Building art installation features custom-printed spandex

It may be a stretch, but if super heroes wear spandex, why not dress up a two-story row house? New York artist Elizaveta (Leeza) Meksin joined Cosign Projects and other partners to present HOUSE COAT, an art installation at a red brick Benton Park building in St. Louis, Mo. Meksin chose semi-transparent white spandex custom printed with gold chains to start conversations on freedom (she is a Jewish exile from Russia), the importance of “bling” in modern life and the choices people make about appearances and apparel.

The installation, on display during March and April, used 400 yards of spandex to cover the building. The HOUSE COAT created a soft violet-white light inside the building, rented by artist Lauren Adams of Cosign Projects, who now wonders “how much the spandex will insulate the house.” The exhibition was made possible by support from more than 100 financial backers via the online funding platform Kickstarter. Once the installation is complete, Meksin will be making a variety of spandex items for all the supporters that made the project possible.