Thursday, May 20, 2010

Parsons 2010 Show - some of the sustainability tiles

Here are some of the tiles I created for the sustainability section in the School of Fashion exhibit in the Parsons 2010 Show. I should note, Jonathan Kyle Farmer made the process very easy and fun for me by having a template to work towards.

The School of Fashion Sustainability Manifesto:



A Sydney friend's laundry as part of the exhibition:

Hee Lim's thesis collection:

An adjustable dress whose designer I've misplaced - to be fixed soon!

Dress by Jayme Cyk:

Some of my play from three years ago:

Images from the repair workshops in February:
On a not entirely unrelated note, having just looked through over a hundred line sheets, couple of tips regarding photography to fashion students worldwide:
  1. You should NEVER model your own collection in a line sheet. Not only does it seem narcissistic, you should be directing the shoot and seeing how things look through the camera. I mean, are you going to take photos of you to an interview? Seriously.
  2. Places you should NEVER shoot your collection in: your bedroom/living room (lazy); a garden/back yard (naff beyond words)

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Done...



Parsons 2010 Show

At work we've referred to this as the Five Schools Show - the Schools of Fashion, Art, Media & Technology, Design Strategies, Art & Design History & Theory and Constructed Environments are coming together within the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center to share accomplishments over the past year. I'd like to congratulate a colleague, Jonathan Kyle Farmer, who designed the School of Fashion exhibit: The Periodic Table of Fashion Elements. Congratulations to all the other schools, too: the space is looking amazing (I will take photos of all the exhibits later). The show opens today at noon. It will be ready :) Check it out fast - it comes down after Monday! Special thanks to Daisy Wong, whom you see on the ladder in many of the photos, and thanks to the whole team from the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center led by Radhika Subramaniam.

Saturday, May 15, 2010

CutPrint = JR + JR: Details


As I mentioned some time ago, Julian Roberts is coming to NYC; less than a month to go now! The details for the NYC event are below but Julian's tour will also cover Toronto, St. Helena CA and Vancouver. In NYC Julian is teaming up with JR Campbell from Kent State University, the host of the NY event. The tireless Sandy Ericson from the Center for Pattern Design is the powerhouse behind the tour and can provide more details. The current issue of Threads has an article on zero-waste fashion design and my work features in the article quite prominently so thank you Sandy as well as the team at Threads!

WORKSHOPS
FRIDAY, JUNE 11 1:00PM-5:00PM
Workshop I: Elementary Sub-cutting with Julian Roberts
Introduction to the basics of subtraction cutting.

SATURDAY, JUNE 12 1:00PM-5:00PM
Workshop II: Advanced/Expert Level Sub-cutting and Applications of Digital Print Design with Julian Roberts and J.R. Campbell
Geared for people who already have many of the subtraction cutting concepts down and want to see the pros in action in a live cutting performance. Digital printing concepts are also introduced to demonstrate how this medium can be applied in the sub-cutting process. Participants receive patterns in advance in preparation for the workshop. Workshop II is also open to anyone who participated in the June 11th Workshop I: Elementary Sub-cutting.

MAIN EVENT
SATURDAY, JUNE 12 7:00PM-9:00PM
Sub-cutting Presentation and Fashion Show
Presentation includes a collaborative JR/JR demonstration presenting the concepts of Subtraction Cutting and the application of engineered digitally printed designs to the subtraction cut garments. The last hour includes a reception and fashion show presenting work by Julian Roberts and J.R. Campbell as well as garments created by the students in the supporting workshops. Refreshments provided.

Workshop and Event Fees
A la carte:
$100.00 Workshop I: Elementary Sub-cutting with Julian Roberts
$150.00 Workshop II: Advanced/Expert Level Sub-cutting and Applications of Digital Print Design with Julian Roberts and J.R. Campbell
$75.00 Sub-cutting Presentation and Fashion Show

Combine workshops and event and save more!
$150.00 Workshop I + Presentation and Fashion Show
$200.00 Workshop II + Presentation and Fashion Show
$225.00 Workshop I & II
$275.00 All 3 Events (Workshop I & II + Presentation and Fashion Show)

TO REGISTER, VISIT https://commerce.cashnet.com/fashionshow
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT (212) 967-1730

All workshops and events take place at The Fashion School’s NYC Studio, located at 315 West 39th Street, #402, between 8th and 9th Avenue.

Julian Roberts is represented exclusively by the Center for Pattern Design in the USA, Canada and Mexico.

Friday, May 14, 2010

Thank you WGSN, with thanks to Lynda Grose and Kate Fletcher

Thank you to Libby Banks and Andrew Jobling at WGSN; I feel humbled. I must say, my sustainability heroes are Kate Fletcher and Lynda Grose. Two amazing people who've been at it longer than most, and too often overlooked. Even once is too often, and I should have acknowledged both in the interview. Kate and Lynda, I wouldn't be here without you two. Libby, huge thanks to you, too!

