Mina Jugovic and Nuraan Petersen are both BA (Hons) Fashion Design and Realisation part-time students who are about to graduate. As part of our Class of 2015 series, they talked us through their fascinating collections which draw on a wide range of ideas and cultures.
LCF News: So tell us each about your final collections…
Nuraan Petersen: My final menswear collection has been inspired by my observations on growing bacteria and exploring microbe behaviour and linking it to human behaviour. This then led to exploring colonisation and cartography, social control and migration. The manner in which bacteria spread and change the identity of matter is not dissimilar to human movement and occupation which to gives rise to a new identity. This might at first sound like it has nothing to do with fashion, but it is this process that builds a collection. The result is a collection that holds both familiar and foreign representations in its design aesthetic.
Mina Jugovic: My final collection explores what is left over after an action: remains, traces and marks left behind. I am intrigued by the events that leave a mark, which becomes a creative print, an evidence of a human interaction.
LCF News: And what’s the story behind these pieces?
NP: Haha… I am! I am a melting pot with four continents in my ancestry.
MJ: It celebrates the mundane beauty. Rapid acts of destruction such as fabric burning with acid sit alongside painstaking restorative labour such as beading and embroidery. I hope this will challenge the way we perceive marks (such as stains, rips or scars) which are deemed to be ugly by giving them another meaning.
LCF News: How do you work and what techniques have you used?
NP: I work best in 3D and have a natural aptitude for working on the stand. So my production begins there. Working through shapes and draping to create my silhouette that I feel and fits my concept. Throughout this process I also always remember its final function and who it needs to appeal to.
MJ: I used fabric manipulation (such as flounces) to create textures found in my research. I am also using acid etching, beading and digital printing to recreate and celebrate marks.
LCF News: Who or what inspires you?
NP: Human stories and human histories inspire me. I find the truth is so much messier and more interesting than fiction.
MJ: Kate Fletcher and Sandy Black inspired me to look at fashion from a sustainable angle. It has really changed the way I design, produce and consume fashion.
LCF News: Why did you decide to study part time?
NP: Studying part-time has enabled me to gain invaluable industry experience. Through LCF Careers I was able to secure two internship, 2 months with Reem Alasadi in 2013 and 3 months with Christopher Reaburn in 2014.
MJ: Yes, I was able to study and get work experience at the same time. I worked at CSM, creating research portfolios for the Research Excellence Framework 2014. I secured this placement through ArtsTemps. It helped me understand better the process of research and the fundamental part it plays in the creative process.
- Meet more of the Class of 2015
- The students work will be shown at the BA15 Exhibition, open 8th – 13th June. Find out more.
- BA (Hons) Fashion Design and Realisation part-time