PROCESS EAST
FASHIO
DESIGN MARKETING TEXTILES
www.fashion-uel.com @fashion_uel @fashion_uel
We present to you the Process East brochure, a project developed by four BA Graphic Design students from the School of Arts and Digital Industries, at the University of East London. We were invited to produce a publication that communicates the experiences and processes of students from the Fashion and Textiles department. This has been a fantastic opportunity to meet and work with students from BA Hons Fashion Design, BA Hons Fashion Marketing and BA Hons Fashion Textiles. Hope that you enjoy it! Jack, Raffa, Nick and Jahangir
THIS I PROCES
Contents This is what I am making
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Set your own process
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A not so traditional route
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Creating your own design team
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Absolutely Fabulous! Creating the costume
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Our civic engagement Working with Spotlight
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Going Global
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The Yulan Creative Marketing Competition
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A Hoxton Arches project
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An innovative approach
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Placements
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Guest speakers
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2 years on
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Thank you
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THIS IS WHAT I AM MAKING In the studios we asked some 2nd year BA Fashion Design and BA Fashion Textiles students what they were working on.
Josephine Bloom BA Fashion Design
LATEX BRUSH WORK PRINTED LATEX HEAT SET COLOURS COLOUR FIXED LATEX
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EMBROIDERY AS A STORY NOSTALGIC APPLICATION
EMBROIDERY AS SOCIAL COMMENTARY
Hannah McIvor BA Fashion Textiles 7
Nomvelo Dlamini BA Fashion Design
FREE DRAWN SILHOUETTE IRREGULAR PATTERN CONSTRUCTION SHAPE MAKES SILHOUETTE
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SUBLIMATION PRINT ON LATEX FINDING SYMMETRY IN DRAPING LAYERED TRANSPARENCY WORKING WITH FOILING
Lucien Cavendish BA Fashion Textiles
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Two final year students explain how they develop their own creative signature, from initial ideas to final outcomes.
Katie Lane BA Printed Textile Design I’ve used my father for inspiration; he suffered from a brain tumour in his pituitary gland and it affected his vision, movement and general everyday living. It impacted
Hannah Richards BA Fashion Design The way that I start any research is to go out looking for any points of interest, from gigs, film or exhibitions around London. That’s when my mind drifts off and I start to think 10
me quite a lot, but it also interested me in terms of how he started to visualise the world around him. I spent time at the Science Museum, looking at a variety of MRI scans. I discovered information on synapses and
about how those influences can begin to become starting points for ideas. The textile print element helps me tell a story within the collection. I’ve focused on hand work using transfers, silk-screen printing, hand
the fact that there are so many diagrams of interpretations of what they look like, that may or may not be true. I wanted to use that approach to illustrate and create my own version of what I felt a synapse might look like.
brushwork, bleaching and dying. The textile surface work allows me to add another dimension to my design. I collected around 70% of the fabrics from studios or decorators who donated their backing cloths and dustsheets
SET YOUR OWN PROCESS
In 2015, I travelled to India and deliver workshops with a team of staff from ADI. They utilised projection within the workshops we delivered and I thought it was really successful and wanted to explore it within my work.
I worked on film reels, using gum arabic and masking fluid to create this film of ‘ink shellacking [ink breaking and cracking]’. The projector was great as the visuals flashed up broken and distorted, and it translated a feeling of what my father’s vision could be like.
Studying at ADI has been really inspiring, I have been able to explore different departments and resources. Staff are more than willing to help you find what you need to visualise your ideas.
to me. It’s been really nice showing people what I am doing with the rags they’ve donated. I’ve learnt a lot about ‘up-cycling’, how to recognise different accidental treatment of fabric that can work in my favour.
I don’t see it as a concept, more as just how it should be done, when we consider the amount of textile waste that the industry produces.
point of considering up-cycling to be dowdy, too ‘hippy’.
Everyone should have more pride in owning something that is unique. We can past that
We are hopefully at a stage where considering it as a part of standard garment manufacturing could be a norm. 11
A NOT SO TRADITIONAL ROUTE
From Duck boats to recycled avant-garde, Sam Kaiser is a final year Fashion Design student with an interesting take on where ideas can come from. We asked him about his final collection and how it came to be.
