Trashion - Submission Requirements and Evaluation Guidance.

Phoebe Reynolds

When we return after Christmas we will be undertaking studio shoots of your garments/collections, date and timings to follow (Your sketchbooks will need to be submitted before you get the studio collection photos, so these are not on the requirements list below).
The first day back will be an opportunity to tie up any loose ends with your Fashion projects, such as printing off and mounting your location shoots.
On Tuesday 9th January we will be briefing you on the Architecture project and you will need to get started with this work straight away.
The deadline for your Fashion work is Monday 8^th January @ 4.00pm and this is the minimum you need to have in your sketchbooks:

Initial Research and Presentation:

• Observational drawing/s of your object.
•  At least 2 busy pages of visual research into your garment, different versions/styles/shapes, try to find inventive Haute Couture versions.
• Minimum 2 pages of visual research into your object - different versions, different uses, unusual applications of your object, if you can find examples of it in Fashion then include these.
• 2 pages where you find examples of Collections. Most designers/design houses release themed collections seasonally, look for examples of collections that are inventive, exuberant and perhaps use elements of recycling – for example the work of Martin Margiela.
• Copies of your presentation slides.
• Any notes relevant to your presentation.

Illustration and Design Development:

• 4 pages research into 2 Fashion Illustrators.
• Your photos from the figure (the ones you used as a basis for your Fashion Illustrator responses).
• 4 Well finished Illustrator responses based on your photos.
• 6 garment proposals (with notes, using the templates).
• A finished Illustration based on your best design - this should be developed     independently and not based on an existing template. This might include sample pieces, annotations and colour swatches alongside.

Final Garment, Photography and Evaluation.

• 4 pages research into 2 Fashion Photographers.
• Annotated photographs documenting the making process with your final garment (2 pages).
• Your finished garment/accessory.
• A thoughtfully styled location shoot of your garment - be ambitious, think about the photographers whose work you have studied. Arrange model, location, props, make up. Consider posture and camera angle carefully. Take plenty of shots (20+) you might use PhotoShop to enhance your best shots for inclusion in your sketchbook.
• Your word processed evaluation (see guidance notes below). 

RECYCLED FASHION EVALUATION GUIDANCE

In order to pass this project you must complete a word processed evaluation of 500-800 words, discussing the following ……

• What object and garment did you get to work with?
• How did the development of your Presentation help in understanding the possibilities offered by your object. What sources did you access in researching your object and garment?
• In what other ways did you respond to and investigate your object? (e.g. photography and drawing)
• Who were you collaborating with? How did you share tasks? Do you think you communicated effectively together? Did you find this collaboration helpful?
• Which designers/collections did you look at? What appealed to you about their work?
• What did you learn from looking at the designer’s work? Did their work influence your own garment designs later in the project?
• What were your first ideas for your garment design? Did these bear much relation to your final solution?
• What was it that appealed to you about the fashion illustrators you chose to research and respond to?
• What did you learn from recreating the styles of the illustrators you looked at, and how did this help you to understand the techniques employed in fashion illustration?
• How did you go about creating your own fashion illustrations – what processes did you employ in developing your final images? Describe how you used photography to style them initially and what you did to get them to a high standard.
• Which Fashion Photographers did you research? What appealed to you about their work?
• Describe the process you went through to create your initial garment designs, and how you decided upon the one you chose to make.
• What elements of your original garment did you retain and what was added/taken away?
• What materials and techniques did you employ in the production of your final garment and what problems did you encounter along the way?
• Discuss your final photoshoots, how did you style your garment? Mention aspects such as make up, props, location, models, postures, lighting, composition.
• Do you feel your final garment will work well with your collaborators? Did you maintain good communication throughout the project?
• What do you regard as the most and least successful aspects of your project?
• How well did you manage your time and what you would do differently if you did this project again?

Fashion Project Update and Photographer Research

Garment Completion and Sketchbook Content
OK, so you should all be well underway with garment construction by now. Make sure you have the resources you need: as many multiples of your object as your garment requires and potentially a base garment to reconstruct/work over. You may need other things such as additional fabrics, dyes, zips, clasps, velcro etc.
This weekend is a good opportunity to shop for any bits that you are currently short of. If you have an ambitious plan it is essential to work in a focussed way to resolve it properly.
Any finishing work to your illustration research/ responses/design development needs to be completed as self-directed study now. 
From now until when the project is submitted the things that need to be added to sketchbooks are:

• Some photographic documentation of stages of your making process, with annotation/explanation.
• Contact sheets and larger prints of the best images from a location shoot.
• 4 pages of research into 2 Fashion Photographers (see information below for guidance).
• Word-processed Project Evaluation - guidance for this will be issued.

