Emanuele Lapinskaite

During the Better Lives unit, we had to choose a specification we want to focus on and also create a project. I chose to be in Fashion Activism since I was interested to learn more about Creative Direction and develop my project in that area. We were divided into groups and assigned a brand to look into. My group was assigned Lazy Oaf and its collaboration with a campaign Lazy Oaf x Time to Change ‘It’s Okay Not to Be Okay’. This collaboration focused on mental health and was created to mark the start of of the UK’s Mental Health Awareness Week. The profit collected is for donation to support Time to Change mental health and anti-stigma campaign. The Lazy Oaf collaboration with five different artists to create a collection supporting mental health has a strong connection to our Better Lives theme social responsibility and diversity. Therefore, for our final project of the Fashion Activism course we had to create a moving image connected to this collaboration of the brand.  

The current situation with coronavirus had a strong impact on everyone’s mental health. Especially in times like these, brands like Lazy Oaf collaborating with campaigns that create a sense of support are very important. I, personally, felt like researching this collaboration and looking into the campaign made me feel more supported already. Since the message of this collaboration can be connected to each of us, our group decided to include short videos of ourselves in the final moving image. The message of the Lazy Oaf collaboration with Time to Change is ‘It’s Okay Not to Be Okay” so we decided that each of us will film a short video saying this phrase. For the final video, we added all the videos together and one of the group members manipulated the sound of the video so it is more interesting. The final moving image was in black and white.  

Due to the coronavirus crisis, working in a group and coming up with an idea for a moving image was extremely challenging. However, Melodie and Karolina helped a lot with finding ways how to be creative in this environment. Because of this situation, I feel that I improved my critical thinking and problem solving skills since we as a group had to push ourselves to find alternative solutions. It was a challenging process and at some point I thought we will not be able to have an outcome. However, we tried our best to connect all the ideas together and to come up with something. There are some details we would change when doing the project the next time since we forgot to have a stronger connection to the Lazy Oaf brand. At the end, I feel like even though it was complicated to work in such an environment, I learned a lot from it and I enjoyed creating a project with my group and connecting it to the Better Lives lectures which are very beneficial for our future as fashion creatives.  

Attending the Better Lives lectures on social responsibility, diversity and social responsibility as well as working on Fashion Activism project made me consider the importance of it to me as a fashion student. It made me reflect on myself as an individual interested in fashion as well as someone who will be working in the industry one day. Before even starting the Better Lives unit, all of the Better Lives topics were always considered and discussed during my Fashion PR and Communication lectures. Therefore, since coming to London College of Fashion I understood that it is a very significant part in fashion industry.  

During the Fashion Activism classes we had before the spring break, our tutors Melodie and Karolina introduced us to what it means to be Creative Director and introduced us to the brands that connected to the Better Lives topics. One of the examples was Nubian Skin brand that creates nude lingerie for women of colour. The founder of Nubian Skin Ade Hassan noticed that the selection of nude lingerie made by other brands does not consider women of colour and therefore decided to create this inclusive brand. This is an example of what we as fashion creatives could do in order to bring more diversity, fairness and sustainability into the fashion industry.  

As a Fashion PR and Communication student, I need to always keep in mind the three parts of Better Lives unit. Currently, all the projects I am working on are only based in university. However, once I am working all the choices I make can have an impact in the development of future industry. One of the main things what I think about when making the connection with the Better Lives themes and my creative practice is the importance of looking into the brand or the client. Already now when doing the university projects and researching different brands, the main points I look into when I come across a certain brand is to what extent it is sustainable, diverse and social responsible. After I have the answers to those questions, I already have my opinion on the brand and then I can choose whether I support it or not. I think this is very important to remember this when I start working in the fashion industry because then I also choose whether I want to work with that client.  

It is also important to note the changes due to the coronavirus. Everyone is now in a situation they have never experienced and there is an unknown of what will happen. However, this situation made us all think of more creative ways to do the things we could have done easily before. It led our society appreciate simple things. The coronavirus crisis also had a huge impact on fashion industry and I think there is a very positive side to it. Only due to this the fast fashion slowed down, people started rethinking fashion weeks and made the consumer reconsider their habits. The current situation in the world regarding the Covid-19 crisis showed that it is especially important to consider the themes discussed during the Better Lives unit. 

