The Ability to Draw

For me the ability to draw in Textiles and other design courses is very important. Drawing can be widely incorporated and could be in the form of photographs, mono-prints, stitch, collage, photocopies or variations of media. I feel drawing expresses and reflects each person's individuality, as no one can have the same mark. The individual's characteristics and personality can come through in their choice of media, colour and style. Initial drawings can be developed further into designs by the use of computers or expanded with different processes and techniques. Without an ability to draw, i don't see what makes a design unique to a person. If you are a designer you want your mark to be somewhere, something that suggests it's yours and no one else could ever easily reproduce it. i think drawing is sometimes completely overlooked and computers are becoming a more and more popular choice for design. This i feel is bad because anyone can be taught how to use a computer and there isn't as much scope for individuality or expression and the computer is doing the work for you.

Fake copies...

Louis Vuitton

On the left is a genuine Louis Vuitton 'Carryall' bag costing £595 and on the right a replica that is £158.

I have chosen Louis Vuitton, as it's one of the designer brands which is copied and replicated the most. If i saw someone, unless it was Victoria Beckham walking down the street with a Louis Vuitton bag, my first impression would be that it is fake, as so many copies are easily available. This i think has degraded the actual brand in a way and gives it a cheap feel.

Some of the copies are genuinely good quality and unless you are an expert, it would be impossible to tell if it was real or not. Even if a bag was genuine, because they are extensively copied, it wouldn't have the same exclusivity.

I think it is good and bad that you can get fake copies. I think it's good because like the examples above you can pay a third or less of the original price, so its available to a wider market and you don't have to be a celebrity to have the designer look. But the more copies and the cheaper these replicas become, the less desired and exclusive the real designs become. The price of some copies are still ridiculously expensive, the quality is not going to be as good and could easily break. But they are still cheaper than the real thing.

If they are not obviously fake i don't think its a bad thing. Although if i had the money i wouldn't like to know that someone else could have an almost exact replica, as it wouldn't seem as special, therefore i would stay clear of Louis Vuitton. Designer's don't like copies beacuse they lose custom, money and their exclusive status, so maybe designers should reduce the prices or do more collaborations with high street stores.

Kate Moss for Topshop

Genuine talent? or shoddy excuse for corporate commercialism?

Kate Moss' new Summer collection has just been released at Topshop and within an hour and a half, 200 dresses had been sold at London's flagship store. 2.5million online views were also expected for the release, proving that the Kate Moss collections are definitely popular. But is this because of the quality of the clothes or because of the label of high profile label of Kate Moss?

My personal opinion is that Kate Moss is talented and definitely has good taste in clothes, but by no means is a designer. I see her as a style icon, as i think many other girls my age would agree and would love to have a fashionable wardrobe like hers, but her actual ability to design clothes is questionable. I think her label for Topshop is to help the success of the company commercially. By having her name on the clothes, i think it makes them more desirable. You get the impression that you could achieve the Kate Moss look if you bought an item from the collection. By buying that one special piece you are on your way to being as trendy as Kate Moss. Some of the items like vest tops are plain and simple and could be bought in a similar style elsewhere for half the price, but seems better because of the name.

It is said that some of her designs reflect some of her past outfits, but is this not just copying of other existing designers? I do think her collections are nice, but are too pricey and i would definitely love to buy an item if i could afford it, which i would probably save forever for sentimental value. i don't think her range is suited for everyone, unless you are a young girl with a Kate Moss slim figure.

Overall i can appreciate her collections, but i think it's unfair for her to be classed as a designer with genuine talent, when any other person would need to study for it for years. I think the range is successful for Topshop and is helping to raise their status globally.

Japanese illustrated books from the 17th - 20th century

This was an exhibition currently on at the Van Gough Museum when I visited. I really admired these books, they had a precious, delicate feel to them. I think this was mainly because of the sensitivity to materials including paper, which was Japanese handmade paper. I liked this paper because of its transparent and delicate looking qualities. I especially like how this was exploited in some of the books, For example because of its transparancy, the pages and designs underneath could partially be seen, which I think added to the interest of the book. The designs on the pages of the books were very beautiful and I liked the ones depicting nature, with simple subtle details.

Some of the books exhibited were of landscapes, famous places with illustrations of flowers, plants, animals, manners and customs, ceremonial events and erotic scenes. Also designs for Kinono fabrics were included, which I liked and like how it could be linked to modern fashion magazines.

Artists like Hokusai in Japan saw bookmaking as a way of publishing their art. Japanese artists have been highly involved in making book illustrations.

