CFPR STAFF CAREER STORIES 0.4
Dr Laura Morgan WALLSCOURT FELLOW IN DESIGN & MATERIAL FUTURES
Dr Laura Morgan was appointed as a Wallscourt Fellow in Design & Material Futures at the Centre for Print Research (CFPR) in 2019. Her textile design research addresses ecological responsibility in textile processing, exploring innovative solutions for a more sustainable industry.
Laura’s background in Senior Design and Design Management positions saw her working with clients such as Liberty, London, blue chip retailers, boutique brands and fair-trade cooperatives. She went on to gain her AHRC-funded PhD at Loughborough University in 2016 where she developed laser design processes, enhancing textile processing sustainability through digital efficiency, while contributing to teaching on BA Textiles Innovation and Design. As a prize-winning finalist in the 2016 Arts Foundation Material Innovation Award, Laura’s doctoral research gained industrial interest that led to Industry and AHRC funded Research Associate posts to further the commercial applicability of the laser techniques at Loughborough and De Montfort Universities. In 2019, Laura identified a senior fellowship opportunity at CFPR that combined research with teaching.
Recognised as a future leader by UWE, Laura was selected for a research accelerator programme and secured a Vice Chancellor’s Early Career Researcher Award for Digital Processing for Biomaterial Design & Sustainable Material Finishing. This has allowed her to investigate novel biomordants from plant, algae and fungi for naturally dyed, laser-enhanced textiles. By combining the sustainable profile of bio-design with the precision and flexible design opportunities of digital technologies, Laura has developed a bio-digital methodology to enhance sustainability in textile coloration and design.
Laura has authored journal papers and book chapters that document a track-record of innovative method development for textile design, using interdisciplinary methodologies. Noting a lack of sustainable design options in supply-chains, and driven by a passion for sustainability, she has investigated the potential to implement her novel laser techniques in commercial
settings, collaborating with industry partners across the textile industry such as Speedo, Camira, MAS innovation, Crystal Martin and Stretchline. In 2024 Laura received an AHRC Impact Acceleration Award which will see her working with weave design and R&D studio, Dash and Miller to apply her new coloration and design methods within a localised, traceable production context to demonstrate, not only design innovation, but a kinder production ethos.
Alongside her research at CFPR, Laura gained a Post Graduate Certificate in Academic Professional Practice and Fellowship of the Higher Education Academy whilst teaching on the MA Design Programme at UWE and is currently supervising five PhD students. Laura regularly presents internationally at conferences and co-founded Textile Intersections: Collaborations in Textile Design Research Conference and Exhibition in 2017. Subsequent years have seen her continued involvement as exhibition co-curator and convenor for the Bio-Textiles and Sustainable Textiles theme. Her work has been exhibited internationally, notably at Sustainable Fashion Week 2021 and the World Expo 2020 Dubai which saw millions of visitors. She is a member of UKRI peer review colleges and reviews for the Journal of Textile Design Research & Practice, Sustainability and Research Directions: Biotechnology Design.
