Blog 2: Themes Reflection Task
by Iris Choi
I realized that I never truly understand the themes of better lives project will affect on fashion which is sustainability, social responsibility and diversity before weeks of studying better lives project.
After reflected from some of the lectures that I watched such as culture, technologies in fashion, empathy, collaboration etc. I renew my mind of how the better lives themes will change how I worked in the future. In my opinion I think that the themes are linked. Pursuing a sustainable future is what all human being focusing on. To have a better lives, fashion is obvious a huge part. As people are more likely to pursue a better lives quality.
Technological and organizational innovation produced increased output and reduced cost of clothing. The amount of fashion items especially fast fashion garments we buy increased. ‘According to my research by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation, the fashion industry produces 53 million tons of products every year, but 73% is either incinerated or ends up as landfill.’ (It is often the small, ingenious efforts that change the world, 2018)
This is a serious problem that it may affect a lot of aspect such as air and water pollution, lack of land etc.. Advertisement, influencer, printed or non-printed interface imbue the society with consumerism without sense. In the long run, if we do not make changes to our lifestyle, irreversible damage will occur.
Perfect face and body models are the majority on fashion covers. This become a standard of beauty in the society. People blindly pursue one kind of body shape unconditionally. People may do things to affect their health such as losing weight by taking illegal pills. Body shaming become a serious problem. Our society is not inclusive enough.
It is our social responsibility to maintain sustainable lifestyle and to embrace diversity of the society. I would like to stop consuming fast fashion brand products and support sustainable minority brand. Decreased the frequency of consuming. As a creative director, I would hope to raise public awareness of the environmental problem that the fashion industry are causing. And I will send out the message of “Repair, Rewear, Relove” our fashion products. To fit in Gen Z, I like to start a online challenge, swapping clothes with neighbor and create new style clothing using our old unwanted garments.
I believed that there are more than one kind of beauty in the world. Looking forward to a brighter and harmonic world, we need to include diversity of the society. From printed to digital world, I want to include different beauty of people on fashion advertisements such as different race, size, sexual orientation and class etc.. I believed that all human are the community of life so that we should treat each other and our mother planet better to obtain a better lives.
Reference:
- IT’S NOT JUST A ZIP | YKK fastening.com. 2018. It Is Often The Small, Ingenious Efforts That Change The World.
[online]
Available at: <https://www.ykkfastening.com/itsnotjustazip/vol02/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=itsnotjustazip_vol02_A> [Accessed 1 May 2020].
11th May 2020 @ 1:07 pm
Blog Post 4: Iris Choi , Peer Review
Upon reading Iris Choi’s second blog post entitled ‘Blog 2: Themes reflection task’, I gathered a genuine and actualized sense of understanding but also willingness to learn more and acknowledge past ignorance, with regards to the better lives themes.
This can be seen in the opening sentences when Choi expresses how she was unaware of how the better lives themes could affect the fashion industry prior to starting this unit.
Choi identified problems within the industry as shown when she wrote “In the long run, if we do not make changes to our lifestyle, irreversible damage will occur.” The clear and concise statement illustrates she has an intelligible understanding of the theme ‘Social Responsibility’ as she is presenting this statement to not only herself but everyone reading by utilizing the inclusive pronoun ‘we’. This word selection allows everyone to feel that they too are responsible for the potential outcome of the future; in addition to that, they also feel they are a part of the resolution.
I also noticed that Choi covered the Better Lives theme of diversity by mentioning that magazines continuously utilise models that an agenda of perfection, which wrongfully, encourages many to “ pursue one kind of body shape unconditionally.” I think her use of the adjective ‘unconditionally’ is very effective as it relays the dangerous extent to which any are willing to go to, to achieve standards pushed and marketed to them.
Being more diverse allows plenty of people to feel seen and well represented which can deviate from anyone feeling extreme pressure to fit into a certain box the industry has created. This issue is one that Choi has explained fully. Furthermore, she has delineated the repercussions clearly for others to comprehend. “. People may do things to affect their health such as losing weight by taking illegal pills. Body shaming become a serious problem. Our society is not inclusive enough.”
This indicates, again, that she is not only aware of the unjust on goings but also that it must be changed to inspire positive and practical change for future and upcoming creative’s. This links both themes of ‘Social Responsibility’ and ‘Diversity’ in a productive manner.
C hoi goes on to highlight the importance of sustainability; another one of the three Better Lives themes. I specifically thought it to be very ethical and moral of her to suggest some ways she could implement sustainable living into her life. “I would like to stop consuming fast fashion brand products and support sustainable minority brand.”
Additionally, she also thought of a catchy slogan she could utilise to raise public awareness “Repair, Rewear, Relove” Moreover, she took it a step further by thinking of strategies that would strike a chord with Gen Z to get them involved. This considered strategy shows Choi has really thought about how to reach differing demographics and please her customer base, all whilst enforcing the theme and key messages surrounding sustainability. This stipulates a proactive approach.
From analysing this written piece it is clear how much progress has been made since commencing the better lives project. It is also plausible to say that she not only has a clear understanding of the themes but has transparent and innovative ideas on how to execute them into her own practice.