Fashion (MA)
About
Head of Programme, Fashion – Zowie Broach
“Our task is to make trouble, to stir up potent response to devastating events, as well as to settle the trouble waters and rebuild quiet places.” — Donna Haraway
“Do not be afraid to colour outside the lines. Take risks and do not be afraid to fail. Know that when the world knocks you down, the best revenge is to get up and continue forging ahead. Do not be afraid to be different or to stand up for what's right. Never quiet your voice to make someone else feel comfortable. No one remembers the person that fits in. It's the one who stands out that people will not be able to forget.” — Nancy Arroyo Ruffin
Why? Why occupy a space which is already so crowded and decided? Because without questioning what exists, why it exists, and offering an alternate perspective, we allow the past to decide the forever shifting future. We simply cannot design without a social consciousness. This is done through learning to unlearn processes that restrict imagination and innovation. Through intervening, adding to, and extending the notions of fashion we look to suggest a space for a renewed consideration through the lens of our perspectives. We are encouraged to approach design from our own lived experiences to reimagine and redefine new voices. Our ability to impact our relationships with others through supportive networks and the outer world begins with the internal power we choose to project. By not striving to be everything but continuing to ask questions and having a willingness to learn, we begin that shift and in-turn we encourage and strengthen each other to shape the zeitgeist.
Text by Shanti Bell & Ffian Jones. RCA FASHION MA 2022 alumni network.
Image Credit: Shanice Palmer 'Bronze Adornment Artifact'