All of the Better Lives lectures suggested interesting and significant ideas about considering sustainability, diversity and social responsibility when discussing fashion industry. Empathy lecture by Lorraine Gamman was one of my favourites. I consider the connection between psychology and fashion very interesting, and during this lecture I had the possibility to learn more about how fashion is taking empathic approaches and the importance of this. 

All of the Better Lives lectures suggested interesting and significant ideas about considering sustainability, diversity and social responsibility when discussing fashion industry. Empathy lecture by Lorraine Gamman was one of my favourites. I consider the connection between psychology and fashion very interesting, and during this lecture I had the possibility to learn more about how fashion industry is taking empathic approaches and the importance of this in the future of fashion.  

The lecturer Lorraine Gamman gave multiple examples of empathic fashion approaches and divided them in several categories such as fashion against gendered violence, inclusive fashion and representation, modest fashion, empowerment etc. Currently when the fashion industry is seriously focusing on the social responsibility, many brands and designers are creating empathic fashion. I think by doing this, designers are not only able to express their opinion but also support and help solve serious issues that are faced in our everyday society.  

One of the examples is Alexander McQueen Highland rape catwalk. During this A/W fashion show in 1995, designer displayed bruised models wearing torn clothes. This controversial catwalk was a strong statement on sexual assault against women and therefore got a lot of criticism. Serious matters and society problems in our world are often perceived as taboo. When it is presented visually such as in McQueen’s catwalk or other projects such as in exhibition ‘Is It My Fault” where clothing worn by rape victims were displayed, people oftentimes feel very uncomfortable. Visual representation of a society’s issues is extremely important in raising awareness and starting the discussion.  

Taking empathy in consideration when creating fashion is important and I think necessary for everyone working in the fashion industry. This way fashion becomes more meaningful as it can help solve issues but more importantly “give a voice to vulnerable people” and support different communities. The examples gives by Lorraine like The Real Campaign by Dove, AnaOno lingerie made for women who has breast cancer or Nike’s created hijab show that fashion industry is considering empathy and becoming more inclusive. This lecture made me consider about how I, as a fashion student, should always think about empathy in all of my projects. Having this in mind I can have an impact on how fashion industry will be in the future. In my opinion the topic of this lecture was present throughout all of the other Better Lives lectures we had. Therefore, I found it one of the most interesting and important ones to reflect on.  

The lecturer Lorraine Gamman gave multiple examples of empathic fashion approaches and divided them in several categories such as fashion against gendered violence, inclusive fashion and representation, modest fashion, empowerment etc. Currently when the fashion industry is seriously focusing on the social responsibility, many brands and designers are creating empathic fashion. I think by doing this, designers are able to not only express their opinion but also show the support towards serious issues that are faced in our society. 

Alexander McQueen Highland rape catwalk where the designer displayed bruised models wearing torn clothes was a strong statement made by the designer and got a lot of criticism. Talking about these serious matters and society problems such as rape is often perceived as taboo. When it is presented visually such as in McQueen’s catwalk or other projects such as in exhibition ‘Is It My Fault” where clothing worn by rape victims were displayed, people oftentimes feel very uncomfortable. That makes me think of the importance of not only discussing the issues but also the visual representation which I believe is way more effective. 

Taking empathy in consideration when creating fashion is important and I think necessary for every designer. This way the fashion industry can have the power of solving the issues and supporting different communities that feel like they are ignored, not important or forgotten. This lecture made me consider about how I, as a fashion student, should always think about empathy in all of my projects. In my opinion the topic of this lecture was present throughout all of the other Better Lives lectures we had. Therefore, I found it one of the most interesting and important ones. 

References:

Gamman, L. (2020) ‘Empathy’ [Lecture]. Better Lives, London College of Fashion, 17th February.