Sungkyung Park

When I read my peers’ blog posts to write the last blog post, I was interested in a blog post about a sustainable brand that this writer investigated. The reason was that she researched about a cosmetic brand, Rush, which I am usually interested in. I felt that the tone of this blog was very educational. The writer explained the social responsibility, diversity, and sustainability that the brand she researched is currently carrying out. She mentioned various positive activities in the sustainability of Rush. Especially, as mentioned in her blog, Rush is a brand that produces vegan cosmetics without animal testing. This was very similar to the body shop that I researched about environmentally sustainable activities. I liked that Rush is a beauty brand that strives for the environment, especially the simplification of packaging so that consumers can purchase products without special packaging, and the use of eco-friendly vegetable oil to manufacture cosmetics. It was also memorable that “selling only shampoo bars could save about 6 million plastic bottles worldwide”.

I loved the fact that I was able to think about the similarities and differences between Rush she researched and The Body Shop’s efforts for sustainability. What these two brands have in common is probably they against animal testing for animal welfare, and use environmental materials. The difference between these two brands can be thoughts and actions about green packaging. I also strongly agreed with her opinion that “I think it is everyone’s responsibility to take care of the environment that we can easily pass by.” I have also come to think a lot about our position on the environment and the planet. We cannot deny that we are closely related to the environment. Therefore, I agreed with the importance of using eco-friendly materials. Also, “I think that if I pay more attention to brands that don’t do animal testing or think about the environment, it will be able to make positive changes and increase sustainability.” in this regard, I was able to think about how we would have a positive effect on consumption. I did not think deeply about the brands’ social responsibilities or environmental problems until I took the Better Lives like the writer. It is memorable that it can be very important to oppose animal testing in the cosmetic industry, as the author mentioned in her study of Rush and The Body Shop’s opposition to animal testing. In many countries, it is known that animals are opposed to animal testing for animal welfare, but we can see that there are still many brands that manufacture cosmetics through animal testing. “I think that if I pay more attention to brands that don’t do animal testing or think about the environment, it will be able to make positive changes and increase sustainability.”, in this part, like her opinion, we need to take responsibility for the environment. Overall, her writing was thorough and detailed, and we could learn that we should have some thoughts and responsibilities about the products we consume.

Blog link: https://1920betterlivessmc.myblog.arts.ac.uk/2020/04/20/reflections-on-how-the-better-lives-themes-might-change-how-you-work-in-the-future/

The project I chose is Fashion Illustration: View from the Catwalk. In this project, I was able to learn how to draw fashion illustrations, for example, using various materials, drawing silhouettes, and using recycling to make eco-friendly works. As a result, I was able to get some ideas to create works for the outcomes through this class.

For me, the most interesting theme in the Better Lives is sustainability. In the sessions, I was able to study examples of sustainability, diversity, and social responsibility that designers and brands are working on. As a Hair and makeup for fashion student, I researched The Body Shop when I researched various beauty brands. The reason was that, as I said in a blog post last time, the brand has been environmentally sustainable with simple packaging and products from nature for over 40 years since its inception. In their activities for sustainability, I found a logo called Leaping Bunny. This logo can only be displayed in brands that do not experiment with animals. The Body Shop is the first brand to ban testing on animals among cosmetic brands. Many cosmetic companies have been conducting animal experiments on the most complex human health effects, such as toxicity, which can cause cancer. Typically, there is a test called Draize Test, which is an experiment that locks rabbits in a laboratory to prevent them from moving, and continuously applies cosmetics such as mascara and eyeliner to rabbits’ eyelids to check the stability of cosmetics. Today, of course, many countries ban animal testing for the welfare of animals, but many countries still conduct animal testing.

I have learned about such situation through research and decided to draw illustrations using rabbits, guinea pigs, and mice that are most commonly used in cosmetic animal tests. First, I drew a rabbit on the cardboard. In the class, cardboard was introduced as completely recyclable, free, sustainable, and good for drawing. I sketched a jumping rabbit on the cardboard and then painted the highlights with white paint. I finished the painting by giving shade with a coloured pencil in the dark parts. Second, I drew a guinea pig. This painting was completed by painting the recycled newspaper first with white paint and drying it, then sketching the shape of the guinea pig with paint. Third, I drew a mouse on a recycled calendar. At this time, I finished colouring the mouse by using recycled materials such as sponges, cotton swabs, corrugated papers on one side of boxes, straws, and bubble wraps. All these materials and methods are the ones I could learn from this project. Through this project, I was able to understand the trend of the beauty industry, which is actively working on environmental sustainability, and how important it is to ban animal testing and to develop vegan products. Also, through fashion illustration with Sue Dray, I learned interestingly about how to draw illustrations that I want to express in an eco-friendly way. Based on this, it was also a time when I realized that I could personally try nature-friendly and environmental sustainability, starting with small things.

