• 
• 

Published on April 9, 2008

These days, most of us are familiar with flowers, dogs, monkeys and even hats made from colourful balloons. Few of us, however, can imagine an haute-couture dress sculpted entirely from rubber bubbles.

And Japanese balloon artist Rie Hosokai doesn't just come up with two-dimensional models - her gowns are wearable.

You can experience the eye-popping balloon fashion designed by Hosokai in three special shows being organised by CentralWorld as part of "Balloon #1" tomorrow, Saturday and Monday.

Hosokai has created 34 dresses in three separate themes especially for the Bangkok shows: Victorian evening finery, fantasy Little Princess gowns and fancy animal costumes.

"This is the first time I've made wearable animal figures with balloons," she says.

Giraffes, penguins, monkeys and tigers are among the animals that will be delighting audiences as they make their way along the runway. Her Victorian fashion show will feature elegant 19th-century costumes with an emphasis on wedding gowns, while the Little Princess theme will showcase cute ball gowns for little girls.

Hosokai was first introduced to balloon art in 1998 while working as a florist. The flexible twisted shapes fascinated her and she immediately started reading books, practising the craft and attending workshops and seminars to develop her skills.

She started her own business, Daisy Balloon, in 2002, offering a unique service of balloon and floral decorations to customers.

"I found that by combining my two passions - the arts of flower arranging and balloon sculpting - the possibilities were endless. Since then my business has continued to expand, and in 2004 I began taking part in competitions," says the soft-spoken Hosokai.

With a fine eye for detail and endless enthusiasm, she has achieved international recognition and won several awards including first prize in the Large Figure Competition of 2007's Twist & Shout, the biggest balloon fest in the world, and a Fashion Award at the Millennium Jam 2007 in Belgium.

Thanks to her background in flowers, Hosokai has a flair for combining colour in her creations, and twisting her skills into fashion is a challenge she thoroughly enjoys.

"I have an imbedded measuring tape in my fingers," she jokes, adding that creating a balloon dress is more complicated than working on other figures.

"You have to think about how the balloon dress can be worn and of course, it's impossible to use a zip or buttons. Ties are really the only solution," explains the 31-year-old artist. She adds that about 300 balloons are needed for an evening gown and that she and her team of three will spend up to 10 hours working on a dress.

She got the idea for inflatable fashions after attending a balloon-art workshop in Belgium in 2005.

"My first balloon clothing was a top and a skirt. Then I learnt to create outfits that were more complicated."

Could a woman wear a balloon dress to a party?

"It's a bit of a risk. If the balloons burst, the wearer might feel a bit vulnerable. I once created balloon outfits for the waitresses at a cocktail party and inevitably the guys tried to burst them."

Her creations don't last either. In less than a week, the dresses have wilted, "just like flowers," she says.

Her dream is to create a balloon car.

"I'd love to do one big enough to allow passengers to sit inside," she grins.

See Rie Hosokai's Victorian evening dresses tomorrow at 2pm and her Little Prince gowns Saturday at 4. The animal costumes will be paraded on Monday, also at 4.

Tanaporn Tangcharoenmankong

Special to The Nation