Kerri is a Perth  Australia -based Artist Seemingly Born with a natural instinct for style and difference. Operating at the intersections of traditional art, fashion, styling, and sustainability. Barrie has  Worked  within costuming, styling, and wearable  sculptures.     Underpinned  by a Degree in Visual Arts-Fibre Textiles, a career in hairdressing, studies in theatrical make up, wig making, sewing, pattern making and a sojourn to fashion school in Paris. Barries work usually comes back to the wearable, often finding beauty in post consumer resources from  a personal ethos in sustainability.

In recent years  her   art practice has  also developed into textiles Art Dolls. Smaller scale vessels of identity and self-expression. Through careful observation of people, places, and tribes, her non-traditional dolls embody whimsical and eccentric personae that reflect  sometimes  societal norms but more so her need for the flamboyant. Drawing inspiration from fabrics, portraits, and human interactions her work captures a sense of playfulness and frivolity. These non traditional fabric dolls are unique vessels of identity. Each character is  carefully  hand stitched from found materials.  Representations of places, emotions,  experiences and fantasy. Highlighting  a yearning for a transcendent existence where flamboyance is  the  norm.

more background, 

Kerri brings fun, froth and resourcefulness to her work. Often found reusing, re-making and recreating. There is an artfulness and whimsy to her work. The intense dedication in whipping hair, plastic or fabric into a confectionery deliciousness for a theatrical performance, art production, wedding, or photo essay.

Works include multidisciplinary materials woven, twisted dyed, riveted, etched, studded, chain mailed and stitched. Corrugated iron curtains, a large aluminium bicycle dress peddled on stage and shipped around the country. The heartfelt piece of handprinted love letters pink ribbons installed high throughout the iconic pine trees amidst Fremantle fishing harbour.And Her Australian gown of the year playdress.

In 2008 Red Feathers and Hula Skirt was opened. A community store and workshop that only offered handmade, recycled and organic goods. Workshops in skirts to scarecrows. Ethics and Elegance

Life can take you up some very unusual paths and 2010 was no exception. This time the path went to Bali, Indonesia. No Eat Love Pray here, more like the smell, the noise, the Textiles!!! Kerri, bags and two children and a dependant brother I mean why not move to another country so that children can experience of the Green School, the”greenest school on earth” A vision of sustainability through community-integrated, entrepreneurial learning, in a wall-less, natural environment. What we haven’t highlighted here is the extent to which Kerri takes her creativity, her ethics, her beliefs and is proactive environmentally. A staunch recycler . One world’s rubbish is one womans materials. The Island of Paradise is now the Island of Plastic and old tyres.

So As a resident during 2010-2015 in Bali and Artist in Residence at the Green School, Kerri founded the green school shop. Creating sustainable merchandise for international visitors and families. The Mountains of refuse were calling her to utilise her skills and extensive knowledge of all things material, Discarded plastic shopping bags transformed into funky, fashionable and functional sandals. wearable jewellery repurposed from Inner tubes, bamboo straw production and solar dyed bamboo fabrics . Any clean cast off paper bags, glossy fashion magazine became beads, gift bags or Christmas decorations, old Vogue, now vogue earrings.

This endeavour lead Kerri’s to work with a number of low-income communities, focusing particularly in training women. Training and employment can afford these women a chance to leave the poverty trap and gambling husbands that sees an intergenerational prison of picking through rubbish or begging in the streets, illiteracy and poor life outcomes. Kerri was involved with Bali Life Foundation providing their children with schooling, meals and medical support while their mothers On a cool stone verandah learned to sew and turn used wine bottles into water glasses, vases, a burble of chatting and cackle from possibly rude jokes. A worthwhile and vital enterprise to be involved with.

As if there was room for yet another feather in her bow, Kerri made 2 beautiful human beings. At this time of her personal and professional career, Kerri manages that age old balancing act between feeding her creative life force and at the same time feeding her children. Generating spaces for Humanity, well, “ it doesn't get more satisfying than that. Funny how following the path to working with people who have not had the same advantages than me in a way that enriches my soul, I have a chuckle to myself with all of this and sometimes it’s just not any fun, projects fail, but this work makes me feel rich." Says Kerri https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQPB05rbpvg