San Kim

Profession

Graduate Diploma Fashion Design Technology Alum

College

London College of Fashion

Person Type

Alumni

Biography

San Kim graduated from the Fashion Design Technology Graduate Diploma at London College of Fashion in 2018. We caught up with him to find out about his experiences on the course and his future plans as a designer.

Can you introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about what you do?

My name is San Kim. I studied Womenswear on the Graduate Diploma at LCF, and I'm just about to graduate from MA Menswear at University of Westminster. I'm quite interested in pieces that record something historical, or iconic menswear. I like to subvert conventional items.

What was your experience on on the Graduate Diploma FDT?

I chose to do womenswear in LCF because I had just completed my BA Womenswear in Korea. I didn't think [that my designs could be menswear] but my Course Leader really helped me to think widely. Even if in my mind I wanted to do something, I didn’t have the freedom to explore it on my BA. My course leader at LCF encouraged me to focus on what I liked and to do it more in depth. That helped me a lot.

Did that help you develop your own style?

Yes, I think so. The course helped me trust myself as a designer. So that allowed me to keep continuing what I want to do. I'm interested in everything! Last year I was really obsessed with tin toys. These days I'm collecting army uniforms from World War Two. I am interested in everything, but they are all related to fashion in the end.

Can you tell us about your final project?

The project was about a ladyboy who has both a woman and man's figure. So I tried to find common areas and figure out how these work differently between women and men. When it comes to padding, women have bra-pads and men have shoulder pads for their tailored jacket. I wanted to change the function of the pad in one garment. In the photos, the blazer transforms into the dress.

What are your plans going forward?

I was a finalist in the Fashion Makes Sense Award (Fashion Clash Festival), so I will go to The Netherlands and do a fashion show in November. And then after that, I think if I can I want to start my own label of unisex non-binary fashion.

Do you have any advice to give potential students who want to enrol on the Graduate Diploma FDT?

So for me, as I'm an Asian student, I feel that most international students aren't really familiar with UK fashion. British fashion is bolder and has more variety that allows them to do whatever they want to. LCF was a really good bridge to connect between British fashion and where I was.