Born and raised in Mexico, multidisciplinary artist Arlette hosts a conversation between past and present in her work. Grainy photos of her younger self horse riding, snapshots of shrines and religious iconography, and images of traditional cowboy attire offer hints of the reference points Arlette plays upon in works spanning sculpture, moving image, performance, and fashion.
Silver is in heavy rotation, which is unsurprising given Arlette references Zacatecas within childhood memories, a city known as a historical silver mining hub. OTT belt buckles, delicate open knits, metal corsets, and molten digital sculptures are all rendered in silver, with dashes of gold applied sporadically. Her collection of trucker caps, which have fans impatiently awaiting new drops, are a meeting point of traditional embroidery and shrine-like appliqué of her own work.
Increasingly stepping into the realm of fashion, Arlette explores the complexities of religious, gender, and sexual identities with full leather outfits, strategic cut outs, and hyper-masculine status belts masquerading as tiny Y2K skirts. The artist manages to bring a freshness to oft-explored themes, winning her the attention of Dazed editor-in-chief Ib Kamara, who has styled Naomi Campbell in her pieces, and Taylor McNeill, stylist to Kendrick Lamar, for whom she created a full custom look for his 2022 tour. For many that’s the pinnacle, but for Arlette it feels like it’s just the starting blocks. She presented her graduate collection in London in June 2022.
Text Sophie Benson
