Button Suit, made by Ruby Ann Kittner; Clinton, Iowa; with original photograph of Ruby and her husband Jake wearing this suit. c 1930 - 1940; dimensions: H 66". Via here. 

Sadly this is a listing from 2007 and the gallery must have sold it and removed the listing from their wesbite.I am interested in the relationship between the image form the past and the artefact sharing our present. this, plus the tea party at last Tues Tutor seminar must have influenced the piece that I can't document because my camera bust.

The film didn't work as you can't see anyhting except over my shoulder. As an artefact the one thing clothes ahve over anyhting else is that they can be worn and a person can include themselves and share the attention of the work.

I really wish I could have seen Jake wearing this.

I'm also interested in the idea of combining the inflexible with clothing, here buttons, but the first thing that comes to mind are the jade burial suit, ancient, but newly discovered when I was a child.

 

 Nam Oh Kim's Glance Back, a recreation of jade burial suits, made of electronic circuitry pieces with color-shifting lights. via http://www.vickilicious.com/2007/11/

Wish i could find an image of when they were excavated - literally deconstructed.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-14246476