Thursday, May 13, 2010

thank you

Thank you once again Zoe! Once again, these beautiful birds come at a particularly welcome time; two of my closest are quite unwell, though with potentially positive eventual outcomes. Being far away is hard. Also, about a month ago I found out about an old friend in Sydney passing away suddenly. Not one of my closest, to be sure, but someone I knew and had a huge amount of admiration for nearly 15 years. Enjoy:

Wednesday, May 05, 2010

Eco Chic - Towards Sustainable Swedish Fashion (part 2)

The press photos provided by the organizers are simply too beautiful not to use so here they are - thank you organizers! The copyright owner of all the photographs is the Swedish Institute, www.imagebank.sweden.se Please do not republish any images without permission from the Swedish Institute. Don't hesitate to contact me if you spot an incorrect link - I am working on adrenaline now. Sleep beckons in July.

Julian Red
Photography by Mikael Schultz


Nudie Jeans
Photography by Jonas Linell

Pia Anjou
Photography by Pia Anjou

Dem Collective
Photography by Camilla Boström

Swedish Hasbeens
Photography by Swedish Hasbeens

Righteous Fashion
Photography by the Swedish Institute


Johanna Hofring
Photography by Aia Judes

Zion Clothing
Photography by Richard Ström

Camilla Norrback
Photography by Ann-Katrin Blomqvist

Anja Hynynen
Photography by Ardalanish Isle of Mull Weavers

Eco Chic - Towards Sustainable Swedish Fashion (part 1)

This wonderful exhibition, having already toured extensively, opened last night at Scandinavia House here in NY with a symposium on which I've written at the Parsons School of Fashion blog. The exhibition is commissioned and produced by The Swedish Institute, and the curator and exhibition architect is Karin Gräns. Congratulations on the beautiful design of the space! The wall plaques are made from natural rubber, and the stands are naturally dark rather than dyed black wood. The circular motifs of the plaques and stands help create a cohesive overall feel for the space. Once again, my photographs do not do the design of the exhibition justice so you must go and check it out for yourself. My camera batteries died and some photos are 'courtesy' of my iPhone, including the symposium photo on the Parsons blog. There are some beautiful photos and video at Tear-n Tan. A background video on the exhibited designers is available here.

The exhibition will eventually tour further and as those details become available, I'll post here. Free gallery admission is made possible by a generous grant provided by The Barbro Osher Pro Suecia Foundation and the exhibition is also supported by the The Swedish Institute and the Consulate General of Sweden in New York.

I hope that the styling of the looks comes through in my photography. Exhibiting contemporary fashion as well as styling fashion for an exhibition can be tricky, as styling should support rather than overwhelm the clothes on show. In my opinion, this worked well. The styling served to make the clothes accessible, every day - an important quality in this kind of exhibition: these are clothes for living, for all of us. The stylists are Jacob Bernhardtz and Ursula Wångander. The strong educational focus in the wall plaques is useful and this comes through in the catalogue, too - including the often neglected impacts of laundry. Mathilda Tham served as the sustainability consultant for the exhibition so it is no surprise that the subject matter is dealt with in a robust way. Finally, Kajsa Guterstam acted as coordinator and Mats Hedman was the graphic designer. Once again, congratulations to everyone involved!

Here are the exhibited designers. Worth also mentioning is the short film, 'Globalization', directed by Johan Romin, on show in a side room.

Dem Collective
Fair trade is important for the company, both in fabrics and labour, much of which takes place in Sri Lanka and India. Karin Stenmar of Dem Collective reiterated this beautifully in the symposium.


Julian Red
More than 60% of the company's fabrics are organic and fair labour conditions are important to the company. The coat is organic linen and lurex - sure, not cradle to cradle as Anna Maria Bernitz, Project Manager at the Swedish Institute acknowledged, but it is a coat that one would have for a long time and perhaps eventually pass on to a younger generation. A heritage piece, something that came up a number of times in the symposium. It reminded me of Caroline Priebe's comment at The Sustainability Equation: Ethics and Aesthetics in Contemporary Fashion. The organic cotton denim on the right is amazing!

Nudie Jeans
Do I need to introduce Nudie? I didn't think so.

Pia Anjou
A graduate of the Swedish School of Textiles in Borås (where Marcus Bergman lectures), Anjou aims for a design approach that allows mixing of pieces from consecutive collections.

Bergman's
Bergman's make men's shirts in Peruvian organic cotton. Marcus Bergman, the Managing Director of The Ecocotton Co, was one of symposium speakers.

Johanna Hofring
Hofring is very much involved in and her collection is stocked at Ekovaruhuset in New York.

Righteous Fashion
The company was started by Kajsa Cappelen Holst and Paula Kermfors, who studied Human Rights Law.

Camilla Norback
Perhaps one of the better known designers in the exhibition, Norrback has been in business for eight years.

Zion Clothing
The company focuses strongly on organic cotton and ethical production.

Reflective Circle
My photos of Reflective Circle's look didn't turn out, but there are some beautiful images here. The look next to Hynynen's below is the one. The company was established in 2001 by Josefin Lassbo.

Anja Hynynen
A Swede with a Finnish name, Hynynen works on two collections, one under her own name and another with Ardalanish Isle of Mull Weavers, a mill in Scotland.

Swedish Hasbeens
All the shoes are based on original 70s models and manufactured in the same factory they were back then.