Studio Photography (after Christmas)

We will also arrange a studio shoot for your garments in the week when we return after Christmas, we will get some of the second year students specialising in Photography to work with you to get the best imagery from this session. This will be an opportunity to record your garment alongside the other creations in your collection. 

Location Photography (over Christmas break)

Thinking a little way ahead you should start giving some thought to your location Photoshoot - this should be completed over the Christmas break, but your planning should start now. You should be aiming for a professional approach with this that results in great imagery for your portfolio.
Consider who will model for you (or who will take photos if you are modelling your own garment), where you will base the shoot (what will complement the garment?), will you need props/make up? Taking a professional approach may mean doing things like researching the weather (if you are looking at a shoot outdoors) and working around when it looks likely to offer you the best light/conditions.

Fashion Photographer Research
In order for you to plan and execute effective final Photoshoots for your garments it will be helpful to make yourself aware of the work of some top Fashion photographers.
When looking at these Photographers work you should look for the following things and comment on them:

• Use of location/studio - how does this relate to enhance the garment?
• Use of make up.
• Use of props.
• Use of the model(s) consider things like body posture, what mood is the photographer trying to create?
• Use of lighting - natural/artificial? harsh/gentle?
• Composition/cropping - how is the figure placed within the image?
• Use of post production - has the image been manipulated via software such as PhotoShop to achieve the final result, how subtle/dramatic is this process?

You should look at 2 of the following photographers and provide a little background biographical information before analysing at least 3 images by each one in detail (2 pages per photographer, print out decent size reproductions of their work).

Steven Meisel

Corrine Day

Mario Testino



Ruven Afanador

Nick Knight

Perou

Tim Walker

Steven Klein

Illustration, Garment Design and Making.

You need to finish your illustration work through the remainder of this week, so that you can move onto garment construction next week.
You should finish the tasks outlined below before next Monday (11th December) at the latest so that you can have almost 2 weeks (we break up at lunchtime on Thursday 21st) to make your piece. If you are able to conclude your illustration and design work this week then making an earlier start to the making would be wise (especially important for ambitious or complex garments).
We will arrange a studio photoshoot opportunity in the first week back after Christmas and we will be asking you to complete location shoots over the Festive break. Some fashion photographer research will support this phase of the project.

• 4 pages of research into 2 Fashion illustrators, include a range of their work and your analysis of their technique.
• A range of your photographs of the figure in "fashion" poses, printed out and included in your sketchbook.
• 4 illustrator responses developed from your own photos (2 in the style of each illustrator you researched).
• 6-8 quickly sketched design proposals for your garment/accessory, you could use a template for these. Annotate alongside to explain your ideas and techniques you intend to use. These ideas can be variations on a theme, each one does not need to be radically different.

• A well finished illustration of your selected design (the one you intend to make) - you might choose to do this in the style of one of the illustrators you researched or develop a more independent illustrative approach of your own.

You also need to think ahead and gather everything you need for your making, make a list of your requirements and order online (eBay www.ebay.co.uk/ is your friend here) or find other ways of obtaining your resources - suppliers such as Fabricland in Basingstoke www.fabricland.co.uk/fabric-stores/fabric-land-basingstoke may prove valuable. Charity shops are a good source for garments.
Things you might require include:
Garments to reconstruct/embellish, Cotton thread, zips, velcro, fabric, dyes, iron-on transfer paper, multiples of your object (clothes pegs, rubber bands etc.). 

Illustrator Research and Responses

You need to research the work of 2 fashion illustrators, here are a few good links to explore: 

http://www.dripbook.com/top/browse/illustration-portfolios/fashion/

http://www.illustrationweb.com/styles/fashion

http://www.illustrationdivision.com/

Anna Higgie

Try to choose illustrators that have contrasting approaches and use different media, as you are going to have to respond visually to these illustrators BE REALISTIC and select styles you are confident you can reproduce effectively. For each selected illustrator print out at least 4 reproductions of their work at a reasonable size (A5ish).

You then need to provide some analysis of each illustrator. Find out what you can about them - where they trained, who they have worked for. Most importantly analyse the images you have chosen, identify what media have been used and discuss technique (expressive or controlled?), composition, use of colour. Give your personal opinion on the work, but ensure you give reasons for the views you express.

Present the work thoughtfully (2 A3 pages per illustrator), think about layout and text/titles etc.