So what was your collection inspired by? My collection was inspired by a variety of hairstyles that originated from different parts of Africa. I looked at the Amasunzu tribe from Rwanda/Burundi. The imagery I have been using was produced in the 20th century, but the styles themselves, date back a lot further. I have an interest in architecture and wood joinery. I looked at structures that relied on multiplication of certain shapes, which were used to build the overall form. Anything from bricks reinforced steel joints and dovetailed wood blocks. At UEL, there are constant exhibitions of student’s work within our gallery space in ADI. I had the chance to view work from our 12
Architecture school that really inspired and influenced my approach. High Density Foam seems to play a large part in your design. How did you come about using it as a material for garment construction? I wanted to reflect the types of shapes that I was collating through hairstyles and architecture. I had tried to develop these shapes through using more traditional fabrication and it wasn’t really working out in the way that I hoped. I work for a London tourist agency that organises sightseeing trips around central London on Duck Boat Buses, which can travel on land and sea. They use a type of high-density foam for floating rigidity and I
just took some home with me and started experimenting with it. I discovered that by cutting them up into identical block like structures. I could use a type of hinging process with thread to create interesting shape and silhouette.
are normally just thought of as industrial or only fit for one purpose. Also, it’s been great to show my company what I have achieved with something that seemed to be very simple in its function to keep the buses afloat.
Wow, so was the element of recycling important within your development once you realised you could create garment silhouettes from the foam?
What has been a highlight for you in terms of creating your collection?
Well, I think it felt good to re-contextualise the use of the foam. I am happy that I have had a chance to show that there can be different uses for materials that
Definitely producing a full dress out of foam. I was very hesitant at first, as I didn’t know whether it would or could work. When I finished and saw it on a model, it allowed me to get excited about the potential of the material.
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JUST BE HUMAN A PRO-ACT NETWOR AND SOCI
E A NICE AND BE TIVE WITH RKING IALISING
CREATING YOUR OWN DESIGN TEAM Sharifa Nakawooya and Daylan Mollentze, a Printed Textile Design and Fashion Design collaboration. How did the collaboration come about? Sharifa In the second year you helped me create an outfit didn’t you? Daylan Yeah because you had printed your fabric already hadn’t you? Then you asked another friend to construct the garment for you but it didn’t work out so I stepped in. Sharifa I knew that Daylan was a really talented designer and felt that he could really elevate my textiles through garment construction. Do you think that you have both learnt a lot from each other’s approaches? Sharifa I’ve learnt a lot from Daylan. I’ve never designed garments before and I don’t have any experience in pattern cutting. The whole process is new to me. Working on line-ups and having them change constantly is completely new and really interesting. Also, being part of a toiling process and understanding how it affects what we do with print placement and arrangement has been a very positive journey for me. Daylan I feel the same about the print aspect. I’d never really thought about print in depth before so it was great to learn more about it and to see the different possibilities through Sharifa’s experimentation. I’m really happy that Sharifa will be able to work on prints with me when I begin my final year. So, would you say that working together isn’t really restricted to this ‘project’as such? 16
Daylan No I don’t think it is at all. I think that it’s been more about friends getting together and creating interesting things, than being forced and restricted to one project. We know we can work together and the result is something that we’re both happy with so why restrict it? Do you feel that the skills that you have learnt from each other and the outcomes that you’re creating are going to be helpful in the future? Sharifa and Daylan Yes! So helpful! Sharifa I have already been offered 3 internships off the back of promoting our work on a website platform. It’s doing a great job for me. Daylan It’s great for my portfolio and it proves that I can work successfully with other designers.
Collaboration is really important in the School of ADI at UEL. As students, we are always interested in opportunities to collaborate with students from other courses to create exciting projects.
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Hannah chose to work with Charles Gall and Jack Shepherd from BA Graphic Design, in order to create their version of a “zine” to promote Hannah’ s working process. We asked Hannah a few questions about the experience.
