QUT Fashion Graduate Show 2015 - Menswear

Words: Saskia Edwards

Images: Jonathan Rae

Each year, the QUT Fine Arts Fashion cohort puts on a showcase of the students’ final year work. It’s the culmination of three years of dedication to pattern making, sewing and perhaps hearing the word ‘garment’ in the millions of times. Here’s a look at the menswear collections. It includes Elvrik’s signature boldly colourful looks emblazoned with his logo, ‘Global Citizen’ and, somewhat ironically, braille - given the visually vivid nature of his collection. While Aiden Renata took his cues from cowboys. His muted collection is somewhere between southern belle, La vache qui rit and Marques Almeida. And Tom Summers’ ‘404’ does kind of resemble a glitchy webpage. His fabrics look like a frozen screen in a subtle and beautiful way. Anyway, here’s all the menswear looks at the 2015 QUT Fashion Grad Show MUSE//REFRACTED.

Tom Summers '404'

Jordan Anderson - Elvrik 'Global Citizen' 

Aidan Renata 'Full Cream' 

A night at 'Tenfold' - QUT's Fine Art Fashion Design Graduate Show

 
Words: Saskia Edwards
Images: Jonathan Rae

24 designers. Six outfits each. 144 looks.

QUT’s Tenfold graduate show celebrates a decade of Fine Arts Fashion at the university. In its ten-year existence QUT has produced the likes of Gail “Sorronda” Reid, George Wu and Soot’s Edwina Sinclair. The showcase followed a fluid path from vivid colours to a more muted palate to a series of black grungy collections. The parade marked the end of three years’ of work for the students. And it was all over in a couple of hours. As these young designers try to forge their path in an incredibly competitive and cut-throat industry I’ll quote the head of fashion at QUT Kath Horton, “keep on going, it’s really tough”.

Here's a few of our favourite collections:

Thea Blocksidge 'Mimi'

 Harrison Sandeman-Strewe 'Untitled" 

 

 Harriet Sutherland 'The Elegant Lost'

 

QUT Fashion Graduate Feature: Linda Nguyen - Pacific Mutual Life

Words: Saskia Edwards

Images: Jonathan Rae

David Hockney said, “Anything simple always interests me”. The British artist’s work was part of the underlying influences for Linda Nguyen’s six grad pieces. Particularly, his paintings of luxe Californian, almost Lloyd-Wright-esque, pool images. It’s evident in Linda’s relaxed silhouettes, muted aquatic colour palate and distinctly 60s undertones. And perhaps this is the simple becoming interesting - something like a house, suburban architecture or a pool becoming inspiring. I caught up with Linda after the show.

Can you tell me what you were trying to explore in your collection?

My collection explored 1960s David Hockney - an English painter. And also combination with my Brisbane home Torbreck, which is in Highgate Hill. So it was a combination of David Hockney’s poolside images in California as well as Australian poolside living. So it was a combination of those two elements together.

Can you tell me more about this idea of incorporating your house?

I just moved into my apartment earlier this year and it’s quite kitsch - it’s got a lot of pale blues and it has this sort of Californian feel to it. So that’s how I kind of made that parallel with David Hockney and it has this kidney pool. So that’s where my main inspiration came from, so I did my look book there as well.

What kind of materials did you use to execute that?

I used a mixture of organic as well as artificial materials. It was sort of the artificialness coming from David Hockney’s works and with the more organic materials like linens and cottons they were coming from more suitable for the Australian climate. So it was kind of an odd mixture, but somehow kind of worked in the end. So that was where the materials came from. With the artificial fabrics I used a lot of nylons and polyesters and I used heat setting techniques. 

This is the culmination of three years of study. How has your design evolved?

It’s pretty interesting because in first year and second year you’re always doing something according to a brief so it’s not a huge freedom for you to be fully yourself because there’s industry briefs where you’re making something for a particular client in mind. So it’s kind of adapting with your own aesthetic. But then with final year it’s all about the creative freedom and being able to do whatever you want to do. So it has evolved quite a lot and I feel like most of my creative journey was in my last year, so figuring that out as I went along.

