One of our important research questions is: How can virtual fashion help to improve design process by skipping some design process? For our project, this is an interesting topic to research . Compared to traditional design process which contains a lot of handcraft, virtual fashion deals with more digital elements. It is rather newly-born and waiting to be embraced by the new-generation designers. But what are the opinions of young designers? Are they willing to use this new approach in their design process? Are they excited or even scared about it? …
We are eagerly to talk with some young designers or fashion design students to get to know what their expectations are. That’s also one of our user stories.
On Wednesday evening, we had an nice discussion with Marianna Ladreyt, Therése Palmhager, and Denise van Gent in the medialab.Marianna and Therese are second-year students from Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam, where they are studying fashion design. Denise used to study fashion design in AMFI. She graduated form there 3 months ago and now she is looking for a job.
We discussed about virtual fashion in following interesting aspects:
OPINIONS ON DESIGN PROCESS:
Both of Marianna and Therese are used to working in a traditional way. Usually they start with feeling the materials by hand, then make make samples and test them on the model. They agree that the traditional hand craft working is not the perfect way, but they already formed a workflow of it. For them it it a bit difficult to change.
But the use of software is not something they will definitely reject. Fashion design software is convenient and easy to use in a way. They can help designer develop a better time management by shortening the time cost in making samples and testing, also allowing designers to be more creative in their design process. Unlimited materials, models and methods are provided in those softwares. There’s a lot of freedom and space to experiment.
However, to those who are already used to the old way it’s hard to get started in the beginning. What’s more, to Marianna who thinks she is not so ”technical”, getting those softwares working could be a big challenge. “I know a bit how to use them, but it’s really hard for me to learn. Why putting so much time?” said Marianna.
VIRTUAL FASHION AND ITS TECHNOLOGIES
Therese sees something positive in a combination of tradition and new technology from a sustainable perspective. Virtual fashion helps to reduce sample cost in design process, as well as extend the way of product presentation. This is especially beneficial for some small brands and young designers.
Still, she thinks that virtual fashion “will not be the start point or the end point in the design process”, since in any case fashion design will start with real materials, and end in real products.
“Virtual fashion may result in the losing the soul of garment.” said she.
She had a good reason for saying that. After all, the main point of virtual fashion is not about producing something real(although it could be a result out of it). In design process it is very necessary for a designer to meet real customers, and communicate with them. That’s also the difference lying between real shops and on-line business. With the development of so much on-line shops, some fashion shops are inevitably disappearing. What are increasing are various types of fashion events. But real shops and traditional techniques are not going to disappear, since there will always be people who make real clothes.
WHAT DO YOU THINK OF CURRENT SITUATION OF FASHION INDUSTRY?
“what is amazing about fashion is that you can dress up yourself into different characters.” said Therese. This is also a very important reason of her stepping into the fashion world.
However,what in the current fashion world now are ”too many fashion weeks, too many collections, too fast seasons and too identical copies.”
“This is not what a real designer wants.” Said Marianna.
Denise also said that she got tired of seeing so much collection in which she could not see any point.”There should be less of them, but more special.”
Marianna said she felt”scary” about some collections she saw in the Paris fashion week. She doesn’t want to participate it.
What they all observe in the fashion world is that everything is moving too fast now. Compared with the “slow fashion” which is normally viewed as hand craft-dominant and environment-friendly, new forms of fashion technology keeps giving birth to new stuff. ”I see it as a danger.” said Therese.
FASHION DESIGN EDUCATION
In some fashion schools, the competition is rather fierce among students. However, Marianna and Therese think they have a very different environment in their school. They work in a small group, namely, 10 students. They have nothing to do with each other. There’s no competition, no copying, everyone works as individuals, which is a good way to keep their personalities. She is “very pround and happy about that”. Sometimes they need to work together, and it’s a nice way to get interesting ideas from people with different background. “Codesign helps you to develop your own styles and ideas”, said Therese.
In their school, they learn how to be a real designer. They both agreed that a good reason is an very important factor in fashion design.
”As long as you know why, and you have a strong view, fashion can be anything there.”
PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT
When being asked “do you have a clear view for near future?”, Marianna didn’t answer directly. Instead, she replied “I don’t want be a part of this fashion world. “
She told us she really wanted to do fashion, but not in this way. She got tired of seeing so many fashion shows, one show a year is already a lot to her. “You have to belong to this world to earn your success, but that’ s not something I am interested in.”
Meanwhile, Therese saw more possibilities by noticing that many young designers create their own brand without having so many fashion shows a year. In her opinion, getting successful is not only about design, how you connect to people and brand yourself is very important as well. One interesting phenomenon is that many customers seem to favour designs of a not so famous designer. Chances are that hey are trying to find a way out of this already too commercial world. And to a young designer, new presentation ways such as virtual fashion could be a very good approach to gain their fame.
work of Marianna
work of Therése
Work of Denise van Gent