You have chosen to create a publication that heavily references the spirit and look of a “fanzine”. Can you explain a bit about why you decided to take this direction? Hannah I go to a lot of record store days around East and South East London. One of my friends owns a record store in Peckham called Yam Records, which is really good. Certainly in my friends shop and at other record stores, there would always be a copy of a Zine. I’ve always noticed them in stores and I think the presentation is interesting. I’ve always been a fan of print and zines, they are a good example of a type of aesthetic that I naturally navigate towards when producing 2D work. How did you get in contact with students from the Graphic Design course? Hannah I simply just went into the graphics studio to speak to the students and pitch my ideas. A few students were interested, so we arranged a meeting to go through the project. What did you think about the concept? Hannah I always knew that I would like to produce a look book for the collection to show my process and condense my illustrations and final outcomes. I didn’t really have the time to commit to producing all the work myself, so it seemed like a logical step to seek collaboration. Jack and Charles We loved the concept of creating a zine. It allowed a lot of experimentation with different processes and paper stock as well as the opportunity to try out different compositions that aren’t as appropriate for other publications. 18
What do you think was a beneficial consequence of seeking out a small team to work on aspects of the graphic layout? Hannah Well, I had to collate all the content for the zine and that process was really good. I had to think a lot about my concept and the type of message I wanted to promote through the zine. When I presented them, the graphics students were able to point out and highlight small details, offering their take on how to add dynamic to the graphic layout and paper selection. Why did you all feel that the production of a zine would be right for your project? Hannah The description of a zine is a kind of cheap; whatever you can get your hands on to make it with, DIY style publication. That idea fits in to the way that I have approached my collection and allowed us to explore different papers and textures in an exciting way. What was a highlight of building your own design team for the zine? Hannah I think that the advantage of working in a team like this has been getting the opportunity to bounce ideas off others and having to be organised and clear about my own objectives. Jack and Charles It was nice having someone elses content to work with. Being able to apply the skills we’ve learnt at the University over the past three years to produce a really effective outcome.
I HAD TO THINK A LOT ABOUT MY CONCEPT AND THE MESSAGE I WANTED TO PROMOTE
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So do you not think that you are very precise in your work? Constance No, I am but I think the difference in character helps the working process in a way. I think we could both focus on the project well because of the respect for precision but the compatibility is also due heavily to the difference in character. The collaboration started quite late in the project, were you a bit hesitant about it at first? Constance Well, at first I was quite anxious about the placement of Ian’s work within my garments. I think Ian’s prints are very strong, but I have used them in a way that is very delicate and thoughtful of the designs that I have worked on.
Constance discusses her collaboration with BA Fine Art student Ian Bennett.
Can you tell us a bit about why you decided to collaborate with other students? Constance I think I work better within a team and I really value input from different individuals. It gives you a chance to consider different ideas. So how did you meet Ian? Constance Just from going to see our School exhibitions and socialising with the students within ADI. Ian is very precise and delicate in his approach to work and I am very loud and quite brash so I liked the idea of the two personalities kind of clashing together. 20
I THINK I WORK BETTER WITHIN A TEAM AND I REALLY VALUE INPUT FROM DIFFERENT INDIVIDUALS. Do you think that aspect has been an important part of your learning this year? Constance I think understanding that you need to make connections with other people who have skills in areas that you don’t has been really important. You can’t be really good at every discipline so your network is really important when you’ve got to produce a substantial amount of work. Would you promote the idea of trying to collaborate? What does Ian think of the outcome? Constance He really likes it and he’s had a lot of his tutors asking him about it and asking me about how it’s coming along and whether I have any images that they could see of his drawings being utilised in clothing. That’s been good for both of us. I also think he didn’t ever expect to see his work used within garments so it was good to offer him another context to view his work in. What was it like organising that? Constance I think I learnt a lot about how important finding the right model is for your clothes and also about good organisation. I had to re-schedule shoots, which is quite demanding when you have to find different photographers. I had to think a lot about networks and contingency plans. Otherwise I could have been stuck with a huge workload to produce outcomes that I had no confidence in.
