Contributions for a new body representation paradigm in pattern design. Generation of basic patterns after the mobile body

Tese apresentada à Faculdade de Arquitectura de Lisboa da Universidade Técnica de Lisboa, para obtenção do grau de Doutor em Design

Curating the toile: a study of fashion curatorial practice in the fine art museum

This research reflects upon curatorial practice in the fine art museum through the fashion exhibition Remaking Fashion. By curating the toile, a garment prototype, this research considers curatorial practice, which includes the selection and arrangement of objects to create meaning in exhibition. The exhibition Remaking Fashion provided the mode to convey research, meanings and interpretations of the toile. The toile is usually a remnant from the fashion design process. It is typically made of calico and used to test or develop design, fit or garment proportions and enables the designer to make judgments about design. More recently, its distinctive characteristics, such as its calico fabric, loosely basted threads or unfinished edges have been translated into features of contemporary fashion which reference the process of making in fashion design. My intention was to convey various narratives around the toile. These narratives were informed by the exhibition checklist which included works selected to reflect the toile’s role in design process. The narratives were also informed by my role as curator at the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV). 1  Through a series of narratives reflective of the exhibition, this research traces ten interpretations of the toile in regards to design process, fashion curatorship and the museum environment which have been presented through groupings with other NGV collection items and select loans. Remaking Fashion was fore grounded by new curatorial practices. These include Judith Clark’s recent curatorial projects which break with traditional practices of experiencing fashion in an exhibition by using text, image and objects in considered juxtapositions. In order to curate the toile, my research questioned the fashion items displayed in fine art museums to address the gap of representation of design process. Through reflection upon the Remaking Fashion exhibition, I considered the role of the curator as narrator and addressed the potential of the fashion exhibition to convey knowledge and experience. _______________________ 1  I was appointed Assistant Curator, International Fashion and Textiles at the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV) in 2003. In this role I have curated and co-curated numerous fashion and textiles exhibitions

Costume design in Assassin's Creed III: a comparative study between the real and the virtual

This paper presents a detailed analysis of Assassin’s Creed III’s character Haytham Kenway’s costume, with emphasis on the physical qualities as well as the symbolic factors used in the garments. The costume is constructed physically in order to facilitate a further comparative study between the real and the virtual qualities looking at historical and technical accuracies in order to aid game companies in constructing accurate virtual costume

The origins and evolution of the bra

This thesis marks the first biography of the evolution of the bra from a designer and patternmaker’s perspective. Although the bra has a very long history, it only became a truly iconic garment in the latter half of the Twentieth Century. To some extent this transformation was driven by rapid social and economic changes, but the evolution of this highly technical garment is also inextricably linked to developments in technology which have led to improvements in materials, design and manufacture. Initially these developments were related to designing a three-dimensional product from a two-dimensional flat patternmaking process, but more recently the advent of the moulded bra has offered opportunities to create a seamless three-dimensional garment without the need to construct a flat pattern, and this has enabled both increased design possibilities and raised the prospect of a better fitting product. Through an investigation of the origins of underwear in general, and the bra in particular, this thesis reviews secondary source historical data to chart major changes in design, patternmaking, and technology from the first recorded uses of underwear to the current challenges facing bra designers and patternmakers in an increasingly globalised industry. This historical review culminates in the identification of two distinctly diverging trends in current bra design and manufacture, both of which face significant challenges in terms of training new designers and producing better sizing and fitting protocols. The two primary source studies which emanate from this historical review contribute new knowledge to each of these diverging directions in bra design. The first study provides an entirely new approach to the teaching, and subsequent current commercial practice of flat patternmaking for what many regard as the ‘traditional’ cut-and-sewn variety of bra. This study culminates in a new way of producing, learning and teaching the art of flat patternmaking, enabling underwear design graduates to leave university with the core skills they need to survive in a fast moving global industry. The second major study investigates the salient challenge of providing an excellent fit for both major types of bra across globally diverse and perhaps ethnically different body types. Consequently, it employs cutting-edge threedimensional body scanning technology to demonstrate how the design, sizing, and 2 fitting of both cut-and-sewn and moulded varieties of garment might be significantly improved in the future. Both primary source data studies therefore stand at the beginning of the future evolution of the most technically complex garment in human history, the not so humble bra

Dwaraka: An Immersive Storytelling Experience Represented in Virtual Reality Through a Graphic Novel

This thesis showcases the development of a narrative Virtual Reality (VR) experience told in the form of an immersive graphic novel. Virtual reality has the potential to be one of the more intimate forms of storytelling since it puts the user in the center of the story or scene. Similarly the graphic novel is an excellent storytelling device since it relies more on visuals rather than writing, enabling readers to absorb information faster without losing focus. Together they become a visually evocative experience for the audience by enabling them to not just look through the visuals but also jump into each panel and experience the story firsthand. Drawing inspiration from artists and writers like Alan Moore, Hokusai and Shinichiro Watanabe, along with elements from Indian mythology, I have created a graphic narrative based on a poem and present it as an immersive VR experience using the VR 3D painting and animation tool Oculus Quill

