2.3.2 Broadening and Directing.

Having gained a better understanding of our direction, the group brought our ideas together. Then as a collective we examined our work, disregarding ones we thought didn’t fit in, for example steering away from the idea of having flashes of colour and staying with the grey scale colour palate. As a group we discussed how best we could utilise everyone’s skills, their areas of expertise, working collectively as a team rather than separately as individuals.

During our tutorial we discussed our ideas with Susan, pulling together the design aspects we hadn’t been so brave to touch upon earlier, to work together to create a final outcome sample collection, bringing in the stronger areas of our individual practices, I making plain, bland samples for team members to work with. This will be a more creative and collaborative approach than other briefs.

By directing our ideas in the same direction our outcomes have a similar feel to them, creating a large collection of samples that work well together.

Over the next few days I anticipate directing my visual research towards the weight of the fabrics of an outfit, examining how they flow on a body, the movement of actions they take, fastenings, openings, and the wrappings of the garment.

As a team it is essential that alongside sampling and how we are going to get there, we also need to think about a muse, deciding what type of person we are directing our designs towards. Our initial thoughts are to use a female version as opposed to the male, for whom James Long normally aims his collection towards.

2.3.1 James Long Presentation and Tutorial.

We had a presentation from a James Long’s team member in conjunction with a tutorial as to the approach he would like us to take for the chosen concept within his brief. 

Our concept as per the brief is Martial Arts. Through the use of a thought shower session and a word association activity we were able to identify which key words stood out in reference to Martial Arts and fashion. These key words included movement, fluidity, attack, material, equipment and movement practice.  

For this brief my intention is to focus upon the ‘fluidity’ of fabric in movement, martial arts equipment and its usage, the layering of protection through the use of fabrics and the sharpness of attack.

James Long’s collections focus on the more unusual aspects of design and incorporate new ways of working with fabrics and techniques. He incorporates dark tones accompanied by flashes of muted tones of colour which lift and give buoyancy to the colour palate of his garments.

James Long’s team member, Tom, spent time with each group sharing suggestions as to ways of approaching the brief that has been set. Tom was very positive about the ideas the group developed concerning Luxe Sports Wear for women. These ideas included the layering and bandaging of fabric, thinking about placement of design and elongating techniques on the body. Subsequently these led to ideas of control, block colour. Tom further suggested we restrict our colour palate to a grey scale, contouring, looking at the muscle of an individual, looking at attaching and patching pieces together, showing skin and body definition which can be amplified by using a range of fabrics, from gloss and sheen to matte and even leather to bring structure, to pull the martial arts concept through.

2.3.0. New York Studio Visits.

The first studio visit was Judy Ross, I feel I learnt a lot from Judy. Her way of working was simple and very effective. She worked from her simple mark making using them to create the embroidered pieces. This me realise not to dismiss the simplicity of my own drawing style, to utilise them more. Seeing how much she has achieved in the world of interiors by using just the few simple techniques of chain stitch embroidery and printed textiles was inspiring.

The third studio visit was another real eye-opener, the visit was to Francis Bitonti , His work is based around 3d printing, creating fabrics or illusions of fabrics through 3d printing.  This was the most interesting studio visit for me due to my interest being piqued by the mechanics behind how they bring the pieces together, realising how much work goes into creating just one swatch. Connecting just one shape, interlocking them in a certain way to create a whole. This made me think about my own practice, developing ideas of how I could approach my style of working in a different light. To not think about the whole in the beginning rather considering how I could bring in one shape to work with then eventually building up to a whole. In addition, it has made me want to branch out into new unknown materials, working with plastics, investigating the mechanics of bringing them together.

These two visits and experiences, gave me a wealth of new information to process, relating most directly to me, and my future practice, by suggesting new methods and practices, which through experimentation and refinement will eventually improve my way of working. Developing my techniques, so as not to just bring all my ideas and materials together to one sample but to work with a few simple techniques finding a way to push their boundaries.

I am currently keeping in touch with Judy, receiving feedback from her, as she reflects on my work, suggesting alternative directions to how I approach my practice, heading in a different way, opening different doors, to think about where my practice might be heading. Developing the skill of not closing the door on an area whilst not currently working in that style, but keeping all routes, all directions open, being able to incorporate alternative ideas and methodologies, bringing them together, being innovative.

New York has been a revelation for me. I have learnt tremendous amount from my visit as a whole, looking on a cultural and lifestyle level, and more importantly, specifically in broadening my style, embracing diversity, developing a way of working for the better.