Engineering

Groundbreaking Fashion

From skirts that open and close like petals on a blooming flower to dresses that print receipts, artist and designer Cameron Hughes is changing what it means to create fashion in the 21st century. Hughes creates high tech pieces that blend engineering and fashion by making garments that move with the wearer using built in motors. Hughes’s designs have exploded in popularity in the past few years, having been worn by Gigi Hadid, Doja Cat, Charli XCX, and Dylan Mulvaney, just to name a few. Hughes’s illustrious clientele is made even more impressive by the fact that he is completely self-taught and self-made. Hughes represents a new generation of artists who have learned their crafts from the internet and built their brands on social media. Cameron Hughes and his work stand as strong examples of the power of the internet, the blending of classic and futuristic aesthetics, and the new ways in which the fashion industry is being revolutionized.

One of the most unique aspects of Hughes’s process is that anyone can view the entirety of it for free on his TikTok where he has amassed over 650K followers by posting in-depth tutorials for each of his projects. For example, when Hughes created a robotic petal dress for TikTok star Dylan Mulvaney, he walked his audience through designing the dress, creating prototypes, 3D printing and sewing each component, and coding each movement the dress made for Dylan’s performance. According to an interview with Vogue, Hughes creates these videos in part because much of his design knowledge came from watching tutorials on the internet; he explains, “[I] learned almost everything from YouTube and maker blogs.” Hughes’s tutorial videos are not only fun to watch, but also allow other artists and designers to learn new skills for free in the same way he did.

Another reason Hughes’s designs stand out is his glamorous and often campy style. Hughes’s style is heavily influenced by the New York City club scene since he began experimenting with robotic clothing to stand out at clubs in the first place. Hughes’s designs often harken back to old Hollywood aesthetics with frequent use of feathers, lush color palettes, silks, and satins. These classic designs only add to the surprise when the dresses begin to move with the use of modern motors and computer code. In his videos, Hughes details how he disguises exposed electronics by transforming them into statement pieces of his garments, often by covering them with 3D printed cases or heavily patterned fabric. The results are pieces that, when moving, provide no evidence as to how they operate beside a slight whirring sound from the motors. Hughes studied sculpture in college along with a few engineering courses and explains that he is “just sculpting with fabric now” and that his “ability to make these designs is rooted in skills [he] learned while working as… [an] engineer.” Hughes goes on to say, “There are quite a lot of engineers that go into sewing and making fashion… It is just a different medium. Fabric and thread instead of injection molded plastic and screws.” In his work, Hughes blends his artistic background as a sculptor with his engineering skills to push the limits on what is possible for the future of fashion.

In the future, Hughes plans to expand his business and social media. As of now, Hughes creates all of his pieces in his New York City studio apartment, so his first plan is to move into a professional studio space that can house all of his work, tools, and materials. Additionally, Hughes has plans to transform his one-of-a-kind pieces into a complete collection. In his Vogue interview, Hughes explains that he “would love to show a full collection of crazy oneoff designs and ready to wear in New York Fashion Week.” While Hughes embarks on his journey of building a brand, he intends to bring his TikTok audience along to show “an actual look at how it’s done, from incorporating the business, to getting a studio space, to making tech packs, shooting campaigns, auditing factories, making the actual clothes, showing at NYFW, and then working with retailers and shipping everything.” As for his next celebrity client, Hughes has his sights set on Lady Gaga, who embodies his bold, innovative, and campy design style, and who his fans have been begging him to work with. When asked about Gaga, Hughes exclaimed, “I know it will happen. It’s just a matter of alignment for a project that would warrant my work.”

Overall, Cameron Hughes represents how technology and fashion can be combined to create cutting-edge designs. Moreover, Hughes has created a brand for himself by connecting to an online audience and taking them along for the ride as he works with celebrities and eventually creates his own collection. Artists like Cameron Hughes leveraged new technologies and social media to create a new age of fashion that is more experimental and creative than ever.

By Skylar Gould