardrobe

Tord Boontje

(born Netherlands, 1968)
2008

Hand-painted enamelled copper leaves, lost-wax-cast patinated bronze tree, iron tracery support structure, hand-dyed and woven silk base and back
Prototype for Meta
Lent by Meta, London

Tord Boontje regards the fig as a symbol of fertility, associating it with oases and the biblical notion of Paradise. The snake persuaded Adam and Eve to eat an apple from the tree of knowledge. They then fell from grace and were expelled from Paradise, wearing only fig leaves to hide their newfound shame. Ironically, the wardrobe only becomes 'dressed' when its user is not.