Fashioning fabrics : contemporary textiles in fashion

Fashioning Fabrics is a visually led thematic exposition of the importance of fabric innovation in influencing the direction of contemporary fashion design. Fashion books tend to focus on silhouette, cut, concept and trends, whereas traditional textile books have little focus on fashion. Previous publications Extreme Textiles (2005) and Techno Textiles2 (2005) cover applications from aerospace and interiors to medical uses, in addition to fashion. In contrast, Fashioning Fabrics highlights the experimental craft-based approaches which mark out a hybrid territory, bridging fashion and textiles. It addresses the inter-dependence of textiles and fashion, making a new intervention in the literature, from a textile design perspective. As editor, I shaped the content into four key areas: Embellished, Sculpted, Constructed and Imprinted, covering a range of key fabrications. From my personal knowledge, and new fieldwork including designer interviews, I selected a mix of established and emerging designers for each section. The selection and editing of the visuals was a key contribution to the entire work. Close-up details and work-in-progress images reveal the links between concept, processes and techniques of textile development for fashion, beyond the catwalk image, to create a new visual narrative. This imagery, in conjunction with analytical profiles of the designers’ methods and motivation, conveyed signature elements of their textiles work in context. My introductory chapter ‘The hidden art of fashion’ discusses the historical development and role of the textile designer, and the hidden aspects of collaborative working within fashion. It contextualises contemporary work within a historical framework of 19th and 20th century Europe, from the development of schools of art and design, early couturiers, the Utility scheme’s ‘good design’ and the post-war surge in new fashion, to the current rejection of mass production for customisation and individuation. This chapter was illustrated with images from my personal collection of fashion textiles.