Thomas Elliott Portfolio Structure & Aesthetic 1. Research 2. Mark Making
The Importance of Portfolio School of Design and Technology It is your shop window You can showcase your abilities and talents. It reveals your unique world and gives employers insight into your research methodologies, aesthetic sensibilities, project management skills and most importantly your creativity. Increased competition Due to the influx of fashion graduates employers are decreasing using runways and static shows as a means of recruitment. Advertised jobs and internships now ask you to submit a digital version of your portfolio before selection to interview stage. Improves your practice The process of making your portfolio makes you a better designer, offering you the opportunity reflect upon your practice and build upon it. It can also helps your uncover strategies for designing that could used in professional life.
Index Part 1 Research: Concept / 1 Colour / 12 Fabric / 28 Customer Profile / 38 Mark Making / 40 Part 2 Design Development / 52 Sampling and Evaluation / 75 Documentation / 97 Aesthetic Considerations / 115 Links / 118
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Research / Concept
Research Research is the foundation of all projects. This is not just merely collecting other imagery and sticking it down. It is only data until you evaluate it, ways of doing this include: finding commonalities or oppositions, distilling recurrent details or themes. Don’t overload, you may have taken a long time gathering your research but only show what is relevant. Always reference key images, don’t be a generalist, don’t just say you are interested in Cubism, site a specific sculpture or painting, and similarly don’t just talk like a designer, what collection? What piece? The more familiar you are with specifics the easier you can recall the information in an interview situation. Highlight what the important detail is and draw the attention to it. Accent it somehow. A narrative story whether real or imagined can be utilized to inform the design decision making process. While a journey might evoke ideas for colour and texture, a found object inspires shapes for pattern cutting, or memories of childhood bring to mind a colour palette. Even if it is
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Research / Concept
not apparent in the end result, it gives you an easy way of talking about your research and communicating your ideas, especially to the press or potential employers If you a looking at multiple themes begin to show how they will synthesize together. Avoid giving an interpretation of an interpretation. Colour research Consider how percentages of colour break down, which colours will dominate, which will support and which will accent. Never use colour in equal measure. The staid convention with colour boards is to grab a single image and lift a few colour swatches from it, sometimes working from multiple images to build a story or perhaps primary photography or even from your own experiments with mark making. You can go as abstract with this as you choose but if you anchor it with pantone references it shows a level of industry insight.
Research / Concept
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Fabric research Design lacks conviction if appropriate weights of fabric are not matched to surface adornment and silhouette successfully. Consider how it will drape and how the fabric will hold the print or embroidery. The way you cut out and adhere the swatches must show design consideration. It is up to you if you want to have fabric on pages. Some feel that it is essential so that people can feel the texture, while others feel that it can make for a bulky and unconsidered piece of work. Strong photography or simply scanning swatches and samples and reprinting can work effectively. Customer Research When a designer combines various photos of people they deem to be muses it can be a strong way to illustrate a character profile. lllustration research The media you draw with needs to support the overall look mood of your book - so familiarise yourself with different types of medium that are available. Although you are not expected to be a fashion illustrator your choice of drawing media must be appropriate for your work, consider India
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ink, gouache, marker, coloured pencil, graphite, collaged paper, water colour pastel, mono-printing, cellulose thinner transfers etc. Research Analysis Once you have collected images you need to analyze how various areas of the material relate to one another. When patterns emerge you will gain clarity about how to begin your collection. You need to be able to deconstruct your research to then reform into a new shape.
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Research / Colour
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Research / Concept
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Research / Colour
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Research / Fabric
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Research / Customer Profile
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Research / Customer Profile
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Mark Making
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Research
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Mark Making
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Mark Making
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Research
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Mark Making
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Research
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Mark Making
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Mark Making
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Paper Stock
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Thomas Elliott Lecturer telliott@fashion.arts.ac.uk