Washington University Record, March 27, 2008

https://digitalcommons.wustl.edu/record/2137/thumbnail.jp

Clothing of Pioneer Women of Dakota Territory, 1861-1889

Hard-times of the Dakota Territory demanding strenuous physical labor compelled the investigator to study the clothing and dressmaking needs of pioneer women 1861-1889. This historical study of costume provides an insight into the life styles [sic] and the role of pioneer women as they interpreted clothing into their physical and utilitarian needs in adapting to the new frontier. The purpose of this research was to study the costume of the American women who resided in the Dakota Territory prior to the statehood of South Dakota, November 2, 1889. During the period 1861-1889, the Missouri River served as a geographical barrier in the development of the western half of South Dakota. Therefore, this research is limited to the state of South Dakota east of the Missouri referred to as east-river. This study dealt with a variety of women who came from diverse backgrounds. To pioneer women who migrated from surrounding areas or emigrated from other countries, clothing was one of the primary needs and a vital asset in conforming to the life style [sic] in Dakota environment. In addition, the ways in which these Dakota women fulfilled their clothing needs provides ample evidence of consumption and patterns of production. The topic of pioneer dress is of growing concern to costume historians across the country; however, research in this area has been limited. This research is an effort to fill the gap of American costume of pioneer women by describing the clothing

An investigation of thermal comfort properties of abaya under heat stress

Abaya is a black outer garment worn by women in Saudi Arabia when they are outside their homes. It is designed to cover the whole body. It may be worn either from shoulder or from the top of the head and reveals only the face, feet and hands. Abaya absorbs heat from sunlight in a hot climate, as it is black, making the wearer very uncomfortable. In addition, the multiple layers of clothing within the abaya add more thermal stress. The present research aims to obtain an overview of the type, variety and comfort of abaya worn by women in Saudi Arabia. This was used in identifying the textile materials for abaya and understanding the comfort factors of the wearers. The outcome was used to understand and improve the thermal comfort performance of the traditional abaya. A survey was undertaken to obtain the opinion of women in Saudi Arabia regarding the problem of thermal discomfort of current abaya. The key points considered were the type of fabrics and designs being used and the degree of perceived comfort. The survey showed that the discomfort affects a specific type of clothing. It also revealed that the current abaya when worn over multi-layers of inner clothing was thermally uncomfortable. Objective evaluations of the thermal performance of abayas, made from the commonly used woven and knitted fabrics were carried out using various standard tests. Thermal comfort properties were determined based on thermal resistance, air permeability, and vapour resistance. The results indicated that the fabric structure (woven or knit), fibre composition, fabric weight and fabric thickness greatly influence the fabric thermal comfort performance. It was found that woven abaya fabric is more comfortable than knitted. A female sweating thermal manikin was utilized to evaluate physical properties related to the heat transfer and moisture management properties of abayas.  This was conducted in combination with daily wear clothing, including underwear, skirt / pants and shirt, with abaya and scarf, as worn in Saudi Arabia. The thermal and evaporative resistances of clothing worn within the abaya were measured. The results could contribute to the improvement of abaya design so as to minimize thermal and evaporative resistance in a hot environment. In order to improve the comfort properties, woven fabrics were dyed in black and treated with an Energy Reflecting Chemical (ERC), so as to reflect heat from the environment, in particular solar energy. This would aid in keeping such fabrics cooler. The fabrics were evaluated to assess the thermal comfort properties. The degree of comfort depends not only on the type of fabric and design but also on the clothing worn underneath. Most of the abayas were made from woven fabrics that masked body contour. Synthetic fibres (polyester) were used prevalently because of its easy care feature.   It is evident that the lightweight and thinner satin fabric is most suitable for abaya and can provide better handle and thermal comfort in a hot environment. In addition,   the results showed that ERC marginally improved the thermal comfort properties under the current experimental conditions. Moreover, it was found that the ERC lowered the temperature of the surface fabric between 0.9 - 1.8 °C

An aesthetic for sustainable interactions in product-service systems?

Copyright @ 2012 Greenleaf PublishingEco-efficient Product-Service System (PSS) innovations represent a promising approach to sustainability. However the application of this concept is still very limited because its implementation and diffusion is hindered by several barriers (cultural, corporate and regulative ones). The paper investigates the barriers that affect the attractiveness and acceptation of eco-efficient PSS alternatives, and opens the debate on the aesthetic of eco-efficient PSS, and the way in which aesthetic could enhance some specific inner qualities of this kinds of innovations. Integrating insights from semiotics, the paper outlines some first research hypothesis on how the aesthetic elements of an eco-efficient PSS could facilitate user attraction, acceptation and satisfaction

Abstraction Fashion: Seeing and Making Network Abstractions and Computational Fashions

Human life today is enmeshed with network organisms. What we value, the ways we talk, and the subject matter we pay attention to are all dependent on and depended upon by the networks that dominate our imagination. The internet, private social platforms, and the virtual and physical supply chains that create the hardware, software, and memetic abstractions with which we think are all examples of network organisms. Each has found a viability mechanism that permits it to survive and thrive in the present moment. Each viability mechanism creates its own unique incentives for self-perpetuation, which drive the outward appearances with which we are familiar. These incentives manifest as product forms, interface abstractions, and socially optimized beliefs and identities. To grapple with what drives the abstractions these network organisms output, this dissertation builds a worldview for seeing and making with computational networks. Computing machines are composed of abstractions, simulate abstractions, and project their abstractions onto the world. Creating in this medium requires resources that can be acquired through attention manipulation and fashion performance. The text culminates in an appendix documenting ewaste club, an art research-creation project that combines wearable cameras, supply chain inspired fashion, and disposable computers. Through a mixture of practical projects, historical analysis, and technical explanation, this dissertation proposes several new concepts linking fashion, the arts, and computation to making in the time of networks