Blog Post 2
The lectures we were given at the beginning of the unit have educated me on the number of issues surrounding the fashion industry, but also ways in which we can change the current problems. The better lives themes have brought to light elements in which I will work towards improving in my working practice for the future.
As a Costume for Performance student, I believe it is my responsibility to reinforce ideas and practice of sustainability due to the issues surrounding modern day fast fashion and the damage that it is having on our environment, many textile clothing ends up in landfills and 60 percent of fabric fibres are now synthetic and will not decay, this often ends up secreting into our oceans, rivers and intoxicating the oceanic ecosystem. (How fast fashion is destroying the planet (NY Times, 2019.) After being educated on this, for my work in the future I will try my hardest to be mindful and sustainable when buying and sourcing my fabrics, by pattern laying in ways which will save as much fabric as possible and working out beforehand the necessary amount of fabric needed, meaning less waste being put into our environment. In future projects where I am able to have autonomy over who models the clothing and costumes I have made or are working with, I will make conscious decisions to cast diversely and consider how varying colours work on an array of skin tones, body types and that everybody is proportionally represented where possible. In 2018 almost 40 percent of the models were models of colour, almost double the percentage reported back in 2015, Black models (Popsugar, 2019.) This is a great outcome for our current fashion runways; however, the issue of inclusivity is still very apparent and those that are differently abled are not often seen walking the runways. Fashion is ever changing, and we have the ability to be able to change the facts and norms, which is what I will consider in my current and future practice. When researching for costume design I will make sure to look at a variety of different cultural backgrounds and history, this will inform and shape new ideas by not only being influenced through the lens of a Western society and will lead to a much more holistic approach into the influence of design ideas in the future. It is our social responsibility to not forget OUR history, this was highlighted by the Perspectives lecture by Cher Potter.
It is now our responsibility as future fashion students to try and make active changes in our own life and work practices to try and better our future.
Reference List
The New York Times (2019) ‘How fast fashion is destroying the planet’, 3rd September.
Popsugar (2020) Black models 2019 Available at: https://www.popsugar.co.uk/fashion/Black-Models-2019-45761718 (Accessed: March 2020).