Blog 2 Mhari Tyler
The better lives lectures and themes have influenced the way I work in drastic ways already. Since the last blog post the COVID-19 crisis has worsened and the government have implanted a lockdown on the country. This means I am not allowed out to do anything but grocery shop. This means I am not going charity shopping as I used to do to find all of my clothes to buy. Consequently I have moved online in search of new pieces or styles I can use for everyday wearing purposes or even for a shoot for my Contemporary Portrait Photography sector. I have fully avoided websites such as Pretty Little Thing and In The Style as they are well known for fast production times and not enough support for their overseas employees. I have been using eBay only for used items or essentials. Since Highstreet shops and all in person stores have been forced to close there will be lots of wasted garments due to things being “out of season” or not wanted anymore but this concept of seasons has got to change if we want fashion to be more sustainable. We must be creating new ways to recycle or redesign clothes to create actual new creations. There should be less garments available to buy so that when something sells out it is sold out instead of thousands and thousands being created only for it to be out of style and sent to an incinerator. Thinking about the future is difficult for me as of now, due to the virus no one knows what the economy will be like when lockdown is lifted and we can all “return to normal life” however the world will not be normal there will be new strategies in place to stop the spread of the virus and the economy will be entirely different even down to how much things will cost. The better lives unit will force me to keep global issues present in my mind when I am making both conscious and subconscious decisions whether that be within the fashion choices I make or dietary or even decisions with my friends. It has highlighted that we cannot go on the way we are and through my work I will try to represent the changes needed to create a new fashion industry where true creation for sustainable practicality whilst staying true to yourself and your style will be the most important requirement. It is imperative it is a requirement because if we do not actively force the change it will take too long for anything to make a difference to our dying planet. I plan to always keep these thoughts at the forefront of whatever I do and whatever I achieve will be down to this thinking and this mentality.