I became a fan of Tampa-based fashion designer Ben Chmura after seeing his work at Dirty But Sophisticated 4. (He was also featured in last summer’s installment of Wearable Art at the Dunedin Fine Art Center.) Chmura describes his design aesthetic as “retro-futuristic” and lately has been incorporating the influence of ancient global cultures into his sexy party dresses. This weekend he brings his latest and greatest work out of the closet at DENILE, an Egyptian-themed fashion event at Ybor nightclub Czar.
Venomous snakes, from the black mamba to the cobra, inspire both the dresses’ fabric color and texture and their construction, which Chmura describes as modeled on snake musculature and other anatomy. “Each carefully created frock is intended to be a statement of subtle, sophisticated empowerment for all women,” according to the event press release.
Damn straight, hiss…
DENILE, Sat., Apr. 11, 9 p.m.-12 a.m. (fashion show at 11 p.m.), Imperial Theatre at Czar Nightclub; after-party continues at Czar. Standing-room admission is $7 for 21+ and $10 for guests under 21; limited seating available for $20. Admission includes a free “Bleeding Cleopatra” cocktail by sponsor Absolut Vodka. For more information, click here.
Megan Voeller is Creative Loafing’s visual art critic. She teaches at the University of Tampa and blogs at Artsqueeze.com.
This article appears in Apr 8-14, 2009.