Constance Yes, and I’d say try and work with people that you’d be least likely to work with as opposed to going for the obvious. Why do you say that? Constance I suppose because I have enjoyed the process of looking for the unexpected and through doing it I feel like it has broadened mine, and Ian’s, perspectives on what we create. What advice would you give to anyone considering collaboration? Constance I’d say make sure that who ever you choose is as passionate about the work as you are. If they’re not, then it won’t work from the start. Also, just be a nice human being and be pro-active with socialising and networking. You never know when you might need someone’s help or they might need yours. It can lead to really exciting outcomes. 21
ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS! CREATING THE COSTUME The 2nd year Fashion Design students had the amazing opportunity to work with costume designers on a series of outfits for the film ‘Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie’. The brief was to produce a fashion collection inspired by contemporary designers. We asked four students, Bree Terry, Nicola Sheperd, Becky Smith and Lucy Sayers, about working within a team and learning about how important problem solving is within design development. What were your first reactions to finding out that you would be working on the costumes for Absolutely Fabulous the film? Becky Really excited! Lucy I was quite shocked at the level of work and what it would be for. It was exciting to me because me and my mum used to watch the programs when we were younger so the thought of producing work for the films was a highlight for me. 22
When you received the initial drawings that you were to design from and were put into groups, what was the experience like? Bree I think it was good because we were put with other students that we wouldn’t normally work with. Lucy Also it felt like a good insight into what a working environment would be like and how things could happen within the industry. Nicola I think it was a good learning curve as well because the outfits were quite extreme in its approach to silhouettes and fabrication. Lucy I learnt a lot about printing and lasercutting throughout the process, which was great. Also the pace was so fast that you had to work on different elements of each outfit within your team. That was a good experience. Was the pace of work a shock to you all? Becky Yes but it was a good shock. I prefer working fast paced and I really enjoyed working for an external client. Bree Especially when it’s a project like Ab Fab. It’s a huge name and that really pushes the importance of the project. It really made us want to perform and produce our best work. Did you learn a lot of skills from the experience? Bree Definitely, I think you learn a lot about teamwork skills Lucy And team leader skills! Bree You learn a lot about how to recognize other people’s skills and how to recognize them, whilst recognising your own.
Are you all looking forward to seeing the film? Everyone Yeah completely Becky It was really cool to go on set as well Lucy Yeah that was such a great experience Becky We got to meet Joanna Lumley and Jennifer Saunders and they thanked us personally, which was really nice of them Nicola I think actually going to the scenes where the outfits were going to be used was an amazing experience! Lucy Yeah, I think it made us all really proud of what we had achieved, seeing the outfits being used, knowing that they had an important function after we had made them was amazing.
SEEING THE OUTFITS BEING USED, KNOWING THAT THEY HAD AN IMPORTANT FUNCTION AFTER WE HAD MADE THEM WAS AMAZING. 23
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OUR CIVIC ENGAGEMENT WORKING WITH SPOTLIGHT
The Fashion and Textiles department had the privilege of working with members at Spotlight Youth Space on a project to promote the importance of young voices in East London. Spotlight Youth Space is based in Langden Park, East London, it is a state of the art facility designed to inspire young people. The ‘Have Your Say’ project focused on UEL students acting as design teams. The brief was to showcase the Spotlight members’ opinions on modern life, communicated through the medium of printed t-shirts and posters. The final outcomes were exhibited at Spotlight Youth Space and at the Arts and Digital Industries gallery. The students produced a video that documented their whole process. Please scan the QR tag to view the video.
GOING GLOBAL Going Global is an exciting UEL scheme that helps students to participate in short study related visits overseas. There is a competitive bidding process and successful applicants are awarded part–funding for their proposed study visits. Read the interview from our students, past and present, who have benefitted from the opportunity to develop and apply their skills in different continents. Aoki Sanchez is a first year BA Fashion Marketing student who has received funding, with three fellow coursemates, to visit Jiangsu University in China. Sharan Samra is a Fashion Design graduate, she travelled to Vietnam in 2015 with her coursemate, Matthew Ruddick.
Aoki What did you create?
Aoki Did the local culture inspire your work?
Sharan We created an exhibition with a design agency called Work Room Four. They own an art gallery and work as a design consultancy and private education centre based in Hanoi.
Sharan The local culture was so important to our project. We had to ensure that we learnt about and asked for guidance on what the people of Hanoi, both ‘Ex Pat’ and national, might relate to. It was important to us that we celebrated the city of Hanoi and that we could hopefully promote a sense of pride through the exhibition.
