Fashion's future is about looking forward, however looking back with Sandy Black, Professor of Fashion and Textile Design and Technology at London College of Fashion, serves up a timely lesson for right now on running a fashion business and sustainability.
Professor Black provides the privilege of reflection - of pausing and drawing on decades of analysis of craft and technology and designer fashion businesses through her academic research and practice and asking the question 'why has so little changed for fashion designers in terms of barriers to growing a successful business'? Many of the difficulties Professor Black, a maths graduate from UCL (more on that later), faced when running her knitwear business in the 70's and 80's still exist today, especially in terms of financing production whilst investing in new collections and finding manufacturers willing to work with emerging brands in a dynamic and affordable way. The conversation and landscape is changing, though.
Professor Black completed a maths degree at UCL whilst exploring, informally, her interest in craft and knitting. Upon graduation she became involved in an artistic knitting movement that saw an explosion of her knitwear across the globe. Sandy Black Fashion knitwear was stocked in boutiques in the US, Japan, Australia and Europe. Her hand and domestic machine knitted pieces were intricate and painterly, reflecting a new creative and artistic approach to knitwear that thrust itself into the fashion realm, beyond its reputation as a domestic craft.
Coat by Sandy Black Photo: David McIntyre
"Digital knitting began in the 70's" states Professor Black. The current knitting technology is an extension of, rather than a re-invention of, that knitting technology. She forged links with Stoll, a world-leading industrial knitting machine manufacturer to have a machine installed at London College of Fashion, enabling students to immerse themselves in industry techniques and adopt new technology in their practice.
The excitement in knitting arguably lies in its fusion of craft and technology and Professor Black's publications, including Interrogating Fashion, Eco-Chic: The Fashion Paradox and The Sustainable Fashion Handbook explore the impact of this fusion on fashion, in terms of manufacturing, sustainability and aesthetics. Her recent work, in collaboration with a number of London College of Fashion-based academics, is an online platform allowing the exchange of information between fashion academics and the designer fashion industry to promote insightful, sustainable and collaborative practice for better business and environmental outcomes.
The platform, FIREup, has fuelled debate around changing business models for sustainability. It intends to unlock the potential of industry and academic collaboration, and is designed to help designer-fashion businesses in London access knowledge based in the university's research centres and academic staff across three prestigious colleges: Central Saint Martins, London College of Fashion and Chelsea College of Arts. The FIREup initiative is now expanding across the UK.
Professor Sandy Black in discussion with Michelle Lowe-Holder, Martine Jarlgaard, Kiwy Huang and Ben Alun-Jones at the Creativeworks Festival, King's College London - Photo: CSF
As part of the FIREup initiative, four projects were undertaken to allow designers to conduct research to inform their business decisions. This research involved a sort of 'forced reflection' and contemplation. Recent exits of high-profile designers from global fashion businesses (Raf Simons from Dior and Alber Elbaz from Lanvin) were allegedly, at least partly, the result of frustration at a lack of time and space to pause and reflect because of the relentless cycle of punishing product deadlines with no time for contemplation and development. Although running a smaller business with fewer product categories is arguably less time-pressured, it is absolutely true that the pressures Professor Black faced whilst running her business and that often lead to added strain on small businesses have not yet been resolved. It is the mandate of FIREup to allow designers space, time, academic support and funding to conduct reflective research and steer their business forward in a more successful and thoughtful way. Christopher Raeburn is one such designer involved in the FireUp Catalyst Project.
Raeburn's 'REMADE' products are crafted from re-appropriated military fabrics. The jacket below was remade by deconstructing and shredding original German snow ponchos, the Schneetarn (German for 'snow camouflage') Parka. A limited edition garment, it is one of a maximum of 50, proudly remade in Raeburn's London studio.
Photo: Christopher Raeburn
The women's Ceremonial Biker Jacket is reworked from original British military ceremonial garments, traditional British military wear that have held the same design for the last century. The jacket, typical of British cavalry, artillery and infantry, is also a limited edition piece (a maximum of 50) also remade in the Christopher Raeburn Studio. Shop Christopher Raeburn here.
Photo: Christopher Raeburn
Currently promoted on the FIREup platform, and being hosted by Professor Rebecca Earley and Dr. Kate Goldsworthy is the Mistra Fashion Future Conference on textile design and the circular economy which is part of their research aimed at creating the vision of designing for a circular future where materials are designed, produced, used and disposed of in radical new ways. "Circular Transitions will be the first global event to bring together academic and industry research concerned with designing fashion textiles for the circular economy. The themes will explore the design of new materials for fashion with approaches ranging from emerging technology and social innovation to systems design and tools." The event is in London on the 23rd and 24th November. More information is available here FIREup or Mistra Future Fashion.
It's clear that Professor Black's research and industry involvement, along with the work of her fellow academics at London College of Fashion, is helping shape the discourse around designer businesses and sustainability. The broader discussion, encompassing the impact of our lifestyle choices (including fashion) on the environment has been explored by Professor Helen Storey in her recent Dress For Our Time project. Developed in partnership with Holition, the dress digitally displayed data - extracted from a major study of the global risks of future shifts in ecosystems due to climate, which showed the impact of climate change on our physical world. It showed the planet as it will be, if we don't do enough. The film below demonstrates the shocking and compelling figures related to the refugee crises and displacement across across the globe projected onto the Dress For Our Time:
Professor Black and Professor Storey are both also instrumental team members at the Centre for Sustainable Fashion (CSF) at the London College of Fashion - a Research Centre of the University of the Arts London based at London College of Fashion. Our work explores vital elements of Better Lives London College of Fashion's commitment to using fashion to drive change, build a sustainable future and improve the way we live. In 2014 the CSF announced a five-year partnership to work closely with Kering to support sustainable practices in education for the fashion industry. The partnership is a three-way approach to ensure new ways of thinking about sustainability in fashion: The Kering Talks, The Kering Award for Sustainable Fashion and The Empowering Imagination module for MA students at LCF. This year's Kering Award for Sustainable Fashion was announced on November 14th and an article about the event and finalists will follow this one, so stay tuned!
To learn more about CSF initiatives, click here
To find out more about FIREup and see current opportunities here
First published on Techstyler.fashion