Drishti Kumari Singh

Blog 3: Styling and Sportswear Project Outcomes

Peer review of Elanka Jiang’s third blog post

I enjoyed reading your blog post as I can tell taking an active role in your project has lead to a lot of development personally for you and you have successfully reflected on the better lives themes of Sustainability, Diversity, and Social Responsibility while talking about your experience. You chose a project that was completely different from your field of creative illustrating because you wanted to experiment and combine your passions. I find this extremely commendable especially since you managed to learn new things about different subcultures and have a successful outcome even after being anxious initially.

I found it interesting when you mentioned learning about designers that worked using recycled materials. One such designer who stood out to me does something similar to this, her name is Bethany Williams. She is a London based menswear designer and all her clothes are sustainable. She even collaborated with a model agency that helps support homeless youth in London for one of her collections, I think this is a good example of two of the better lives themes Sustainability and Social Responsibility and how they are so much more effective when they are interlinked. My Fashion Journalism project’s outcome was closely linked to proving the importance of the interconnectivity of these two themes. A large number of designers have started adding sustainable clothes to their collections including big names such as Adidas, Stella McCartney, and H&M. While this is a big victory for sustainability in the fashion industry I still think there is a long way to go as many brands still need to follow in their footsteps.

It was nice to read that during one of your masterclasses you had to style looks using your own clothes, scrap materials, and second-hand clothing. This is an effectual way of representing the better lives theme of Sustainability. Even though you were nervous and felt like you didn’t have the right materials to contribute to the task, instead of stepping back into the background you volunteered to be a model because no one else stepped up. Not only do I think that this was incredibly brave but this action also displayed a sense of Social Responsibility. This is because by doing this I believe you made the whole class’s experience better as some of your peers may not have felt comfortable enough to model so no one had to forcefully do something they didn’t want to do just to complete the task.

The looks you styled depicted diversity not only in terms of race and colour but also body types which I think is incredibly important because so many people especially the youth still continue to have body image issues. The fact that your styled looks moved way from gender stereotypes also displays diversity in an important way. So many young people are identifying as non-binary and I think they definitely need to be represented more in the media. I’m happy to know that you felt empowered while modelling the looks since I’m from an Indian background I’m certain I would’ve felt the same way. I’m a Fashion Public Relations student and I’ve learned about tokenism and how diversity can be a buzzword in the fashion industry but it feels genuine in your experience.

The better lives unit has definitely impacted you in a positive way as it has given you an opportunity to think about Sustainability, Social Responsibility, and Diversity in new ways and you have been able to learn new things about styling and different subcultures. You have also managed to gain more confidence by stepping out of your comfort zone and engaging in the activities and completing the tasks given to you in your project.

References:

Fashion Revolution (2018) ‘7 fashion brands that are designing out waste’ Available at:(https://www.fashionrevolution.org/usa-blog/7-fashion-brands-that-are-designing-out-waste/) 

(Accessed 4th May 2020)

My Better Lives project is Fashion Journalism and the themes of Sustainability, Social responsibility, and Diversity are all very important within this practice. By listening to the lectures on fashion journalism I have gathered that it is a journalist’s job to be curious about everything and that journalism isn’t only about expressing one’s opinions but building on those opinions by seeking an expert’s insight and reviewing the facts and numbers. The better lives themes were always in the back of my mind and I knew some information about them but by listening to the lectures in the first two weeks I gained a vast amount of knowledge on these themes from people who are well-versed in their specific fields. The fashion industry has tiptoed around these topics for a long time but now that consumers are demanding brands to address them and be transparent they have become increasingly important.

As a Fashion Public Relations student I’m aware that brands have to be extremely careful while addressing topics like diversity or sustainability because there’s a fear of hurting the consumer’s sentiments or coming off as superficial. I have learned that to avoid this brands need to conduct a lot of research on their consumers and be truthful about their activities instead of tokenising. There has been an increase in brands recruiting models who are of different races, plus-sized, and older to be featured in campaigns. But many people are questioning the authenticity of these changes and are still unsure whether this is all a part of a trend. Brands especially need to be sensitive and communicate their messages in socially responsible ways due to the coronavirus pandemic. These themes are even more crucial in light of the current Covid-19 pandemic as brands are dedicating their resources to help in every way they can. For instance, prominent brands such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel, and Burberry are using their resources to create and donate essential medical supplies such as face masks and surgical gowns for healthcare professionals, police, delivery workers etc. By doing this these brands are working for the welfare of the entire community instead of vying for individual profits. In addition to this, the British Fashion Council recently announced that fashion week in June will be digital and gender-neutral. This will create a more diverse and sustainable environment resulting in major and permanent changes in the fashion industry as fashion week will never be the same even after the pandemic is over. This is because people will feel anxious to gather in large numbers for such events for a long time.

