We Think

Craft + Technology = ?

I attended a presentation yesterday chaired by Sandy Black from London College of Fashion. She hosted two speakers Isabelle Risner and Umar Hassan Jan.

Isabelle Risner is examining the place of digital craft within the context of craft, art and design. Her PhD scholarship is funded through Autonomatic: a research cluster exploring the process and application of digital manufacturing technologies to create 3D objects. I found her presentation really inspiring and a fascinating field of inquiry. The presentation provoked discussion about the relationships between craft and technology and how one defines the other. It can be argued that as we begin to rely on technology our application of craft (making) is reduced – sparking debates about future generation’s practice. Will technology redefine craft?

I personally am inspired by new digital technology as it creates new opportunities and forces us to challenge existisitng practice. Through my undergraduate course I specialised in Woven Textile Design  – the subject field of the following speaker.

Umar Hassan Jan presented: Recognition and restoration of the fashion work in Pakistan. reviewing the supply and demand effects of Khaadi. He talked about how hand-weaving was re-introduced within a society where the trade was diminishing. Beautiful, light weight fabric swatches were passed around during the talk and I was amazed to discover they were handwoven when they had the handle of “mass produced” cloth. It was explained that the thread count was increased to achieve this effect. Umar was opposed to digital technology and talked about the authenticity of Khaadi – the value of the handmade, he explained the fabric looked mass produced but detailed inspection can occasionally reveals flaws and is part of the fabrics charm, something technology would prevent.

I have only presented a slight overview of two complex areas of expertise. The afternoon made me re-think craft and technology. I have experience of hand weaving and know the laborious characteristics and technicalities that can emerge forcing you to re-work your fabric structure or they way you operate the loom.

It made me debate why hand produced hand woven fabric that would involve laborious efforts when possible to produce it ten times faster using technology? Where does the value lie? It think its the narrative.

I went to visit an old silk factory in Stockholm last year that specialised in Jacquard weaving. The factory had preserved all of the equipment and exhibited it to break down the production process. I have only designed Jacquard cloth once using photoshop and a softwear programme – the data was then sent off to another institution who produced the cloth.

In contrast, I was amazed to learn the long process originally required to produce such complex cloth. I viewed a huge archive of intricately detailed organic hand drawings which were used to inspire the structure of the cloth. The designer then translated this into a grid system which allowed them to hand produce punch cards to allow the loom to operate the required liftings to create the cloth. The level of precision and accuracy required to complete this task is phenomenal!! A process which could take days, weeks and even months can now be achieved in many variations within hours using technology.

But, given the choice I would prefer to buy the traditional fabric purchased in Stockholm after the narrative was communicated to me.

I love technology and it inspires me in the way it presents new opportunities to change the world. I think craft, tradition and value are equally as important and that we need to find ways to engage with both to preserve skills and learn new ones.

I think Sandy Black summed up the session brilliantly when she said we think of digital as this (pointing to the computer) and then she held up both palms and said – it also means this!

Paper Dolls

I have been writing about ways to explore fashion and style using technology but how do we explore fashion without digital media?

Thinking about this issue made me think about the relationship between the tangible and intangibles. Does digital media fully satisfy our fashion needs and wants? I know when shopping I like to touch the fabric to feel the texture and see how the fabric moves.

I began to brainstorm the ways I interact with fashion without technology or hitting the high street.  I began to reminisce about fashion games I played as a child – we had an old Nintendo games consoles to play super Mario brothers and no PC until our teens. As children we used to spend hours and hours playing with Barbie Dolls, our fashion wheel, paper doll dress up kits or play around with our dress up box. It was all about dressing up and creating new characters and we became immersed in a world of our developing

our own creations.

When my friends little girl comes to visit she always asks to play fashion dress up games on my mac book. I recently ran a google search and got 4,190,000 results for dress up fashion games! This communicates the shift in our culture and how children are growing up embracing new technology. They know what buttons to press without reading the instructions, they know how the purpose and rules of a game without any explanation.

I looked online and found lots of DIY paper doll downloads for both children and adults (only 341,00 google results).Etsy have some fab handmade kits for children and I was amazed to see vintage Dior and Yves Saint Laurent paper doll books available on amazon, for the adults!