We were asked to utilise our skills that we had learnt on the BA Fashion Design course at UEL to produce the work for the exhibition. It was nerve racking but really exciting at the same time. Aoki What was it like working on a project in Vietnam? Sharan It was quite difficult as we couldn’t speak the language and although four weeks sounds like a long time, it really isn’t! We had to learn very quickly about how to find what we needed to produce the exhibition and we had to learn about and be sensitive towards the culture that we were commenting on. It was difficult but it was so much fun. I don’t think that I will ever forget it! 28
Aoki Did you meet a lot of interesting people whilst you were there? Sharan Yeah definitely! Claire from Work Room Four arranged for us to meet a lot of different people, a lot of people that influenced the creative community within Hanoi. We went to visit a leading fashion school there and we also got to meet a really inspiring fashion designer named Tao. Her work focused on natural ingredients and organic processes. She had different links throughout rural Vietnam where dyeing and weaving processes were utilised and maintained very traditional processes.
BEING ABLE TO LOOK AROUND AND SAY, ‘WE PRODUCED THIS’ WAS AN AMAZING FEELING THAT I WILL NEVER FORGET. Aoki Did your project receive any press coverage? Sharan In Hanoi, we created a lot of attention from the press. The Agency worked with their contacts and the response was really good. We had 5 TV channels interested in the exhibition, which was quite crazy. Aoki Did the university support your project in any way? Sharan Our Programme Leader, David Thomas, was in Hanoi at the same time to help guide the project and it was his connection that made it possible so that was a great support and a good display of trust I think. We also had really good social media support from another member of staff named Vicki Fong. She constantly updated our progress and covered the project online.
Sharan Relying on your skills is so important, also your communication really defines your chances of being successful. We met so many different people from paper sellers, laser cutters, decorators, curators and educators. If we hadn’t relied on good communication, especially as we didn’t speak the language, we could not have achieved what we did. Finally I think your resolve in wanted to get the job done! We worked under tough conditions. It rarely went under 30 degrees, we were constantly going out shopping not knowing exactly what we were going to get and we didn’t sleep that much as we got close to the exhibition day. It was probably the toughest thing I have ever done but it has proved to me how strong my resolve is. On the day of the exhibition, being able to look around and say, ‘we produced this’ was an amazing feeling that I will never forget.
Aoki When you look back at the experience, what is one of the most important things that you learnt? 29
HOW CAN YULAN CREATIVE BUILD SUCCESSFUL STRUCTURES FOR THE CURRENT GROWTH IN NEW BUSINESS? 30
Yulan Creative is a London based fashion consultancy that provides design, creative expertise and implementation support to new and existing fashion brands from concept to catwalk. Joanne Jong, the Creative Director of Yulan Creative and Kent Le, Lecturer in Fashion Marketing at the University of East London designed the competition brief. The objective was to provide an opportunity for students to gain professionally directed experience whilst developing and pitching their ideas to an external client. The Brief: - How can Yulan Creative build successful structures for the current growth in new business? The students were asked to consider new directions in strategy and the development of a new visual identity for online platforms and social media. This year’s winner, Maarika Talja, won the internship with a thorough and concise marketing proposal, which was reinforced by a successful visual identity concept. She has been offered a 3-month internship at the agency working closely with the Creative Director, Joanne Jong.
THE YULAN CREATIVE MARKETING COMPETITION The Yulan Creative Marketing competition was delivered to Fashion Marketing students at the University of East London in February 2016.
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GUES SPEAKER
The Fashion and Textiles department would like to thank the following experts for inspiring the students with their expertise, advice and insights into the industry.
