Local artist Kerri Barrie specialises in wearable art and her work has recently been showcased on the world stage.
Barrie creates wearable artwork and he latest creation was shared at the 2025 World of Wearable Art (WOW) show. Chatitng to OUTinPerth Barrie laughed when we asked if when the doors to her wardrobe are opened if it’s just a ‘world of craziness’?
“It probably doesn’t look like anyone else’s wardrobe.” she said with a smile.
The World of Wearable Art, or WOW, is an international design competition attracting entries from around 40 countries each year.
The entries, which must be wearable, are judged on a wide range of criteria including originality and innovation, creativity, construction and naturally wearability.
The result is a parade of bizarre, unique and mind-blowing outfits that stretch the imagination.
Barrie shared with us that she’s been taking part in the international festival for many years.
“I first went there about twenty years ago, it started in Nelson, New Zealand – and it was started by Suzie Moncrieff and her sister. She’s now Dame Suzie Moncrieff for what she’s created with the World of Wearable Art, it’s now the biggest event, it’s like the Emmys of wearable art.”
Barrie says what wearable art can encapsulate is very loose and wide-ranging, but when she encountered the event decades ago it was the first time she found a title to the kind of work she’d been producing.
“It gave a title to all of the things I’d been interested in and was doing, not that I was exceptionally exceeding at anything, but I went to art school and ended up just wanting to put anything on me or another person.”
Nowadays the event has grown and its now held in Wellington in a huge arena with an audience of 5,000 people attend each staging, and over multiple performances taking place over a three week period over 60,000 people go along to see the work created by many artists.
At the 2025 presentation there were 85 finalists, and then they are combined with music, dancers, and rotating stages to create an eye catching showcase. For her 2025 entry Barrie titled her work Synesthesia.
“I describe it as my Muppet, the inspiration came from the brief that was supplied. It asked for neon, after dark, movement and colour. They wanted nightlife energy.
“I definitely knew I wanted more than one person in it.” Barrie said of her creation that encapsulates two performers. “I wanted to change the form of the body, it doesn’t appeal to me to make something that is simply a dress or just the normal human form.”
The creative process began with drawing and playing around with bits of fabric, and really to hold once the shape of the design was established.
Barrie named her work Synesthesia after the neurogoloical condition which sees some people visualising numbers as colours, or in some cases musical notes as colours. Barrie does not have the condition, and before making her artwork she’d never knowingly met anyone who has it, but since naming her artwork she’s met several people who’ve shared their ability.
“For this kind of event the work cannot be at all delicate.” Barrie shared, explaining that not only does the creation need to be captivating, it also needs to be robustly built.
“It is worn at least thirty times, and it’s taken on and off for performances and rehearsals.” she shared.
The process for getting accepted into the WOW show is a multi stage process, artists must completely build and photograph their work to be able to enter it. Once passed the first stage they need to send off to New Zealand for the next round of assessment, which includes the models safety.
“A lot of the work, like mine, you can’t see the models face, but they need to be able to see and breathe.” she shared. “It’s got to be really strong and hold together.”
After creating Synesthesia Barrie looked at all the red patches on the design and realised while she loved the rough edges and textures she’d created, it dawned on her that by the time the garment had been worn many times they would of disintegrated, and the audience would never be able to see that level of fine detail.
“They were starting to come adrift, and I thought by show night they’ll have disintegrated, and they’re not going to see the lovely textures that I love. So I had to unpick them all, and I sealed all those edges over a little candle flame, and then I reapplied them all.” she revealed. The extra attention to detail paid off with her work being selected for the prestigious show.
