1. When do you feel at your most attractive?

I feel the most attractive when I am with the people that make me feel seen and loved. Red lipstick helps too.

2. Do you notice women on the street? If so, what sort of women do you tend to notice or admire?

I notice women all the time. Sometimes because they are sexy and cute and sometimes because I want their dress. Sometimes a little of both.

3. What are some things you admire about how other women present themselves?

I love it when women look beautiful in ease. I think that is ideal to strive for. Smelling nice helps too.

4. Was there a moment in your life when something “clicked” for you about fashion or dressing or make-up or hair? What? Why did it happen then, do you think?

I think I had different moments of "clicking". When I was teenager & discovered thrift stores, I first discovered that I could create my own style.

The most recent "clicking" moment was when my friend Katy re-cut my hair to let the curls out & just let my hair go big. That and taking it further by wearing my hair in a top knot. It feels silly to say but in a way its really taught me something about taking up space.

5. What are some shopping rules you wouldn’t necessarily recommend to others but which you follow?

I don't really adhere to rules in shopping & that is something I don't really recommend to anyone else. Rules, in general.

6. What are some rules about dressing you follow, but you wouldn't necessarily recommend to others?

Sometimes if I really like an outfit I will wear it for a couple of days. Typically I wouldn't suggest that for others but I just read an article stating that this is habit of successful people so maybe everyone should try this out. I am still working it out myself.

7. What is the most transformative conversation you have ever had on the subject of fashion or style?

Every conversation I have with artist/fashion designer Pascale Gatzen is a transformation about style, fashion and spirit.

8. Do you have a unified way of approaching your life, work, relationships, finances, chores, etc.? Please explain.

I wish.

9. Are there any clothing (or related) items that you have in multiple? Why do you think you keep buying this thing?

Since I have been analyzing the ethical issues in clothing production, buying things in multiple is something I strive to avoid but with that said I do buys socks and underwear in packs.

10. Have you ever successfully given someone a present of jewelry or clothing that you continue to feel good about?

I gave my girlfriend a bunch of shirts that I love on her.

11. Is there any fashion trend you’ve refused to participate in and why? 

I really hate the trend of long skirts that are shorter in the front than the back. I don't know why this style rubs me the wrong way but it really does.

12. Can you say a bit about how your mother’s body and style has been passed down to you, or not?

I have my mother's Puerto Rican curves and I love it.

13. Have you stolen, borrowed or adapted any dressing ideas or actual items from friends or family?

My mother has kept a lot of clothes from the 80's and I have definitely benefited from that. Instead of stealing, I like to think of it more as inheriting.

14. Was there a point in your life when your style changed dramatically? What happened?

Its been a steady evolution of a lady punk consistent with emphasis on black with varying iteration. I definitely wear less eyeliner than I used to.

15. Is there anything political about the way you dress?

The most political thing about the way I dress is more in how I consume. I try to make decisions that are more in line with thinking about clothing as investment. Signature pieces that will stand the time than of the moment. I also consume mostly through clothing swaps or second hand vintage.

19. What are you wearing on your body and face, and how is your hair done, right at this moment?

I am wearing skinny black jeans with black leather knee patches. A red boatneck top with black stripes. Black hoodie sweatshirt. My hair is in a ponytail.

20. In what way is this stuff important, if at all?

It actually isn't important at all.

21. With whom do you talk about clothes?

People tend to want to talk to me more about clothes because of my sustainable fashion project. I can engage for a while but there are lots of others that I want to talk about.

22. How do institutions affect the way you dress?

?

27. Can you recall some times when you have dressed a particular way to calm yourself or gain a sense of control over a situation that scared you?

My mother told me once that when I was going into a stressful moment ....that I should take a minute to fix my lipstick. So, if I have a job interview or a performance, I always spend a minute doing my lipstick. Its my warrior moment.

31. Many people say they want to feel “comfortable,” or that they admire people who seem “confident.” What do these words really mean to you?

I think being "comfortable/confident" is really more about truly being yourself.

35. Are you generally a good judge of whether what you buy will end up being worn? Have you figured out how to know in advance?

If I am buying something, I will wear it.

50. Do you ever wish you were a man or could dress like a man or had a man’s body? Was there ever a time in the past?

No.

51. If there was one country or culture or era that you had to live in, fashion-wise, what would it be?

The 40's !!!!!!!

54. Are there any figures from culture, past or present, whose style you admire or have drawn from?

When I think of style icons, I think of Madonna, Anna Karina, and Kim Gordon.

55. Have you ever had a dream that involved clothes?

I dream about shopping a lot.

56. What would be a difficult or uncomfortable look for you to try and achieve?

Steam punk. It looks uncomfortable to me.

65. What is your favorite piece of clothing or jewelry that you own?

I kind of love all my clothing & when I stop loving it, I put it in my swap bag to be currency for the next clothing swap I am going to throw.

67. Looking back at all your purchases over the past five to fifteen years, can you generalize about what sorts of things were the most valuable to buy?

Shoes and coats.

69. If you had to throw out all your clothes but keep one thing, what would you keep?

A black jumpsuit.

72. Was there ever an important or paradigm-shifting purchase in your life?

The first time I bought a blazer that didn't make me look an 8 year old playing dress up felt paradigm shifting in my wardrobe.

73. What item of clothing are you still (or have you forever been) on the hunt for?

I am looking for a leopard print trench coat. I had one for years but gave it away year ago. Now I am dying for one. Anyone ?

What’s your birth date? 
Where were you born and where do you live now?

1/12/77, I was born in New York City and I live in Brooklyn.

Say anything you like about your cultural/ethnic/economic background.

I am Puerto Rican and Czech from a lower middle class background.

What kind of work do you do?

I am video artist/writer who is in grad school and works in freelance production.

Are you single, married, do you have kids, etc.?

I am in a relationship.

Bio

Catherine Tyc’s first music video premiered on MTVu in 2009 and was voted “Best Video of the Week” and nominated for “Best of the Year”. The video was added to the rotation on LOGO’s NewNowNext as well as MTVu.

In 2006, she was a fellow at the Flaherty Seminar “Creative Demolition: Reconstructing Culture through Innovations in Film & Video” at Vassar College.

In 2009, she adapted, directed, produced and edited her first short narrative “Umbrella” that has gone on to screen in galleries & festivals in Seattle, Portland and New York City , Berlin and London.

In 2008, XLR8R magazine wrote about her work saying, “ Tyc’s visual depiction of “seeing” sound moves into a realm far deeper than music video, becoming something closer to abstract illusionism.’

In 2012, she presented a retrospective screening of her early video work at the Microscope Gallery in Bushwick.

She is a member of New York Women in Film and Television as well as the Brooklyn Filmmaker’s Collective & lives in Brooklyn.

She is currently in the process of developing a multi platform media project about the ethics of clothing production and the psychology of clothing consumption and an MFA Candidate at Pratt Institute for Writing/Activism.

http://www.thisishowiunhaul.tumblr.com