So you will need:

• To do the Fashion Illustrator research as detailed above.
• To get a collection of images by your 2 illustrators - enough to get a really good feel for their style, technique and media.
• To take range of photographs from the figure - try to get some good dynamic poses that have the feel of Fashion illustration/photography. If you are unsure what you are aiming for then flick through a few copies of Vogue and look at the fashion shoots and advertising images.
• Using your own photos as a basis produce two Fashion illustrations in the style of each Fashion Illustrator you have researched (4 images in all), make sure you use the most appropriate media (identify what they use and do likewise, if their work is produced digitally then don't try replicating it by hand). Take time over this and aim for some professional looking illustrations. See separate post for an example of this.

Once you have all these things you need to really focus on making some impressive responses that capture the feel of each Artist. Use the lightbox to start your drawings from your own photos off if it helps. You might want to use software to extend and stretch the figures in your photos and achieve something closer to the classic fashion illustration proportions (which are quite different to the real proportions of the human body).

Here's an example of what I'm talking about:

Raw photo file

Digital Illustration by Jocelyn Gravot



Digitally developed response to Jocelyn Gravot

Fashion Sketchbooks - Guidance

So what should be going into your sketchbooks over the first week/10 days of this project?
Well, one reason behind using photography to record your Moodboards and not sticking everything down is that it means that the material you have gathered is then available for inclusion in your sketchbook.
So once you have got good photos of your Moodboards you need to divide (and potentially duplicate) the visual material amongst your design teams, and then compile the following:

• 2 or more Sketchbook pages of visuals and information on your garment/accessory. Different versions - traditional and radical, history, definition.
• 2 or more Sketchbook pages of visuals and information on the object you need to recycle. History, typical uses, unusual uses, previous applications in Fashion.
• 2 Pages showing some examples of collections, ideally exploring some recycling, try looking at Martin Margiela, Gareth Pugh and Jez Eaton. Provide some analysis.
• One or more good observational drawings from your object.
• At least 2 pages recording experimentation and manipulation of your object.
• At least 2 annotated design sketches outlining your initial garment/accessory proposals.
• Printouts of all the slides from your presentation, plus copies of any cue cards you use.

Now the Presentations are complete we will start to explore approaches to Fashion Illustration, responding to existing Illustrational styles, before trying to develop a more personal style with which to illustrate your own design proposals.

Yes, rubbish can be beautiful!

So, we are aiming to create something beautiful from disposable items - seeing the potential for beauty in the everyday is something that sets good Artists and Designers apart. This short clip from the film "American Beauty" ...the dancing bag scene, is the embodiment of this. You can choose to walk on by or you can choose to open your eyes...

Trashion Presentations - Schedule and Tips.

All presentations to be given on Friday 24th November,       
Good luck! 

Presentation Delivery Tips:

• All group members should contribute to the delivery of the presentation.
• Plan who will say what. You will need to explain and expand upon the visuals you put up on screen (don’t just read text off the slides). 
• Preparing and using cue cards is likely to be helpful. 
• Presentations need to last approximately 10 minutes. 
• Speak clearly (and not too fast), face your audience. 
• Practice your delivery as a group in advance. When you practice time your presentation to ensure it is of a suitable length.

Schedule for Friday 24th November Trashion Presentations
Time	Object	Students
2.05pm	Clothes Hangers	Mia Cockram (Skirt) Shannon Cummins (Jewellery) Flora Lewis (Trousers) Beth Symmons (Bag)
2.15pm	Rubber Bands	Leah Foulds (Cape) Lauren Hole (Cape) Oli Snellings (Jewellery) Laila Virji (Bag)
2.25pm	Clothes Pegs	Alicia Cannon (Cape) Carly Everson (Dress) Christina Linton (Cape) Bee Rowe (Dress)
2.35pm	Corrugated Card	Caitlin Batterson (Headwear) Sarah Buckley (Dress) Robert Day (Headwear) Katie Edwards (Jacket) Lauren Smith (Headwear) Freya Thomas-Taylor (Dress)
BREAK
3.00pm	Drinks Cans	Zoe Burstow (Jewellery) Holly Clements (Jacket) Jackson Jones (Jacket) Steph Roke (Bag)
3.10pm	Plastic Cups	Alex Biggins (Skirt) Luke Harrison (Skirt) Missy Lody (Jewellery) Liberty Robertshaw (Jacket) Ellie Rosewarne (Trousers) Oli Woolford (Trousers)
3.20pm	Disposable Cutlery	Tabitha Anderson (Jacket) Eloise Burgin (Trousers) Nyzha Firkins (Bag) Laura Malschuk (Dress)
3.30pm	Envelopes	Amy Blair (Jacket) Joanne Carter (Trousers) James Lewcock (Dress) Pip Lovelock (Skirt) Freya MacDonald (Headwear) Sam Stockel (Trousers)

