Fiber Arts Build Lab

Hands-on and research-based exploration of issues and practices connected to sustainable and adaptive fashion, both influential, dynamic movements pushing designers and the fashion industry to produce clothing with value beyond generic and disposable.  Sustainable practices in the fashion industry are being driven by consumer demand for accountability to the environment and the people who make our clothes. Adaptive practices in the fashion industry are being driven by the recognition that clothing can and should be designed and manufactured with varying custom and universal adaptive solutions that meld form with function for people with physical disabilities. Techniques for basic hand and machine sewing will be applied to sustainable upcycling challenges and adaptive fashion projects for campus and community partners.

Research and examination of the economic, human, and environmental cost of the current fast fashion industry as it has evolved to meet the ever-changing consumer, with a focus on specific eras of the history of fashion through the lens of sustainability. We will explore, conceptualize, and develop transformative solutions for pressing unsustainable local and global practices, utilizing hands-on activities to experience how sustainable fashion is designed and produced. 

A history of western fashion from ancient to modern. We will analyze and examine 1) The influence of practical necessity, technological innovation, religion, aesthetic trends, and the class system on fashion through the ages 2) How contemporary designers draw inspiration from the past, and that nothing in fashion is new, but rather a form of reinvention imbedded with and affected by social and technological trends and innovations 3) How fashion intersects with and reflects aesthetic and cultural elements of each age, acting as a visual key that illuminates larger truths through which we define man’s existence. When possible, we will compare western history with that of other countries and cultures.

Development and communication of design ideas for a range of plays including 1) Contemporary 2) Historic 3) and Shakespearean, for which the students will choose a period and stylistic approach within which to set their production. Toolbox skill building will include textile identification, drawing and rendering the human figure, basics of stage make-up, fitting etiquette, and costume shop organization.