Behind the Scenes at the Funhouse: Decorating Patricia Fields
Patricia Fields is a kitchen supply store turned clothing boutique in New York's City's Bowery area, although other than the “Restaurant Equipment Sales Repairs and Parts” (se habla espanol) sign that still hangs outside, few cues of its former life remain. Graffiti artist James de La Vega has tagged most of the walls, and the previously white plaster molding that surrounds the first floor of the store is covered in Carnaval float-making material from Brazil.
At the entrance of the store stands a 12-foot pagoda covered in shiny red tiles that is about the width of an industrial elevator. Just above it floats a pale blue hot air balloon that is sure to seem oddly reminiscent to anyone that has ever ridden a log flume to the helium-induced tune of “There is just one moon and one golden sun and one smile that means friendship to every one...”Originally a part of the “It’s a Small World” ride in Disney World, Patricia Fields, the store's owner, won the balloon at an auction. A bit more Pee-wee Herman than Mickey Mouse, the magic of Patricia Fields is mastered by head visual merchandiser, Artie Hach, who has dressed the windows, mannequins, and overseen the general design of the store since 1995 (back when it was on 8th street in Soho and called Venus).
Hach went to FIT for exhibition design, but he is an equally talented stylist. He worked with Fields on seasons 1-4 of “Sex and the City,” earning an Emmy and many skills that have enriched his abilities to outfit the mannequins he uses in his visual merchandising. “The four years I worked on ‘Sex and the City’ were like a second college and the Emmy was like my degree,” said Hach, who has since also taken on many freelance large-scale window design products for H&M and Macy’s. Often seen with a ladder, screwdriver, or spare light bulb in his hand, Hach’s job is to maintain the store looking spry and to ensure that products, especially the best-selling ones, are effectively featured.
“We change the store windows about once a month, and switch up the interior every 2 to 3 weeks,” said Hach, who had just recently completed the latest window display. This month’s Patricia Fields window features a mannequin wearing emerald green tights, a yellow and black can-can taffeta tutu, and an aqua, magenta, and royal purple sequined horizontally striped tube top. A large cotton-candy colored pink boa bedizened with nickel-sized silver reflective circles is draped over her neck, as electric pink and canary yellow feathered armbands, teal earrings, and a rubber toucan nose, all contribute to her otherworldly appearance. She is crowned with a whopping tangerine, pink, indigo, yellow and cerulean wig designed by Tobel, the in-house wig designer that works out of the hair salon in the basement.
"I make wigs for everyone from drag queents to kimo patients," said Tobel, who certainly does not go unnoticed in her smurf-blue doo. A marvel in synthetic hair design, Tobel's latest creation can only be described as an inspired fusion of Marie Antoinette, Marge Simpson Tina Turner, and a cockatoo. “I work a lot with birds because I think they’re beautiful,” said Hach, pointing to a dead bird that he used as part of wig for the scarecrow-woman figure also in the same window as the toucan one.
“I added the scarecrow to make the window a little scary -- I was inspired by the movie ‘Jeepers Creepers;’ I’m sexually attracted to the demon,” Hach added. When people walk past Patricia Fields, they usually stop and stare because the windows are consistently arresting. In the second window, Hach features a sexy geisha girl being kidnapped by the armageddon creature (a one-eyed monster scepter wielding monster in a Willy Wonka purple jumpsuit and a pastie over his right nipple) and a biker babe with a Flinstone-sized bone in her hair and a black studded patch over her left eye.
Though Patricia Fields herself is currently spending most of her time dressing Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda for the "Sex and the City" movie, she has also been working with Barbie. Fields' Mattel line is slated to appear next month, in addition to a shoe-line that she has designed for Payless. Both of these events will certainly be reflected by Hach in the store's windows; magnetizing, mesmerizing, and inspiredly skookum, as usual.
Tags: Visual Merchandising , Sex And The City , Fashion
