From Local Billboards to Global Couture: The ArtPop Catalyst for Cultural Conservation
International Powerhouse Virgil Ortiz and Carolina Artist Teresa Dunlap Collaborate for ArtPop’s 6th Annual Upcycled Fashion Show
Written by Dasia Hood
ArtPop boldly builds global bridges by reclaiming local and international public billboards and transforming them into stunning works of wearable art. Driven by a mission to celebrate Artist Cohorts and push the boundaries of public art, the organization brought world-renowned creator Virgil Ortiz to Charlotte’s local ecosystem for ArtPop’s 6th Annual Upcycled Fashion Show at Blume Studios.
The Cosmic Collision: "The Storm Sentinel"
Virgil Ortiz, a celebrated ceramicist, fashion designer, and visual storyteller from Cochiti Pueblo, New Mexico, cut his refashioned couture design, "The Storm Sentinel," entirely from upcycled billboard vinyl.
The vinyl featured the artwork of Teresa Dunlap, a York County, South Carolina-based multidisciplinary artist and ArtPop 2025 Artist Cohort member whose work preserves traditional Catawba hand-harvested clay pottery, pine needle/splint basketry, and embroidery.
"The Storm Sentinel" embodies a mythical guardian forged by the proverbial storm of Indigenous cultures unbound by time, protecting ancestral wisdom that must never fall again. Complete with razor-sharp wings and an armored gown, the piece transforms historic motifs originating from Ortiz’s ongoing ReVOlt 1680/2180 project.
This project serves as a futuristic reimagining of the 1680 Pueblo Revolt, a landmark historic revolution where Pueblo tribes unified to expel Spanish colonizers from present-day New Mexico, successfully reclaiming their lands and preserving their heritage. Set 500 years in the future, Ortiz's saga features time-traveling warriors defending generational storytelling.
A Vision Born on a "Hope and a Prayer"
The extraordinary collaboration began when Wendy Hickey, ArtPop’s Founder and Executive Director, encountered Ortiz’s work at the Hickory Museum of Art while attending a talk by Teresa Dunlap on her Catawba Nation pottery and portraiture at the 2025 exhibition, I x AM: Indigenous Ancestral Memory.
“I walked into this exhibit made of these massive clay figures he creates, straight from his mind and history,” Hickey recalls. “I was just so taken aback, it struck a chord in me. It was surreal, both visually and emotionally.”
After the moving experience, Hickey learned more about Ortiz’s work in fashion through his captivating book, ReVOlution. Ortiz gained global acclaim in the fashion world following a landmark 2003 collaboration with Donna Karan (DKNY). He continues to produce haute couture leatherwear, accessories, and apparel that translate ancestral graphic motifs into modern design. Hickey recognized an undeniable synergy between Dunlap’s traditional craft and Ortiz’s modern haute couture.
Reaching out on a "hope and a prayer," Hickey asked Ortiz to participate as a VIP designer for the show. His team responded and agreed to talk more about the show. Hickey remembers his humility, kindness, and willingness as a touching moment for her when meeting with the artist and his team over a Zoom call. After all, he had never heard of ArtPop, but after hearing the Dunlap’s story and their mission to transform communities, Ortiz accepted the invitation to be featured as a designer at ArtPop's fashion show.
Bringing Ortiz, his team, and model Drew Taylor from Santa Fe to Charlotte was a true community effort, made possible through key sponsorships from the Catawba Nation Foundation and Davidson College Art Galleries.
“Typically, when somebody’s designing for us for the first time, they’re designing for the first time with billboard vinyl,” notes Hickey. “He had actually created from an event billboard before, but he just took the assignment to a whole different level.”
Generational Heritage Meets the Runway
The collaboration was defined by deep mutual respect. Before the show, Dunlap presented Ortiz with a piece of her handcrafted pottery, and Ortiz spent time encouraging fellow emerging designers behind the scenes.
For Dunlap, seeing her traditional pottery elevated into futuristic high fashion was deeply moving:
“I never dreamed that the tiny pieces of pottery that I made back in 2024 would be displayed on ArtPop billboards,” says Dunlap. “The fact that the billboard itself was then elevated into a piece fashioned by Virgil Ortiz and incorporated into his futuristic retelling of the 1680 Pueblo Revolt was such an honor. Being involved with the ArtPop community and featured alongside an artist as inspiring as Virgil has given me the courage and inspiration to continue pushing forward in my practice.”
Photo by Rico Marcelo
Ortiz was equally energized by the Charlotte community and the creative spark at Blume Studios:
“A massive THANK YOU to Wendy Hickey and everyone at Upcycled ArtPop Fundraiser for inviting me to be part of this year’s fashion event! Connecting with and educating the public in Charlotte through art was an incredible experience. Deconstructing Teresa Dunlap’s billboard and transforming it into a wearable piece of art costume inspired by one of the characters from my film project, ReVOlt 1680/2180, was such a fun, wild, and exciting creative adventure!
Thank you to my team, Tish Agoyo and Drew Taylor, for helping me bring this design alive. Meeting all the amazing designers and models was another highlight. So much creativity, talent, and positive energy in one place! Art connects the world. Keep pushing boundaries and Never Stop Creating!” (Virgil Ortiz)
No Limitations: The Future of Cultural Conservation
By keeping more than 13,000 square feet of billboard vinyl out of landfills every year, ArtPop’s fashion program weaves sustainability directly into cultural conservation. Materials that once hung beside highways now carry sacred historical messages, connecting ancestral heritage directly with modern audiences.
“I just feel like there are no limitations now,” states Hickey as she looks toward the future of ArtPop's public art and sustainability initiatives. “It has me thinking really big. Can we bring the billboard upcycled fashion show to New York City? Can we bring it to New York Fashion Week? Can we bring it to Paris Fashion Week?”
Hickey sees the ArtPop Billboard Upcycle Fashion Program as a flagship model for the outdoor advertising industry to engage artists and take responsibility for its environmental impact. ArtPop’s sustainability storytelling through fashion is an act of conservation. It preserves not just physical material, but the divine messages that artistic messengers like Virgil Ortiz and Teresa Dunlap use to connect ancestral heritage with the community in innovative and intriguing ways.
About the Author
Dasia Hood is a poet, writer, and interdisciplinary artist. Explore more of her work at dasiahood.com.
Photo by Sancho Smalls