The Better Lives has three main themes: sustainability, diversity, and social responsibility. In my case, through the lectures and seminars, I could learn that these three themes are closely related to each other and play important roles in the aspect of fashion practices. These themes and lectures will have a positive impact on my future works.

My chosen project is Fashion Illustration: View from the Catwalk. In this project, I was able to find various fashion illustrations and at the same time study examples of sustainability, diversity, and social responsibility that designers and brands practice. As a hair and make-up for fashion student, when I researched various beauty brands, I found that many brands and artists are trying to make better lives. It was an opportunity for me to know that I can also try.

Generally, What I have been most interested in among these themes is Sustainability. I researched The Body Shop, a representative cosmetics brand in the UK. This company is a global beauty brand. The Body Shop was started in 1976 by its founder Anita Roddick with simple packaging and products obtained from nature. For more than 40 years, they have shown that being environmentally sustainable, people-centred and profitable can go hand in hand. I came to think that this company is a brand that is deeply concerned about sustainability because The Body Shop is the first brand to prohibit testing on animals among cosmetic brands and also the first company to introduce Fair Trade to the beauty industry. Therefore, all The Body Shop products are vegetarian and free from animal cruelty. This brand also helps communities with Community Fair Trade; Community Fair Trade is The Body Shop’s own independently verified fair trade programme, created to help marginalised communities improve their lives and alleviate poverty.

I think I can also participate in the sustainability they seek and empower their movement by using these brands’ products. In regards to sustainability, many makeup artists’ makeup kits contain a variety of chemicals and disposable products. This can be an environmental hazard enough. We cannot avoid this situation, but I think we can reduce the damage to the environment by using substitutes. It may be a good example to use cosmetics using natural materials rather than cosmetics including chemical materials. In particular, microplastics in cosmetics, which have become a big issue these days, are known to have a big problem polluting the ocean. Scientists say beauty products containing plastic microbeads pollute water supplies, harm sea creatures and leave tiny particles in human food. This means that the environment and humans are connected. Therefore, we should work harder to protect the environment. In this regard, I believe that reducing the use of disposable products or plastics can be an important action when doing makeup especially. Of course, this may not have an effective effect. However, I believe we can make a change by consistently doing small things and making efforts.

Reference

The body shop. https://www.thebodyshop.com/en-gb/(Accessed : 6 March 2020).

BBC News. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-wales-31880720/microplastics-in-cosmetics-damaging-marine-life(Accessed : 18
April 2020).

Through Better Lives lectures, I had a great opportunity to think about the sustainability of fashion. I did not care much about the fashion industry before attending the lectures. I have usually heard of sustainable fashion but have never thought about why it is an important role in our lives. I simply thought that the sustainability of the fashion industry has positive effects on our lives. However, after attending the lectures, I thought about the sustainability of fashion and the problem of the fashion industry through the lectures, among them, I focused on environmental pollution and sweatshop conditions caused by fashion.

In particular, I strongly agree with the comment that fast fashion is socially and ecologically irresponsible while attending the Fashion and Well-being lecture. Personally, this argument first reminded me of the speech of Greta Thunberg (17), the youngest environmental activist chosen by The Times last year. It is not necessarily the reason for the fashion industry, but it is also true that the nature-based fashion industry destroys our breathing environment. The reason is that clothing products are closely linked to pollution of the environment throughout the entire process of production, consumption, and disposal, as well as waste not only the environment but also the resources of labour. “Everything is connected”. We cannot deny that we have a very close connection with the environment. However, if the environment we belong to is being destroyed as our fashion consumption levels continue to increase, it could be a serious problem.

Fashion is made from nature, such as land, water, air, and animals. Also, when clothes are discarded, oil and water are wasted. This cycle of repeated mass production and mass consumption can adversely affect environmental pollution and ecosystem destruction. Moreover, the production system of the global fashion industry is seen as a serious problem of labour exploitation in developing and underdeveloped countries as a manufacturing country. It is thought that at the centre, there is the emergence of Fast Fashion and Brands. The problem is thought to be escalating further as it promotes mass production and mass consumption. Modern clothing has a variety of trends that coexist at one time, and with changes in lifestyles, the trend cycle is accelerating. The distribution cycle of fashion products is also shortening as a variety of clothing products are quickly selected, spread and discarded within a consumer group due to the rapid change in consumer patterns and the shorter cycle of fashion. This may be the reason why we should pursue ‘Slow Fashion’.

It is thought that the ethical solution of labour issues that protect human rights through slow fashion and the use of eco-friendly materials such as organic cotton and natural dyeing will positively change the working structure of our environment and fashion industry. Of course, this could start with small practices. I think we need a little effort from both consumers and fashion companies. The reason is that this practice is difficult to become a consumer individual or an enterprise-specific effort.  I have learned once again that the fashion industry, environment, and social structure are all connected.