How it works: You cut out the doll which acts as your real life avatar – you can then cut out different garments and accessories which have folding paper tags at the seams to attach to the doll.

I think this is a fun way to explore fashion and all you need is a pair of scissors.

Cloth Kits

I have been thinking about Cloth Kits since I came across their beautiful stand at the knit and stitch show at Alexandra Palace, London (2008). They are a great way to explore dressmaking if your a novice. The kit consists of a pattern pre-printed onto fabric so no dressmaking pattern or pins are required.

This isn’t a new concept and goes back to 1988, a mail order company who once employed 400 workers. The brand was re-bought in 2007 and re-launched with newly designed fabrics and garments all printed in the UK.

I am going to order this beautiful skirt (shown left) I think the quirky print will cheer me up over the rest of the wintry days teamed with some tights and then again into summer days with a pair of flip flops and a t-shirt. I’ll report back with some photos of my attempts to cut and sew. Have a look on their website – there are lots of different garments and accessories to choose from.

I think this is a wonderful concept to allow the masses to participate in dressmaking in a time where skills have become lost. As prices on the high street continue to drop, it makes fashion more accessible and saves time and pennies (it costs more to make your own). But as skills are no longer passed from generation to generation – who will uphold tradition and value. If I think of the most valued possession in my wardrobe – a handmade black pinafore/skirt (the straps remove) it fits perfect and co-ordinates with almost anything. A friend of my mums made it for me in a day after I presented her with some clippings from vogue. She was so advanced in dressmaking she didn’t even pull out a measuring tape and it still amazes me that its the best fitted item in my wardrobe!

I think a lot can be learned from buying a clothkit we just have to learn to make some time!

Burda Style

Designed for people who sew with style, Burda style allows users to access the knowledge and expertise to create their own clothing at the click on a button. This digital community allows users to upload detailed photographs of their creations accompanied by a pattern. The user then has the option to openly share or profit from the pattern downloads.

All patterns are accompanied by a difficulty rating making it easy to identify which matches your skills and know how. There is also a high number of reviews from other users which identifies any flaw in the pattern or suggestions for alterations, fabric changes etc… A sewpedia directory provides an A-Z of all dressmaking techniques, tools, fabrics and design terms.

I think this is a fab way to bring people together to collaborate and share fashion interests. Some of the photographs of the creations are beautifully edited and suggests that there is potential to create something stylish and unique.

You can also see from the background in the pictures that people are producing these creations from home and then uploading them via their computers while others are styles and photographed by professionals. It is apparent that all users are investing time in their creations and you can see a sense of pride and purpose by the way they are presented in the photographs.

When searching under different clothing categories I was amazed to see the quantity of creations. I have been questioning peoples relationships with clothing and how much we as a society participate in the life cycle of clothing. I was chatting about this to a relation recently as she told stories about her childhood when her clothing was always homemade and fitted perfectly. She went onto say how it saddened her that her clothing was no longer made with love and that she worries that the next generation has begun to lose these skills…

On finding this open source platform I think its true to say that these skills are not lost, only hidden away. I don’t think our generation had become deskilled we are just applying and expressing them in a different way. It is clear through this website that the creations are made with lots of care and consideration and the community environment allows users to support each other.

Threadless – Designer of the Year

Threadless have taken co-design to the next level but creating an opportunity for a consumer to be crowned “Designer of the Year” and win $20,000 in the process!

The Internet retail company allows users to design t-shirts which are then uploaded and critiqued by other users. Users are encouraged to vote for their favourite designs with the most popular going into production. A scoring system has been designed which ranks the users who have purchased previously more authority when voting. If your design goes into production you receive a share of the profits.

This is a clever strategy to empower consumers and learn from user generated content. It creates a platform for co-creation and the community atmosphere allows users to support each other. The opportunity for consumers to profit from their creativity is a great incentive and can you imagine how they would feel seeing a stranger walking down the street in their creation!

This makes me question the role of the designer. As we entering an era the designer takes on a facilitator role? I think collaboration is an exciting prospect as consumers are becoming much more design savvy and educated about where their clothing comes from and how it is made.