Lynette Hensley
Humans are
wonderful, aren't they? We are a group full of characters and ideas, uptight people, motivators
and mavericks. When I was designing costumes for theatre and dance
productions, what I learned about human behavior could have earned me a
degree in psychology. It was up to me along with the director and the
actors to discover from the script what someone was like—to flesh out the
things that they might spend time doing, the clothes they might choose
from the closet, whether the clothes would have been hanging or rumpled on
the floor so I could tell a story or convey an idea from a small detail. I
paid close attention to physical attributes, body attitudes and
positioning—also little details like the things they might keep in their
pockets. I have this need to understand what drives us and what it looks
like when we are driven.
I love theatre; its extremes and its playfulness. It is artificial, and
like a magnifying glass for life in a sense. On the other hand, it’s also
real and true. I see life in much the same way as I see theatre, though of
course life is much more complex and messy and un--designed. Life's
stories sure don't pull together in an hour or two, nor do they begin or
end quite so neatly.
I’ve decided that as an artist, I’m this two-sided combination of a show
off and a backstage hand that likes to stay behind the curtain and watch
how people react to the things I’ve made. I keep working out my
relationship to this thing called art; it is remarkable how it is like my
role as a theatre designer--both a solitary act and also very public.
Suits me.
Lynette