Fashion Project Groups

So the mystery groups created by the draw from the magician's hats 🎩 look like this:

Disposable Cutlery
Tabitha Anderson (Jacket)
Eloise Burgin (Trousers)
Nyzha Firkins (Bag)
Laura Malschuk (Dress)

Corrugated Cardboard
Caitlin Batterson (Headwear)
Sarah Buckley (Dress)
Robert Day (Headwear)
Katie Edwards (Jacket)
Lauren Smith (Headwear)
Freya Thomas-Taylor (Dress)

Plastic Cups
Alex Biggins (Skirt)
Luke Harrison (Skirt)
Missy Lody (Jewellery)
Liberty Robertshaw (Jacket)
Ellie Rosewarne (Trousers)
Oli Woolford (Trousers)

Envelopes
Amy Blair (Jacket)
Joanne Carter (Trousers)
James Lewcock (Dress)
Pip Lovelock (Skirt)
Freya MacDonald (Headwear)
Sam Stockel (Trousers)

Drinks Cans
Zoe Burstow (Jewellery)
Holly Clements (Jacket)
Jackson Jones (Jacket)
Steph Roke (Bag)

Clothes Pegs
Alicia Cannon (Cape)
Carly Everson (Dress)
Christina Linton (Cape)
Bee Rowe (Dress)

Clothes Hangers
Mia Cockram (Skirt)
Shannon Cummins (Jewellery)
Flora Lewis (Trousers)
Beth Symmons (Bag)

Rubber Bands
Leah Foulds (Cape)
Lauren Hole (Cape)
Oli Snellings (Jewellery)
Laila Virji (Bag)

New Project - Trashion

Jez Eaton

PROJECT– TRASHION

SPECIALISM:  FASHION DESIGN

TIME: 6 Weeks

MATERIALS: Mixed Media

RESOURCES: Sewing Machine, Computer, Camera, drawing media, Photocopier, basic hand tools, 3D workshop and an object……

ASSIGNMENT OUTLINE:

The idea of make do and mend is becoming more and more prevalent in modern day society, despite being born from war torn times when people really had to make the best of what they already had as little else was available to them, the concept couldn’t be more valuable today with depleting natural resources, and the constant anxiety of inadvertently increasing the size of our individual carbon footprints. What we are now seeing on both the high street and the catwalk firmly acknowledges that this is a very real problem and one which needs to be addressed and appreciated. The race is on, fifty years ago the earth was populated by half the number of people it is now, by 2050 this number is likely to be increased further, possibly up to 10 billion, and by all estimates there simply won’t be enough resources to go round. Deforestation, depleting food sources and a rampant consumerism are all taking their toll, and did you know that last year alone 1 in 50 people lost their homes due to either, war, natural disaster or foreclosure – this is a scary statistic and none of us are immune to this. It is believed that in the U.K. each year, we throw away an average of two million tonnes of fast fashion clothing that was probably only worn for around six times a piece. Fashion could probably be described as one of man’s biggest failures in the safeguarding of our planet with corporate groups encouraging dream lifestyles of selfishness, apathy, superficiality and greed. Something has to give and something has to change…. Few things touch as many people as fashion; therefore the continuation of what is beginning to emerge through sustainable clothing rests firmly on your shoulders.

Using just a single object which may be commonly found in the home and an existing item of clothing, you are being asked to create a hybrid piece which uses the idea of recycled fashion. Furthermore you will be working alongside other individuals in BOTH of the BTEC groups to develop the idea of a collection.

GUIDELINES

1.   The initial stages of this project should be spent on some thorough investigations. First of all you will be allocated your initial departure points for the project. As this is a random selection, your object, garment and fellow collaborators are all purely down to chance, so this could see you working alongside someone you currently know very little about. It is vital however, that you do work closely with your collaborators throughout the duration of the project in order to achieve a believable result, and by not doing so, you risk failing the overall project. This entire week is concerned with gathering material – this should consist of the sourcing of the various varieties of your individual objects, examples of how these may have already been used in fashion and a range of careful studies of these objects, both as photographs and illustrations. As a matter of course you should be thinking all the time about how you will combine them with your item of clothing to create something new and exciting, it will be up to you how flamboyant or understated your ideas/designs are, but you should bear in mind that you are actually going to have to realise one of them! With regards to your allocated garment, you should again be finding as many examples of this as possible and looking for ways that you will be able to adapt your own. Where your garment comes from is entirely up to you, but it must be something which has previously been worn. What you collect/produce is going to be presented as both moodboards and a “prezi” (www.prezi.com) or powerpoint next week, so at this stage it is advisable not to stick anything into your books…Week 1

