Pattern Cutting Symposium hailed a success
Wed, 20 Feb 2013 14:17:00 GMT
Global support for first Creative Cut symposium
Making an appearance at the First International Symposium held at the University of Huddersfield were (left to right) Betty Jackson CBE, Wendy Dagworthy, Jenni Murphy, Dr Kevin Almond, Mark Powell, Sylvia Ayton MBE and Anne Tyrrell MBE
CREATIVE pattern cutting is at the heart of the fashion industry and after a successful conference attended by experts from around the world the University of Huddersfield is at the global heart of the subject academically.
Named the First International Symposium for Creative Pattern Cutting, the two-day event was organised and chaired by Dr Kevin Almond, who is Subject Leader in fashion at the University. He conceived the idea of a symposium on pattern cutting after he published an article on the subject and organised an exhibition of student work.
“In the article I really wanted to redress the balance between the technical people in the industry and the designer – to try and give them an equal status,” said Dr Almond.
His aim is to highlight the creativity that is an essential part of pattern cutting.
“If you make a pattern for a garment from a designer’s sketch or a designer’s idea, you must creatively interpret the sketch into a 3D form. Even if you are cutting a simple shirt you are going to use creative skills,” added Dr Almond.
The First International Symposium was intended to provide a platform for pattern cutters, fashion designers, students and educators so that they could explore the impact and direction for creative pattern cutting. The event attracted an attendance of 160 from around the world – with delegates coming from as far afield as New Zealand and the USA. Major firms, including Marks and Spencer, were also represented.
There were talks from leading experts in the field, including Sylvia Ayton MBE, who chairs the Costume Society and was long-serving head of design at Wallis and Anne Tyrrell MBE , who is Chair of the Colleges Council at the British Fashion Council and Managing Director of Anne Tyrrell Design Consultancy.
The event was sponsored by Lectra, the world leaders in integrated technology solutions, and Lectra’s Jenni Murphy and Mark Powell also presented.
Among the delegates were key fashion industry figures such as designer Betty Jackson and Wendy Dagworthy, and Dr Almond has received highly-positive feedback.
See Sylvia Ayton and Anne Tyrrell talk about their careers and the fashion industry as a whole in the top two videos. In the third video Betty Jackson talks about her new spring/summer collection at Debenhams called Betty Jackson Black and Mark Powell talks about the success of the symposium sponsored by Lectra.
The success of the event means it is now likely that the University of Huddersfield will hold future symposia on pattern cutting. The inaugural event included a sequence of peer-reviewed academic papers, and these will be the basis of a special edition of the International Journal of Fashion Design Technology and Education, to be edited by Dr Almond.
“When we summed up at the end, the general feeling was that a really strong community had established itself. It was almost a first opportunity for like-minded people who are passionate about different aspects of pattern cutting to get together in one space to discuss how it influences the industry. We felt it would be wise to have a biennial event, so we will be looking at doing it again in two years’ time,” said Dr Almond.
