Designer Research: Signe Rand Ebbesen

Signe Rand Ebbesen

When I recently came across Signe's work I was immediately blown away. These inspirational fabrics are created on a Dobby loom and combine exciting textural surfaces with fun yarn choices. Signe's work sits in the market in a similar area to how I envisage my own work; high end fashion. Signe also designs for haute couture collections which is an area I believe I would like to sample and experiment with further into Unit X. I find Signe's collections to be fresh and lively, and I would like to incorporate these themes through my own weaving. I find Signe's work very influential to my own weaving practice, as he pushes the boundaries of contemporary weaving. I would also like to follow in this direction and experiment with more structural surfaces. 

RCA Postgraduate Samples 

Collection | Two

Silk Woven Collection 

In order to develop my work further for Collection Two, I have looked thoroughly at designers who are working towards the same context as me and I have made a point of finding out exactly what it is that I am drawn to and how I can produce the samples I need in order to get to where I want to be. I was determined to choose an easy warp after the mistake of choosing something so complicated for my first collection. I wanted to have a single cloth so that I was able to experiment more and have time to learn a new technique, this being extra weft. Using extra weft is something that I have always wanted to try and envisaged using in my work, as I feel it allows me to use a huge amount of colour and because of this it adds more depth to my designs. I was really happy that I chose a simple warp as it enabled me to push myself and develop a lot within a couple of weeks, and I have produced samples that I am happy with. 

Detailed photographs of a few of my samples 

For my second collection, I chose to use a range of colours of 2 60's silk. I began with an end on end warp of gunmetal grey and black. I wove this collection at 60 end per inch and threaded on a point in order to get the shapes that I wanted in my collection. When designing this collection, the intricacy of the patterns was something that was important to me. I wanted to represent the bustling busy streets of Morocco, and show what I experienced there in terms of colour and style, through my woven samples. I believe that my samples demonstrate the chaos and energetic nature of the markets and streets of Morocco. I also feel that the collection embraces a sense of embroidery which is also a significant part of how I like to work. 

Detailed photographs of a few of my samples

I feel as though, like stated in my learning agreement, my samples do embrace my key terms for this project such as ornate, busy, repetitive, vibrant, cultural, and fancy. I envisage these fabrics being used for clothing such as jackets or skirts.

Photographs of my samples working well as a collection 

Designer Research: Margo Selby

Margo Selby

I have found Margo Selby's 2014 tribal collection to be extremely influential to my second collection. I feel that our work shares similar qualities, such as repetition, strong patterns, vibrant use of colour, and is for a high end market, although not fashion related. The busy nature of her designs is something that I want to incorporate into my own sampling, and I find her use of repeat pattern  striking. Another aspect of her work which I feel is influential to my own practice is the faint structural qualities found through her compositions, for example I like the way the stripes sit with other shapes in order to make the designs look more three dimensional and geometric. Using new techniques such as double cloth are also something I would like to experiment with further into the next unit. 

Margo Selby | Interior Collection of Tribal Fabrics 2014

Designer Research: Dash and Miller

Dash and Miller 

Dash & Miller Woven Collection

I have chosen to research into Dash and Miller's woven collections as I am interested in the use of extra weft throughout many of their samples. Dash and Miller's work I feel fits similarly in relation to my own practice, as they produce fabrics for the global fashion industries. Their samples are interesting and unexpected; and they make use of several fancy yarns. A quality that I like about their work, is that is is risky and experimental yet remains professional and sophisticated, and these are qualities I would like my own work to possess.  

Designer Research: Maja Johansson

Maja Johansson: Woven Textile Design

I first discovered Maja Johansson's work on the Royal College of Art website. Maja graduated from the RCA in 2012 after specialising in woven textile design. I have found her work to be very inspiring, both the innovative nature of how she creates her pieces, as well as the pieces themselves. Something that I really like is her quote," A sophisticated result through an experimental approach" which guides her in order to produce her samples. Corresponding to my own work, it is easy to acknowledge her appreciation of the use of strong colours which I feel is something I can relate to as I love to work with bold and brave colour choices. The element I found most interesting is that she combines unlikely materials and yarns, and creates new surfaces which are completely original. In my future collections, I would like to consider taking a similar approach and become more experimental with my yarn choices and approach to weaving in general. In the past, it has been my experimental samples which have always worked best. 

Maja Johansson | Samples from her final collection at the Royal College of Art 2012 

Seeing her work made me realise that I need to push myself in a similar direction in order to progress, and consider making my own yarns to weave with again, and being more experimental. 

The context of Maja's work is for high end womenswear, which I think is evident through the photographs of her collection below, because of this, her work is useful for me to look at as it is aimed at a context similar to my own practice. 

Maja Johansson | Samples from her final collection at the Royal College of Art 2012

Designer Research: Dries Van Noten

Dries Van Noten  

I have found Dries Van Noten's work to be extremely influential to my practice this year and two current collections. In terms of context, Van Noten's brand sits exactly where I want my own practice to be; high end fashion both mens and womenswear. Dries Van Noten's collections continue to consist of several colours, but the pallet always works really well, his work is not overpowering; instead it simply immerses you to look closer, which is a quality I want my own work to have. The collections flow really nicely, each piece is individual yet could not belong to another collection. I feel as though I am developing my own collections of fabrics much better after following examples like his. 

Dries Van Noten | Ready-To-Wear Spring/Summer Collection 2015

For my own collections, I am aiming to create a balance of busy and calm samples, which I feel Van Noten also does, his pattern on pattern busy designs sit next to a relatively calm stripe or plain beige. However, it is not just the designs themselves which keep my interest in the brand, but also the style. Dries Van Noten's work is brave, bold, ethereal and also feels cultural which is largely shown throughout my own work. The feel of the brand is fun and risky but also simple; his work is made interesting through the use of colour and the cut of the clothing. 

I am currently in the process of researching further into Dries Van Noten's brand, as I would really love to gain work experience with a brand I feel so closely links to my own work and which I feel passionately about. 

Dries Van Noten | Ready-To-Wear Spring/Summer Collection 2015