Category / Lectures

by Olivia Kate Violet

Visit from Dazed and Confused

Monday 17th November

Today we were introduced to Sorla Houston, Photography Editor and Producer from Dazed and Confused. She told us all about how things work in the magazine and  in particular, her job.

Initially the editorial team look at everything from pop culture, to the politics to editorial images, current affairs.. Basically everything! From this information they all formulate ideas and the update the ‘list’. The list is a collaborative space where by all have access to it. Sorla has to keep an eye on this as it is only when it goes bold that she can start her job.

Her job involves a lot of organising, contacting people and arranging call sheets so make sure things so everything is in place for the shoot. She also has to liaison  with the creative director to make sure they are happy with the chosen photographers. She also is in control of the budget and thus how much gets allocated to where, in addition to making sure everyone is paid on time.

We then had the pleasure of being able to see her sketchbooks from degree level and get some inspiration for our current and future projects. I really like the look of a grey background with a colour layered on top. I also really like the idea of looking into using different mediums and have been inspire to go home and experiment printing onto different types of paper and materials, for example, tissue paper, acetate and tin foil. I also want to experiment with cling film and the idea of tinting photos.

by Olivia Kate Violet

‘You Think This Has Nothing to do with You’

Thursday 13th November

Today’s lecture was all based on Fashion; who creates it and who takes responsibility for it. Dr Marie McLouglin used the film Devil Wears Prada (the lumpy blue sweater in particular) to give an example how fashion, is an unavoidable, ever changing concept.

I found it really interesting to consider how when people (such as the character Andy in Devil Wears Prada) think they are going against society and what it considers its norms in terms of fashion, they are actually caught up in it, just as much as those who are trying to be. The tone of colour, the shape and the print of a garment has to come from somewhere and thus eventually it gets sent through the system ending up to the consumer.

We looked at Karl Lagerfeld’s quote “Fashion is a language that creates itself in clothes to interpret reality”. I really like this quote and feel it is such a lovely way tot think of fashion, because I agree, it really does have it’s own language.
Further more we looked at Nick Knight and his Show Studio platform, which I have to be honest and say I did not know about but will be definitely taking a good look at ASAP.

Finally we looked at the idea of the recent exhibition, ‘Women, Fashion, Power. Not a multiple choice .’
Within this exhibition influential people such as Camila Batmanghelidjh, Dame Sandra Rhodes and Samantha Cameron.

Samantha Cameron’s M&S dress report I found particularly interesting because we think she is trying to say she shops like everyday people- so to connect with the public, when in fact when she wanted this dress there weren’t any available at any store. Due to her status they found that they had a sample dress in a factory in a size 14 which they then made to measure her size 10 figure. Therefore demonstrating the power behind certain individuals and exposing the innocent minded pubic, such as myself although I am slowly learning to question everything around me.
Seminar Session:
Within our seminar we refined the knowledge covered within the lecture and also discussed how the system of producing fashion has changed over time.  From once being in a state where by the designers opinion was extremely respected and the considered at the top of the chain, to the current industry in which people are brave enough to be individual and are deciding fashion for themselves. Thus the designers now take our opinions and voices more seriously and as a result has meant the system has been reversed and we are in fact at the top.

Overall I’ve had a really interesting and thought provoking afternoon and now can’t wait to watch Devils Wears Prada again- for a second I almost forgot what a good film it is!

by Olivia Kate Violet

Labour of Love

Thursday 6th of November

Todays lecture, lead by Matt Smith consisted of the introduction to this idea of craft in opposition, followed by case studies of craft in industry and then finally how artists explore craft and mass production. I found this lecture particularly interesting because it made you think about/ question what craft really is. Can something machine made be considered craft? Is craft fine art? Can you give one definitive answer to the definition of what is craft?

To cut a long story short, the answer to whether there is one definitive answer is no, there isn’t. The definition (in Matt Smith’s opinion) is summed up best by David McFadden who states that;

“No single definition of the word [craft] satisfies the range of activities- mental and manual- that craft comprises..Craft is a flexible term, shifting in its common usage from verb that describes conscious action to, modify or transform a material to a noun that describes a class of objects.”

(David McFadden, Curator of the American Craft Museum, M. Anna Fariello, and Paula Owen (eds) Objects and Meaning, New Perspectives on Art and Craft, The Scarecrow Press, 2005, p24)

Matt then went on to refer to William Morris who proposed that we should be asking, who made it? He covered the romantic nationalism and also looked at the Names Quilt; a response to the aids crisis.

