Class meets on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons, from 2-5pm in the EDA.
ABOUT THE CLASS
Fashion is born by small facts, trends, or even politics, never by… trinkets, by clothes easy to copy, or by the shortening or lengthening of a skirt. — Elsa Schiaparelli
Fashion and Technology
This class will give a broad overview of how fashion is shaped and determined by technology and society. We will cover some historical influences and look at the political influences, analyze the influence of Hollywood, the music industry and learn about sweat shops, animal use and the production of fashion. The class will also look at wearable computing and new materials developed by the new nano-science. Field trips and visits by designers are integrated into the curriculum and students are expected to actively research the field. Every week students will have an assignment that is a response to the issues we cover and they are expected to develop a web site of their “products”. The final assignment will consist of a group fashion show that will incorporate music, projections and web sites created in class.
GRADING
WEEKLY ASSIGNMENTS: 40% Students will submit short weekly reports on topics that are covered. These reports are not expected to be part of the final project but serve more to familiarize students with issues around fashion and technology. FINAL: 30% ATTENDANCE & PARTICIPATION: 30%
Each class missed without a formal reason (doctor's note, family emergency, etc.) will cause the student's grade to be lowered 1/2 step. If a student's grade is borderline at the end of the quarter, class participation will be taken into account, and will likely move the student's grade back up to the next higher category. Coming late to class interrupts everyone and you will miss out. We move fast and you can easily fall behind.
Week 1: Gender: how it is constructed January 7: Introduction January 9: Isa Gordon about Cyberfashion Assignment: Half to one page write-up on what you think fashion is; what is particularly of interest to you and what your skills are. Is there an idea you already have that you would like to develop in this class?
Week 2: Sci-fi Technologies January 14: Silvia Rigon January 16: Jim Gimzewski Assignment: Research the web and come up with at least 5 interesting links in fashion and sci-fi. Do a first sketch for an idea that is inspired by sci-fi.
Week 3: Science fiction movies January 21: January 23:
Week 4: Nanotechnology: new materials January 28: January 30: Jim Gimzewski
Week 5: Politics (Fur / slave labor) February 4: Deborah Cohen:"The history of the garment industry" February 6: student presentations of the fashion show concepts
Week 6: Body art February 11: February 13:
Week 7: February 18: Alex Lightman February 20: presentation of student's work in progress, KS
Week 8: Computer Games February 25: Machiko Kusahara, EDA February 27: projects in progress presentations
Week 9: Hollywood & Rock stars March 4: show planning March 6: Jim Bassler lecture, meeting in KS
FINAL March 11: fashion show rehearsal March 13: fashion show rehearsal March 14: FASHION & TECHNOLOGY SHOW!