Van Gough Museum, Amsterdam

I found my visit to the Van Gough museum very inspirational. Vincent Van Gough, a post Impressionist produced work during the time between 1880-90. I admired many of Van Gough's paintings, particularly the landscape paintings and paintings of flowers. I admired his use of expressive brush marks, which added depth and texture to the piece. In some pieces I liked how organic patterns were created from the marks. I thought it was amazing how he combined a variety of vivid colours into a range of different marks. Van Gough took his inspiration from french mainstream art and artists including Claude Monet, Paul Gauguin, Paul Signac and also Japanese woodblock prints.

His life story was also interesting, he had no formal educational knowledge of painting and taught himself with help from various drawing and painting classes. Therefore it was interesting to see how his painting progressed over time. His mental problems must have also had an effect on his work, and in the end Van Gough shot himself, but has been a great influence to many artists including Picasso.

Platform Gallery, Clitheroe

I visited the Platform Gallery in Clitheroe, where an exhibition called 'Compilation', 'the best of the Platform Gallery' was on. There was many different craft pieces by approximately 100 different craft makers.

I found this exhibition relevant to my latest project on the theme of 'Bloom', as there was a range of art work in various media with floral designs or influences.

Some pieces i found inspiring was:

• Porcelain vases/ wall pieces by Julie Miles

These were simple ceramic pieces with intricate decoration of floral shapes on them in a simple design. Each piece had an organic feel, with the porcelain shaped almost suggesting natural folds with uneven edges.

• Lights by Hanah Nun

A collection of paper lamps with beautifully cut out floral detailling, which were very soft and subtle.

• Autumn Joy and Autumn Glow by Barbara Jepson, both batik and applique

These were my favourite pieces both depicting flowers, they were very vibrant, with warm, bold colours suggestive of autumn. They contained collaged material, stitch and dye, which i thought worked well as a combination.

• Embroidered Textiles by Priscilla Jones

This was a small collection of a vaiation of wall hangings, with collaged fabrics and papers. They were all in soft pastel colours and had a childlike feel, which i really liked.

• Daisy 1, 2 and 3 in ink, acrylic collage and embroidery by Jacqueline Smith.

On these, which were a collection of three wall pieces i liked the variation of media giving an interesting outcome, which looked quite complex.

sustainable design

Talk from Scott Taylor from Designmash. 05/11/2007



Can products be redesigned, so that they are more sustainable and environmentally friendly?



Sustainability = people, planet and profit.



Today much more emphasis is being placed on more ecological designs and people are looking back to nature on helping solve these problems. Organic is becoming more popular amongst the population. Being 'Green' is one of the ways forward to help the people and the planet. This image is becoming very popular, but companies sometimes hide behind this image and want to be seen to be green, usually through their advertising. But when investigated further are actually polluters of the environment.



Some simple things can be improved to help reduce the risks of Global Warming. Small things that are never considered could help change a lot. Such as saving on 'food miles' and growing our own produce such as tomatoes instead of importing them from various countries. This incurs damage to the planet through the fumes off the transport, but also uses up valuable fossil fuels in doing so.



Designers need to consider carefully materials when designing products, such as can it be re-used and recycled. They need to be aware of some key things when designing, which will not only help the environment but also their profits and overall company image. key points in sustainable design:-



Cyclic

Can it be recycled? Some examples of companies using this idea:-

Puma - created 500 shoes from old clothes provided by the general public, which is a nice idea to think that shoes are made out of your old clothes and also makes them personal.

McDonalds - all packaging can be recycled and are bio-degradable.

Eco Log, a Japanese company where suits are made entirely of nylon, so when recycled can be produced straight back in to nylon again.



Solar

Using energy from nature. i particularly like the design produced by Habitat of a grass chair. It is made using cardboard template, which is built around with soil and grass, then the cardboard degrades and the chair shape remains.



Safe

products and by products friendly and safe to the environment.

One company in Sweden allows the waste products of a paper factory to be so safe that the water it goes in to is suitable for swimming.

Canon make their lens in cameras lead free.



Super Efficient

Giving things more than one use or use less materials in the design.

Water bottles in Mexico are made so that they can all be attached together when finished with and made into new designs. This i think is a really good idea and some of the designs that can be produced are quite funky and can be used for various new purposes.



Social

Are productions being made ethically? Some companies have degrading policies for the workers and many problems occur such as child labour. All of these are unknown to the seller.

Fair trade is a company which "Guarantees a better ideal for third world producers.



I never realised that there was so many things to be aware of and consider when creating modern designs, or the smallest things that can be improved if the general public is made more aware. The designer not only has to design the products, but also design them sustainably.