Meet: Iris Ching Man YAU 邱 靜 雯

Tell us about yourself and your career journey so far...

My name is Iris Ching Man YAU 邱 靜 雯, and I was born and raised in Hong Kong. I moved to London as an overseas student to study Fashion at London College of Fashion, when Britain returned Hong Kong to China in 1997. After graduating, I worked in fashion buying and sourcing for various international fashion houses including YSL and Burberry.

More recently, I’ve moved into Higher Education, as a Lecturer at UAL; I lead on projects including the Changemakers to improve learning and teaching practice in line with Central Saint Martins/UAL's commitment to Social Justice.

I’m a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy UK (Advanced UK).

You completed a BA (Hons) in Product Development at London College of Fashion, graduating in 1998. What was your experience of college like?

• BA (Hons) Product Development for the Fashion Industries, LCF, 1998.
• MA Academic Practice in Art, Design and Communication, UAL (Teaching & Learning Exchange), 2021.

My first impression of LCF was “it’s small”, then I realised UAL has sites spread across London, and I was impressed with the advantage of accessing other college libraries within the institution.

Did your time at LCF impact your creative thinking and practice?

I worked in the fashion industry for a couple of years before I came to London to study in the 90s. However, I still remember the "Product Benefits" theory from the Fashion Marketing Lecture by Tim Jackson (1996), it reinforced my belief to always aim to leave a positive, impactful legacy (that intangible feel-good factor) in whatever I do.

Are you still connected to UAL? If so, how?

I was approached by LCF Alumni to contribute to UAL as a Fashion Enterprise Mentor Volunteer in 2014 and started teaching in different colleges and courses through the very first groundbreaking 'Teaching Within' led by Shades of Noir (Centre for Race and Practice-Based Social Justice) from 2016.

My curatorial practice started with a bang at LCF in 2019, Helen Pankhurst made a special visit.

Iris's Silk Route went on a tour at UAL. I finished a fixed-term contract at CSM for Women@CSM, and the Changemakers Programme last year. This academic year I am working part-time as an Associate Lecture to set up my 'mission' in Manchester...

Your work, Infamous: Opium, Silk, Tea and The Mission, is currently on display at the Portico Library in Manchester until 8 June. Can you tell us more about it?

Infamous is a version of the Opium, Silk and the Missionaries in China I have written and curated for the Brunei Gallery, SOAS. This exhibition retells one of the key but forgotten histories between Britain and China in the 19th Century. Infamous explores the history of the opium wars through artifacts about opium, silk, tea, and missionary work throughout that period.

Infamous draws attention to the infamous colonial drug trade and why the opium trade was important to the expansion of the British Empire. The exhibition was produced with the support of and in collaboration with the Portico Library; Bolton Library & Museum Services; The Silk Museum, Macclesfield; The Granada Foundation.

Can you walk us through your project, Iris's Silk Route?

Iris's Silk Route is my contribution to diversifying curriculum at UAL: an auto-ethnography-inspired exhibition – it shed light on the lived experience of growing up in a British colony, studying a fashion degree course as an overseas student (tuition fees GBP5,950 a year in the 90s), and becoming a member of academic staff at UAL after working in the fashion industry for over 20 years. Iris's Silk Route showcases teaching and learning resources on Chinese arts and heritage at UAL, a 'Third Place' to learn and reflect from history - Opium Wars. The exhibition (The Mission) started at LCF and it then went on tour in all UAL Colleges.

What plans do you have for yourself/The Mission?

When I was working in global sourcing and buying, I traveled across the globe and worked with many interesting people. My curatorial practice is a bit like that in terms of collaboration - research, design, production, and the display. But The Mission is all for education, it’s not commercial! Far too many colonial-related histories have been deliberately excluded from the national curriculum in the UK which leads to ignorance and arrogance. This is why I’m creating this 'Third Place' to learn and reflect on history. I am planning to take The Mission to other countries after the nationwide tour in the UK.

If alumni would like to collaborate, they can drop me an email.

Where can UAL alumni see your work?

• My current exhibition Infamous: Opium, Silk, Tea and the Mission is on show at the Portico Gallery and Library in Manchester until 8 June 2024.
• Opium, Silk and the Missionaries in China at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS.
• Fellow UAL alumni can get a sense of my curatorial practice on my Instagram account i.e. CSM Changemakers 22/23 exhibition at Central Saint Martins.