AZUMI AND DAVID JEAN-PIERRE BRAGANZA FABIO CIQUERA LYNSEY COKE SOPHIE FAWCETT HOBBS LONDON BERT GILBERT HARVEEN GILL HGA JOANNE JONG YULAN CREATIVE FELISA KENNARD KANYE WEST STUDIO MANDY LALL NEW MEDIA VISION CHLOE LEWINGTON PAUL SMITH GAVIN LLEWELLYN STONEKING MICHELLE LOWE-HOLDER CARRI MUNDEN CASSETTE PLAYA RACHEL NIXON CRAIG PARR MADELYN POSTMAN GRAIN CREATIVE DERRICK SANTINI JESSICA SORAIA WOLF & WHISTLE HILARY TAILOR HST CREATIVE MARTIN J TICKNER LOVE MAGAZINE CAMILLE WALALA IAIN R. WEBB
A HOXTON ARCHES PROJECT The 2nd year Fashion Marketing students worked on designing Process East, the Fashion and Textiles graduate exhibition at Hoxton Arches, London. Process East celebrates and promotes the work of the students. Both Fashion Design and Printed Textile Design students from the graduating class of 2016 showcased interesting new projects throughout Hoxton Arches over the course of two days in May 2016. The event also included the Process East Auction, which raised funds to support the promotion of the graduates, this featured donated work from UEL students, graduates, academic staff and industry partners.
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AN INNOVATIVE APPROACH We talked to 2nd year Fashion Design Student, Alisa Vaseghi, about glue gun sponsorship and collaborating with SHOWstudio.
The dress was created with a glue gun process that involved a significant amount of Tecbond glue sticks, a bath full of cold water and a lot of patience. This resulted in sponsorship from Glue Guns Direct, which is quite random but very practical considering the amount that gets used to create one piece. I have been really fortunate to get to work with some representatives from SHOWStudio on moving image. It has really broadened my understanding of the aspects of Fashion that I am interested in.
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I like to document the story of my fabric development. I plan to really push this aspect in my final year and promote the innovation in the approach to fabrication and the importance of moving image within my work.
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PLACEMENTS Faith Balogun and Kayleigh Dozzell, two final year Fashion Design students talked about their experience in industry placements
Faith Balogun
Where did you do your placements? Kayleigh I was at ‘Too Good’ for the whole year. Faith I was at The Sun for 6 months and Moschino for 6 months. What was your first week like? Kayleigh My experience was really good. I felt very comfortable in their studio and got to work straight away. They focus a lot on making and I really enjoyed that. They were also very receptive and thankful for my work; that helped build my confidence. 38
Faith It was quite a transient environment at the Sun. There was a quick turn around of a lot of interns so that got quite confusing in terms of picking up other peoples work or knowing where to start on a project. Moschino however was super-organised and stable. They sent me a brief 2 weeks before I started and were really welcoming on my first day. How different was your experience on placement compared to studying on your course? Kayleigh It felt really different for me. We would have a meeting every Monday morning and be given tasks
that had a completion date that was before the end of the week. I think the fact that you had to complete those tasks for the team by a particular day meant that I worked really quickly. Faith I felt that my experience, certainly at Moschino, was very similar. We have module guides at university and I had to follow a brief at Moschino for each shoot or task. At university you have more freedom but it did feel similar in many ways.
Kayleigh Dozzell
Did you feel that it really helped you to recognize your own skills? Kayleigh It really helped me find an identity in the way I would like to design and I learnt more about my capabilities. At the beginning, even though I enjoyed making, I was worried about the level of manufacture that I was capable of. I ended up being responsible for certain key aspects of shape development and that was really inspiring. Faith I learnt a lot about what I would like to focus on in the future. I enjoy making and designing from scratch, but the styling element of my role was really exciting.
BE PROFESSIONAL. IT REALLY IS THE PERSONABLE ASPECTS OF AN INDIVIDUAL THAT MATTER.
Doing styling for a weekly Sun supplement compared to styling editorials for Moschino was so fascinating. Working for companies that are so different from each other makes you realise that key skills are really transferable. It’s made me more confident about my organisational skills and how much of an asset they can be. What advice could you offer to students thinking about applying for a placement year? Kayleigh I think that it is a good idea to do 2 different placements in 12 months. I learnt a lot at my placement and had some very good
experiences. I also think getting used to a working environment is so important. Knowing that the job needs to get done and showing that you value that perspective is important. Faith Be organised and be professional. It really is the personable aspects of an individual that matter. Work hard, communicate well and show consistent initiative. I found that every time I suggested a way of doing things or did extra work that I was not expected to do, it worked in my favour and I gained professional respect.