Furthermore a case study that we looked at that really grabbed my attention was one on Linnet Hanan and how she contributes to Quivenchy through her knitting and croquets, so much, yet gets no recognition. This really got me thinking about this idea of being given credit for your work and the possible rules that could be in place, and maybe should be in place to make sure that those individuals that contribute to a piece of work (whether it be a clothing design, 3D model design or drawing etc) get recognised for that work.

Finally we looked at some artists that explore craft and mass production. Individuals such as Edmund de wall, Geoffrey Mann and Grayson Perry were a few, among the list.

Overall I feel this lecture was extremely beneficial even if only to remind me that it is important to question and look further into what it is you initially see.

by Olivia Kate Violet

Photography & Styling

Monday 3rd November

Today we were briefed with our new project on photography and styling; although slightly daunting it sounds very exciting! I think that looking into photography will be really useful for me as I would consider myself a novice in that particular area at the moment! In addition to this i’m really looking forward to the hands on side of styling, i’ve always loved putting outfits together and can’t wait to experiment; especially as i will have the chance to collaborate with others, which will give me some really good experience.

After this we then had our second brief consisting of a trend project which will run along side our photography and styling brief. We had the pleasure of meeting Ruth Greany who works for WGSN, thus has industry experience, who presented the brief in a lecture format whilst engaging us through question and short activity to start of with. For the activity she asked us to consider, in groups, what it is we thought trends were, where they come from and then give examples of some current trends. This is what we came up with:

What are trends:
-Something followed in fashion
-Styles that change from season to season
-World styles influenced by catwalk and fashion weeks

Where do they come from:
-Current trend-Films
-Blogs
-Catwalk
-Designers
-Economics
-News

Current trends:
-Vintage
-Capes
-60’s
-Sport Luxe
-Distressed denim
-Long sleeves

Following this she then ran through how the company WGSN works and gave us some background information to her job role and how it is trend forecasting is conducted. I found this really insightful and am looking forward to getting ‘stuck in’, as they say!

by Olivia Kate Violet

Design for the real world?

Thursday 23rd October 2014

Today we covered what this title means in relation to the contemporary culture that we live in today. What makes the world a better place in terms of design in relation to this topic? Key questions asked in the seminar afterwards were how realistic is realistic? What does the word mean in relation to being successful? What is success?

During the lecture we initially looked at Mary Quant and the creation of her mini skirt. I found the fact that the Mini Cooper, the car, influenced her mini skirt. I also loved the comment made by our lecturer, Damon Taylor that “our hem lines are constantly changing in relation to changes in the economy”.

Further more we looked at how Papanek believed we were using up the worlds resources and that our creativeness is striped from us the older we get. “until they enter school, most people seem to be about equality adept at solving problems. Then the inherent ability to creates becomes inhibited by perceptual, cultural and emotional blocks.” (Papanek)

Overall, I found today really enlightening and it made me question what it is want and would consider being successful in terms of my ambitions from life. Damon Taylor closed his lecture with the comments of “Everything you do is about the real world and how big you make it. It’s not about you today but who you will be.”

What do I want? When will I consider myself successful? Is it money? Is it the title I have? Is it where I am and who I am with in the end? Honestly, I don’t know yet. All I do know is I will work my very hardest to hopefully be able to have the choice of deciding one day.

 

by Olivia Kate Violet

Form Follows Function: Form Follows Fun?

Thursday 16th October 2014

So today was my second lecture followed by a seminar on HCS (Historical and Critical studies) and I feel it went really well. Damon Taylor gave the lecture in which I feel was delivered to an extremely high standard. Some people just have good stage presence don’t they?

Although I was interested with the subject matter throughout the whole lecture I think the beginning was really gripping. He spoke about ethics and our sense of right and wrong, which in itself is an exciting topic as it is rare for two people to  completely agree on what they feel to be right and wrong in any given situation. The most interesting part for me was the idea that design should make the world better and thus there is this hierarchy of values that change due to the situation we are in. Damon gave the example using an iPhone, a T-shirt and a gun. In every day life you’d say that the iPhone came first, then the T-shirt and then the gun however in times of war you’d swap the gun to be first, then the iPhone second and the T-shirt last. I’d never thought about ethics and the difference a situation can have in this way before and found this exciting.

For our seminar we had to choose an object we thought was both functional and fun. I chose a skateboard because its functional in that it gets you from A to B, it is lightweight and easily transported and it poses as a form of exercise although I felt this could also go in to the fun section – i appreciate not all find exercise fun! Furthermore it is fun because it is a gateway for social interaction and it allows the boarder to form new skills and thus expand on their capabilities.

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