Private Commissions

Shell Bag

2002

Commissioned by Bee Ladd, Brooklyn, New York
Medium: Raw silk, beads, fiber, metal, thread, Bontex, horsehair canvas
Dimensions: 11 1/4 x 2 x 6 1/2 in.
Photograph: Clang

Commission Overview
This is one of our very early handbags, created in 2002 while we were working in our Bushwick studio. Commissioned by our sister Bee, Shell Bag reflects our earliest explorations into combining fashion and sculpture.

Artistic Approach
The body of the bag was built over a structured core, likely Bontex, with the pleated lid reinforced on the inside with horsehair canvas, a traditional men’s suiting material. The exterior was pleated orange and yellow raw silk, which draped over the body with a sculptural, shell-like presence.

The bag was designed to be versatile: it could be carried as a clutch, or worn with a detachable strap that doubled as jewelry. That strap was one of our earliest netting experiments—a beaded lattice structure threaded with glass beads. Long before we developed our custom silver clasps, this strap used silver lobster claws on each end, attaching to silver loops sewn into the bag.

Engagement and Impact
For Bee, the bag was both adornment and artwork, a reflection of her ongoing support of our earliest creative experiments. For us, it was an opportunity to integrate pleating, tailoring materials, and beadwork into a single form—pushing beyond jewelry into wearable sculpture.

Context and Legacy
Shell Bag predates our later handbags and jewelry commissions, but it already shows many of the themes that would carry forward in our practice: versatility, transformation, and the fusion of adornment with sculpture. The beaded netting strap in particular points toward later necklace and jewelry designs, while the use of Bontex and horsehair canvas connected our process to the language of tailoring and construction. Today, the bag remains an early marker of experimentation, family support, and the seeds of ideas that would grow into signature elements of our work.