BA (Hons) Textile Design
Sarah Venn
Winner: Angela Houston Travel and Research Award
I am a materials innovator for fashion, pushing the boundaries of materiality whilst investigating structure and function, producing unprecedented properties. My work focuses on using surface manipulation to increase adaptability and durability in fabrics, to embed sustainability into garments. My work challenges the current disposable nature of the fashion industry by presenting fabrics and garments with longevity and interactivity for the wearer.
My graduate collection ‘Material Adaption’ explores how material manipulation can increase the utilisation of clothing through adding stretch properties. Light silks are radically changed by bonding elastic with waste disposable plastics in configurations that create multiple surface forms. When used in garments these fabrics would have added flexibility, reacting to movement to reduce the wear in areas of high stretch and friction. Bonded mouldable wire invites the user to become part of the final design process. This body of work will continue to be developed in further study.
