Meghan Bustard x INDI&COLD
From the canvas to the silk. Art in the form of a handkerchief.
The artist Meghan Bustar created an exclusive piece for INDI&COLD in the form of a 100% silk handkerchief. A piece that brings the artistic language to the product, combining contemporary design and versatility in day-to-day life.
And today, we wanted to get to know a little bit more to the artist that is behind the piece 
What inspired you to create this piece, and how does it connect with your creative universe?
My work is rooted in an exploration of the tie between experience and memory – how we’re present in moments, what we’re thinking and feeling, and how that impacts how/what we remember of them. This particular painting was inspired by the way the first light of dawn interacts with its surroundings – wispy bits of cloud picking up light against a soft blue morning sky, the sea’s gentle waves, sparking in the day’s first ray of sun. I love those early moments of the morning when the whole world feels fresh and new and the abundance of the day is all ahead of you. This painting is like a little love letter to that, those feelings of ease, and quiet, and anticipation.
For you, what does it mean for a piece of art to leave the canvas and become part of everyday life?
Has it changed the way you see it? I think a lot about how we interact with and experience art – paintings specifically. Often, paintings are housed in galleries, museums, or homes, which can be a barrier to entry, and I think it’s really meaningful to bring paintings out of these places and into life where they can be viewed or interacted in a different way. To put a painting on a scarf and then wear it is such a personal embodiment of the work. I’m always interested, as an artist, in the ways viewers will interact with my work, and to get to see people interact with a painting on such a personal level like this as it integrates with their personal style and the way the present themselves to the world is a real honour.
When art and fashion intersect, new interpretations emerge. In your case, what has it meant to collaborate with INDI&COLD?
I think there’s a certain synergy that emerges whenever art intersects with another area of life. For me, fashion has always been a continuation of the way I am creatively – a spilling over of my work on the canvas. I love putting together outfits that play with different shapes, colours, textures, in an extension of the way I play with shapes colours and textures on the canvas. To put the two together in such a concrete way feels like it’s opened new pathways for me, and I think enriched my experience of both.
When you think about the woman who wears it, how do you imagine her, and what kind of look do you think would suit it best?
I hope this scarf brings with it a sense of calm and possibility – I hope it can be worn with joy and freedom and can be a tool of creativity and self expression. I imagine it being put on during those quiet moments in the morning, worn sipping coffee, reading, on a market run for fresh produce, down to the sea for a swim, dressed up for an evening at a show, put on for dinner with friends, wherever its wearer is looking for moments to integrate art and life.
And in your day-to-day life, which garments do you think define your personal style?
I’m always drawn to pieces that tell a story. Something slightly unexpected. Years ago, when I was new to motherhood, and looking for ways to connect with myself, I remember reading something that talked about “third pieces” and that really stuck with me in relation to how I experienced personal style. The idea is that a third piece is an extra – something that ties the outfit together and makes it yours, shows personality and intention. It could be an interesting pair of shoes, a fun/colourful pair of sunglasses, a silk scarf, a vest or jacket that introduces depth of color, or a texture or pattern. I love that a painting of mine is now a scarf, because it’s such a perfect piece to add to any outfit to give it more personality – to say – ‘I chose this, I like this’ with what we wear.