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2 YEARS ON We caught up with two UEL Fashion Design Alumni, Kim Stevenson and Krasimira Ivanova. We asked them about life after graduation. You are both now based in the UEL Knowledge Dock sewing workroom, providing maintenance support and also using the space as designers. How does it feel watching the final year students produce their collections? Kim When I look back at how stressful it was, what I’m doing now feels a lot more stressful when I think about the consequences for my business. Krasimira I think the stress level is still quite high when you think about meeting deadlines but it’s different when you’re a student. It feels
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like you put too much emphasis on pleasing others and that causes a lot of stress. What has it been like to have the opportunity to work within our sewing workrooms and how has it benefitted you? Krasimira Being offered this space is amazing! Having a space like this in London that has all the facilities that we need has allowed us to launch our labels and work on collaborations. So what’s going on for you guys at the moment? Kim We’ve been doing a bag collaboration and we will be launching it very soon. We’ve both been busy on separate collections. Krasimira’s collection has just been shot for Vogue.
HAVING A SPACE LIKE THIS IN LONDON THAT HAS ALL THE FACILITIES THAT WE NEED HAS ALLOWED US TO LAUNCH OUR LABELS AND WORK ON COLLABORATIONS. Krasimira I’ve been working with a lot of different stylists and magazines based in London that have been fantastic when it comes down to developing PR for the brand. What has it been like dealing with the workload of starting your own business? Kim I think the good aspect is that you have to be really organised and have a structure for intern support. The difficult aspect is that internships can be very short sometimes, so it’s difficult to keep a team together and develop with individuals in mind. Krasimira But when we do have long term interns like Luisa, who is on her UEL Placement Year, it is a very positive experience for both parties. There is time for us to teach new skills properly and time for her to pick them up.
What advice would you give to the final year degree students? Kim Think about money before you start. Do consider your budget and look for grants and loans. This doesn’t mean that you can’t be creative! If anything it means that you have to be more creative! What advice would you offer graduates that are considering to take a leap and build their own business? Kim Do everything and anything! Experience is really important and you learn so much from not being closed to aspects of business that you haven’t ever focused on before. Krasimira Even if you have a bad experience, I do not think it matters because you are constantly learning about what you can do and how business works in different contexts. 41
ADI OFFICE MANAGER
DEAN OF ARTS AND DIGITAL INDUSTRIES
HEAD OF TECHNICAL RESOURCES
Simon Robertshaw
David Ring
HEAD OF FASHION AND TEXTILES
EXTERNAL TECHNICAL CO-ORDINATOR
ADMISSIONS Nadia Shah Emma Windley
Dorota Watson
Craig Madden
EVENTS OFFICERS
PROGRAMME LEADERS
TECHNICAL ASSOCIATES & ASSISTANTS
Lesley Robertson David Thomas
Reza Alavi Daryl Brown Karen Ferry Gerry Grainger Peter Hall Zoe Hodgson Krasimira Ivanova Ben Lee Glen Marston Dennis McInnes Joanne Pybus Rhianna Sizeland Mark Snowden Kim Stevenson Dean Todd Salma Vohra Rosemary White Huan Yang-Williams Aimee Ward Emma Watson
Maria Bozin Rob Reed Martin Voller
STAFF TEAM Wendy Baker Geraldine Biddle-Perry Emma Carey Helen Carter Caryl Court Kate Davey Simone Deegan Vicki Fong Russell Hedges Joe Hunter Sian-Kate Mooney Kent Le Kim Smith VISITING LECTURERS Gemma Banks Liz Bolt Alexis Cawley Rachel Flook Carmen Grech Virginia James Rob Jones Gary Kingsnorth Elodie Laurent Kirsty McConkey Carri Munden Laboni Saha Kelly Shaw Maggie Stott Mark Taylor Catherine Teatum
Copyright University of East London, 2016
PUBLICATION DESIGN Jahangir Ahmed Raffaele Auriemma Nick Mallon Jack Shepherd INHOUSE FACILITIES The team at FabPad
Caroline Sims
COMMUNICATIONS Melissa Abraham Nuala Ginty Kiera Hay Ewen Laycock Jamie Murray Anton Webb SHOW PRODUCTION Clive Warwick
THANK YOU
EAST
LONDON