2.   Once you have looked at your objects and garments in detail you will be required to present your findings visually, as previously mentioned. It is not always appropriate to hand over a sketchbook to a group when expressing your ideas purely because it is difficult for lots of people to be able to see the work at the same time, so in order to get your ideas across to the rest of the group effectively, you are going to work on a much grander scale! Following the guidelines given you will create a series of moodboards which will explain your ideas and concepts so far. A moodboard is an important tool in the design industry and will often be created at the beginning of a project as a means by which to maintain a constant flow of ideas, yours will be instrumental in helping you to get the most out of this project and will be photographed as you go along, so do make sure that you have a camera at the ready – NO EXCUSES. These images will then be used to create your Prezi, again, guidelines will be given so do not panic, this slideshow will be your first collaborative piece and will require good communication and a well organised plan of action as you will both be working on the same presentation. This will be added to as your projects develop and you will need to follow the checklist provided in order to ensure that you have provided all the necessary information…. The beginning of this week will also see you undertake some sustained investigations into what a collection actually is. Use www.style.com, www.elle.com, http://fashionarchitect.blogspot.com/ , http://www.fashionisspinach.com/ http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com/ , look specifically at individuals like Hussein Chalayan the late Alexander McQueen, John Galliano, Gareth Pugh and Commes des Garcons, for the more alternative in ideas! Sustainable fashion heroes are Gary Harvey, Martin Margiela, Junky Styling, Ciel, and From Somewhere, and this one is just interesting if you want to get a bit more into the magazine side of things – good for layout etc….. http://magculture.com/blog/ . The library also has some amazing books – check out Maison Martin Margiela, Skin and Bones, A century of fashion, Techno textiles volumes 1 & 2, Extreme Beauty: The Body Transformed, Fashion at the edge, Fashion: Concept to catwalk, to name but a few! Week 2

3.   Select two different fashion illustrators’ work and document it in your sketchbook, providing analysis on both their work and how you think their style of illustration might be appropriate to your own designs. You should endeavour to produce a design idea of your own in each style too. Following on from this you should now begin to produce further design ideas and start to physically gather more of the same object, and get stuck into manipulating them, seeing what works and what doesn’t work in order to apply it successfully to your garment. Remember to collaborate with your partner throughout –design ideas must actually look like they have come from the same collection! You will possibly need to compromise on things so prepare to be open minded….. There will also be workshops given to help you with your figure drawing, so do not despair! You may also wish to look at www.art-dept.com for further fashion illustration inspiration. Week 3

4.   Now, how you go about using your object(s) is up to you – I am looking for clever, inventive, original, technical and carefully engineered results – remember – we are not making costumes for the school play, this is a serious exercise, and the results will be going into your folios, so make the most of it, oh, and BTW, you will all be showing your work on the catwalk after Christmas too, there will be an audience and at least 4 photographers taking your photos – I probably wouldn’t want to look like a plank if I was you!  Think about weaving, stretching, melting, burning, adhering, scoring, rolling, wrapping, dissecting, reproducing, representing and smashing as considerations for getting the most out of not only your object, but your imagination too. Update your Prezi. Weeks 3 & 4

5.   Following your investigations and trials and tribulations you should now be able to come up with the definitive design – it is now time to make it…..Photograph every stage as you go so that you can continue to update your Prezi appropriately. Take a series of well styled photos of the final outcome – Do not just stand in the studio or corridor to do this, find an appropriate space, even if it means you have to put yourself out doing so, I cannot emphasise enough how even the best design can be completely ruined by a lack of attention to detail in its final documentation…… Use www.art-dept.com to help you in this too – someone like Rankin is really worth looking at, as is showstudio.com & Tim Walker…. You could also check out James Carver on www.flickr.com – he is an ex-student here, who went on to study at London College of Fashion.

Week 5/6

6.   Write a 500-1000 word evaluation of the project – guidance notes will be given. Week 6

MINIMUM SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

·         1 COMPLETED SKETCHBOOK.

·         A SERIES OF MOODBOARDS – PHOTOGRAPHS AS EVIDENCE

·         1 COMPLETED PRESENTATION – EACH PARTY SHOULD HAVE IT DOCUMENTED IN THEIR SKETCHBOOKS.

·         RELEVANT FASHION ILLUSTRATIONS.

·         FINAL GARMENT AND PHOTOS

·         WRITTEN EVALUATION

REFERENCES:

Use the internet.

Use the library.

Use your imaginations!