ebook img

artisanal and slow: the case of anna ruohonen PDF

217 Pages·2016·4.84 MB·English
by  
Save to my drive
Quick download
Download
Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.

Preview artisanal and slow: the case of anna ruohonen

Fashion In-between artisanal design and production of fashion maarit aakko © H e li S o r jo n e n Maarit aakko is a researcher in the field of fashion design. Her work centers on the artisanal approach to fashion within the current cultural and societal environment, with the focus on the relationship between aesthetics and quality. She holds an Ma in Craft Studies, an apparel and textiles design and research program, from the University of Helsinki; she also studied at Parsons School of Design, The New School (New York). Sharing an equal interest in theory and practice of fashion design, she has also worked as a patternmaker. She has divided her time between Helsinki and New York for a number of years, and is currently based at Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture in Helsinki. Aalto University publication series doctoral dissertations 88/2016 School of Arts, Design and Architecture Aalto ARTS Books Helsinki books.aalto.fi © Maarit Aakko Graphic design: Minna Luoma Candy Graphics Materials: Scandia Natural 115 g/m2 and Terreus Natural 270 g/m2 Type: Noe Text & Display, Meta Front cover: Maarit Aakko Inside covers: Jona Sees isbn 978-952-60-6800-8 (printed) isbn 978-952-60-6401-5 (pdf) issn-l 1799-4934 issn 1799-4934 (printed) issn 1799-4942 (pdf) Printed in Premedia Helsinki, Finland 2016 ARTISANAL DESIGN AND PRODUCTION OF FASHION MAARIT AAKKO contents Abstract 6 Acknowledgements 8 List of publications 11 1 introduction 13 2 at the intersection of ‘fashion’ and ‘craft’ 19 2.1 Fashion as a concept 20 2.2 Roots of the fashion industry 21 2.3 The fashion system: modes of production 28 2.4 Fashion designers’ role in the current fashion industry 31 2.5 Implications of the current fashion system 36 2.6 Alternative paradigms: sustainable and slow fashion 41 2.7 ‘Artisanal’ and craft 45 3 research design 51 3.1 The grounded theory process 51 3.2 The phases of research 53 3.3 The data of the study 56 3.4 Assessing the quality of the study 60 4 summary of papers 65 5 central themes of the study 73 5.1 Skillful materiality 74 5.2 Designer’s integrated role 90 5.3 Freedom for creative control 94 5.4 Materializing values 98 6 conclusions 109 Bibliography 116 Appendix 1: Interview schedule 122 Appendix 2: The phases of research 123 Appendix 3: Summary of the articles 124 Abstrakti 126 original research papers 129 # 1 Less But Better: Towards Sustainable Fashion 130 # 2 Designing Sustainable Fashion: Possibilities and Challenges 142 # 3 Artisanal and Slow: The Case of Anna Ruohonen 152 # 4 Creative Control in Sustainable Fashion 164 # 5 Crafting Aesthetics: The Meaning of Materiality and The Making Process in Artisanal Fashion 182 # 6 Unfolding Artisanal Fashion 192 5 abstract Despite the dominating role of mass-manufacturing of fashion today, some studio-based designers prefer an artisanal approach to fashion: they produce on a small scale, often locally, and utilize expert craftsmanship and traditional techniques as part of their design and production methods. Examining the concept of ‘artisanal’ in the context of contemporary fashion, this doctoral dissertation aims to decode the essential features of artisanal fashion. It also analyzes the significance of this approach and its relationship to the current cultural and societal environment. The study takes a particular look at the designer’s role in artisanal houses, and examines his/her ability to control and influence the process and the outcome. Compared to the mainstream clothing industry, artisanal fashion, with its emphasis on craftsmanship, offers an alternative approach. As this area of fashion remains largely unexamined in the academia, this dissertation set out to uncover the basic principles of artisanal fashion with an inductive approach. The primary data was gathered through interviewing the designers of eleven small-scale, entrepreneurial fashion labels. Complementary material about these companies and their ways of operating was collected by ethnographic methods, such as atelier and showroom visits. The author also gathered supplementary data through participant observation while working part-time as an assistant and a patternmaker at an artisanal fashion design studio. As the findings of this study illustrate, essentially, artisanal fashion integrates traditional craftsmanship and contemporary fashion design; craft-based methods are applied in innovative ways with an eye for today’s cultural and visual climate. At the core of this approach is the concept of ‘skillful materiality,’ which relates to the artisanal elements of the design and making processes: the attention given to high-quality materials and expert garment construction. Secondly, it is characterized by the ‘designer’s integrated role.’ Commonly, in artisanal ateliers, the designer is also the owner and the principal of the company. Such a centralized role provides an opportunity for the designer to be strongly involved in the design and production processes, and work closely with her workers, suppliers and often the end customers. Thirdly, the independent position 6 of these companies provides ‘freedom for creative control’ in decisions regarding design, production and business management, and allows the designer to tailor the work to his/her personal philosophy, referred here as a potential for ‘materializing values.’ From a larger perspective, this dissertation discusses such fashion production that lives at the cutting edge of the conventional fashion industry, and thus offers an alternative viewpoint to the current, resource- depleting fashion system. The study contributes to the search for more considerate ways of garment manufacture that support a slower fashion cycle. It also shows that traditional and craft-based methods of design and production can be relevant in today’s world. The small scale, local focus and independence of artisanal fashion companies provide an opportunity to integrate ethically and environmentally sound principals at the core of their work. Keywords: fashion fashion designer artisanal production slow fashion materiality skill craft 7 acknowledgements I wish to sincerely thank the many people who have provided me generous support during this incredible journey. In particular I am fortunate to have had the advice and encouragement of professor Kirsi Niinimäki whose supervision has guided me through the past four and half years of my doctoral research. Special thanks also to professor Sampsa Hyysalo whose guidance and support have given me confidence at the exact right moments. I am extremely grateful to all the designers featured in this study for generously giving me their time for interviews, and also for allowing me to use images of their work in this publication. I feel fortunate to have had the chance to meet so many wonderful people on this path, and hear many inspiring stories. I warmly thank you all. I would also like to thank my pre-examiners, Dr. Alison Gwilt and Dr. Yuniya Kawamura, for their time, interest and valuable comments on the manuscript, which helped me to clarify my ideas and improve the quality of my thesis. I am also thankful to Dr. Hazel Clark who kindly agreed to be my opponent for the defense of this thesis. My appreciation also goes to Dr. Ritva Koskennurmi-Sivonen, the co-author of my first article. It was one of her courses at the University of Helsinki that initially got me interested in fashion research, and particularly the intersection of fashion and craft. I gratefully acknowledge the financial support from Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture, Emil Aaltonen Foundation, Oskar Öflund Foundation, Niilo Helander Foundation, The Finnish Cultural Foundation (SKR), Arts Promotion Centre Finland (TAIKE), Finlandia Foundation/New York Chapter and The Finnish Concordia Fund. Thank you – these scholarships made my dissertation possible. Many thanks to the professors, faculty and colleagues at Aalto ARTS who I have worked with over these years, particularly professor Turkka Keinonen, for all the encouragement and advice, and our research group Fashion/Textile Futures for all the support. Special thanks to Julia and Namkyu for reading over my drafts, and to Cindy for giving me a lot of practical advice. 8

Description:
Sustainable Fashion: New Approaches (pp. 56–67). Helsinki: Aalto University. #4 Niinimäki, Kirsi, and Maarit Aakko. 2014. Creative Control in.
See more

The list of books you might like

Most books are stored in the elastic cloud where traffic is expensive. For this reason, we have a limit on daily download.