Project Proposal

Current practice and research in a relevant field of study.

Give a brief description of your proposed project

To create an multi-functional, transformable garment with multiple aesthetics, portable when deconstructed; effectively a ‘capsule wardrobe’ in capsule form. The garment will provide an attractive, safe, comfortable and useful space that responds to the needs of the body, which vary according to behaviour or external environment.

List at least 5 current practitioners/ or examples of practice whose concerns, ideas or interests relate to your own.

-       Lucy Orta- urban nomads, blurs lines between fashion and architecture

-       Christopher Raeburn

-       Vexed Generation

-       Isabel Toledo

-       Performance textiles/microfibre manufacturers- Goretex, DuPont, Courtaulds, Schoeller, etc.

-       Sportswear design incorporating smart/performance enhancing textiles- speedo, Skins, Spartan etc.

-       Urban street style

-       Hussain Chalayan

-       Ecological concerns- potential for biodegradable fabrics, processes using non-harmful chemicals etc, potential upcycling pre/post-consumer waste at a chemical level.

What form might the proposed work take? Analysis of proposal

-       Need to create functioning prototype to use to approach materials producers.

-       Prototype comprises three elements: a base-layer which functions as a ‘skin’, a harness or ‘exo-skeleton’ which controls shape and volume and forms the structure of the capsule carrier, and a lightweight voluminous piece based on geometric shapes which can create multiple aesthetics around the body.

-       To create a series of photographs or film is desirable to communicate to an observer the nature and capabilities of the garment.

-       If this is not realised a portfolio/series of storyboards alone will be used to communicate the nature of the garment.

List the main research methods you will employ to inform your practice.

-       Interview with Lucy Orta

-       Intensive materials research.

-       I will need to define manufacturers working in relevant areas and investigate potential leads for sponsorship/collaboration, this may well steer the direction of the garment design.

-       The main thrust of the project will involve creating a functioning prototype. It is through the practice of designing and making according to requirements that I will discover design and construction problems thus innovate solutions.

-       Design-led-research means than as problems arise I can approach specific parties for particular solutions.

-       Working in areas such as videography or photography may necessitate collaboration, thus I shall have to investigate avenues for this.

Briefly describe how these methods will communicate your ideas/ concepts to an audience or client?

-       Presenting a prototype provides space for collaboration with interested parties who may wish to play a part in its realisation.

-       Presenting visual information such as photographs or storyboards to accompany the prototype will instantly communicate an array of the garment’s capabilities, and images can also be replicated and transported, while the prototype itself is a singular entity.

How will you plan the project and what difficulties might there be in achieving your aims?

-       Without access to the ‘smart’ materials and technologies I require my garment will be limited in its capacity to meet the needs of the body in all environments, thus not function adequately. However, there will still be potential for future investigation if I succeed in creating a marketable prototype.