Did you find it a bit of a relief to have that freedom or did you find it difficult without those constraints?

I guess in first and second year I’m just so excited to do my last year and have that creative freedom, but by the time I get there it’s so difficult. Because you’re kind of like - this is your one opportunity to do whatever you want and how do you take that. It evolves so much throughout the year and in industry you’re only working on a collection for a couple of months then it goes into production and you just wrap it up. But here at uni you’re working on it from day one to the end. It evolves so much, you do last minute changes, you hate it, you love it or whatever. So it’s just a roller coaster. 

QUT Fashion Graduate Feature: Ke Jiang - Sitsang

Words: Saskia Edwards

Images: Jonathan Rae

Sitsang is the Chinese word for Tibet. And that is the main idea that’s laced through Ke “Flora” Jiang’s graduate collection. From the rich colours to the Tibetan eye motif, the Tibetan theme is clear. This aesthetic is a manifestation of Flora’s conceptual research - the part of her design that she perhaps enjoys the most in her process. I spoke to the shy, but obviously talented, Flora about her design.

What were your inspirations for you collection?

My inspiration came from a city in China... I was inspired by their lifestyle, their clothing style and where they lived and how they lived. And also the colours - like mustard colours, very bright strong red and navy, white as well.

What do you like about design?

I have fun with it, when I’m doing the research part. I can explore the background that I’m really interested in and quite want to know the culture.

How much did your Chinese heritage influence you collection?

In this collection I took how they wore their clothes. It’s really cold there, especially in the winter, so they normally wear really heavy coat and it’s oversized and they just put down one arm and twist the sleeve on their waist so it’s very easy to move and do the housework. So it leaves very asymmetric details that I also used in my collections.

How much as your design changed over the last three years?

I think I have improved much. I was studying in Singapore fashion design just two years then transferred from Singapore to here. So I just studied two years in QUT, so when the first year I was in Singapore I didn’t really know what I wanted to do so I didn’t do too much work at the research part so it’s like the clothing was like 2D things - flat things. 

QUT Fashion Graduate Feature: Emily Giles - Ride Away

Words: Saskia Edwards

Images: Jonathan Rae

With a collection drenched in fairy floss pink, it’s hard to imagine that Emily Giles’ main inspiration was the iconic Marlon Brando motorcycle gang movie ‘The Wild One’. But rather than referencing the leather, jeans and aviator glasses - Emily drew influence from the oversized and masculine silhouettes. And her final result received many accolades as well - being one of the two winners of the annual Vaughn Award. I spoke to Emily about the last three years, how she’s feeling now and what she plans for the future. 

How much work went into creating your grad collection?

Hundreds of hours. We basically spent from March to November working on the collection from toiling, pattern making and then making the final collection. 

How does it feel now that three years of work is all over?

It’s crazy, it goes so fast. First year you’re creating one garment a semester compared to making 20 garments in a semester, so it’s good to be finished and it’s great to showcase it to everyone. 

Do you know what you’re going to do now that university is over?

I’m going to start applying for jobs. I interned for Karen Walker in New Zealand in July. So I’m going to apply back there and hopefully maybe be there. But if not, I’ll check out what’s happening in Sydney and Melbourne and hopefully move out of Brisbane.

Can you walk me through the conceptual themes in your collection?

When I started my grad collection I sorted looked through what I wear and when I dress I look for quite masculine themes. So I found this movie called ‘The Wild One’, which is a biker movie and the character is Marlon Brando. So it’s all got quite strong themes - with world war and bikers - so I sort of brought that through with my collection. With the themes in the movie - like huge exaggerations with the characters and that sort of thing - so I brought that through with my garments. So huge exaggerated jackets, sleeves, drop sleeves, sort of masculine clothing onto women. 

What do you see for the future of your design?

I would like to be a bit more conceptual and play a bit more with textile design. I love fabrics. In my collection I’ve got 40 different fabrics and textiles. So I want to keep on exploring that, I’d love to do another degree in textile design or something like that. But just keep exploring and creating outfits that challenge people rather than being too minimal and simple.