The better lives themes will undoubtedly influence and change the way I work in the future for instance I will limit purchases from fast fashion brands. I would find creative and innovative ways to interact with emerging digital spaces and events. While researching for projects and future career tasks I will make sure I have all the information and facts to avoid offending any sentiments. This community-driven attitude which is promoted during the pandemic will enable me to work with my peers and colleagues in a more effective way leading to a healthier work environment. (Student ID: 19002741)

References:

Penrose N. and Weaver H. (2020) ‘How the fashion Industry Is Stepping Up To Fight Covid-19’, Elle April 21, 2020. Available at: (https://www.elle.com/fashion/a31958030/fashion-companies-covid-19-relief/)

(Accessed 23rd April 2020)

Tu J. (2020) ‘Men’s London Fashion Week replaced with gender-neutral virtual showcase’ , Women’s Agenda April 22, 2020. Available at: (https://womensagenda.com.au/latest/mens-london-fashion-week-replaced-with-gender-neutral-virtual-showcase/) 

(Accessed 23rd April 2020)

During the first two weeks, I saw a number of lectures that reflected on the themes of Sustainability, Social responsibility, and Diversity. But there were a few that particularly piqued my interest. For Instance the lecture on emerging technologies by Nick Almond. Since I am a fashion PR student technology plays a crucial role in my practice but I wasn’t aware of the effect it had on sustainability, social responsibility, and diversity. This lecture taught me about how quickly fashion is evolving and the significant role technology plays in that process. It was intriguing to learn about how popular AI technology is becoming in the fashion Industry with AI softwares to predict trends and AI stylists on the rise. I think these type of softwares will become more and more useful as the years go by. Although this type of technology might make different designers and companies’ jobs a lot easier in the long run, many people might lose their jobs because technology would be doing their jobs for them.
On the other hand, this lecture also suggested how technology could be a vital tool in making the fashion industry more transparent. Over time it will be possible to track the supply chain of clothes and how goods are made through blockchain technology. Even prominent brands like Gucci will release things using this technology. This is an important step forward for sustainability because brands who aren’t honest about being sustainable will not be able to do so and others will be able to prove that their clothes are in fact sustainable. The lecturer, Nick Almond explained the reason why brands will have to use this technology by saying that there is social pressure from people to know whether their clothes are sustainable or not. This made me think about how putting pressure on brands to actually take the necessary action instead of claiming falsehoods could create a much more sustainable fashion industry in the future and brands could build a better relationship with their clients/consumers by being transparent.
Learning about XR technology and how it could create a more immersive shopping experience was interesting. Digital clothing will be developed and we would be able to try stuff on before the clothes are actually made. I’ve experienced similar technology in a Sephora store in Singapore where they have mirrors that show you how makeup products would look on you and definitely think that this particular form of technology could prove to be incredibly useful in the coming years. Although this lecture also informed me about the implications of XR. One thing that particularly caught my attention was when Nick Almond mentioned virtual influencers and how with the help of XR technology people could have models on a runaway look the way they wanted them to. People could choose to make them look more diverse and use this technology in a socially responsible way but this might not always be the case and if we increasingly rely on this kind of technology our realities could become mostly virtual. In the wrong hands, this technology could do more harm than good.
After listening to this lecture I understand that emerging technologies can have many implications but its ultimately up to us to use this technology in a positive and responsible way. I also learned how technology can have a major impact on the fashion industry especially in relation to the better lives themes. (Student ID: 19002741)

References:
Almond, N. (2020) ‘ Emerging Technologies in Fashion’ [Lecture]. Better Lives, London College of Fashion, 11 February.