MA Fashion Media Production graduate Irene Rodriguez created multimedia visual art to convey what she thinks is wrong with fashion today for her LCF MA17 Final Major Project, which will be on show at the LCFMA17 Media & Communication Exhibition: Found in Translation. We talk to the Italian artist about working with Diesel, fashion photography and her project Post-Fashion.
MA Fashion Media Production graduate Irene Rodriguez.
Tell us about your Final Major Project and what you created?
My Final Major Project is called Post-Fashion: it is a visual manifesto aimed to unveil what is wrong and obsolete in fashion. I was inspired by all the events that have happened lately in fashion, showing a system that still follows the same schemes. Post-Fashion represents established fashion formats, involving production and consumption, brand value, taste, style, appearance and beauty, using a post-digital aesthetic as a way to reflect on the content. Therefore I created GIFs using post-digital effects collected from software, computer interface or social media. In addition, I made lenticular flipping cards and posters to subvert the digital nature of the project.
What does Fashion Media mean to you?
Fashion Media means many things and cannot be synthetised in few words. For what my personal path has been so far, it is a way to explore and reveal something in fashion, which is not necessarily out in the open – it is a tool to disclose how things work behind the surface.
Where did you study prior to London College of Fashion?
My background is in Fashion Design, I attended at Politecnico in Milan. It was a broad and technical course of fashion studies where students get an insight in how the whole industry works from the concept to its production and communication.
What would be your top three tips for prospective students?
Don’t be afraid to experiment outside your boundaries. The path you can undertake with your projects is very flexible. Take advantage of all facilities and workshops provided and try to collaborate as much as possible with other student from UAL.
MA Fashion Media Production graduate Irene Rodriguez.
Why did you choose LCF and MA Fashion Media Production?
Coming from a very different education approach, I chose LCF because I wanted to develop my identity as a practitioner in more artistic and academic ways – I believed LCF could offer this. I always had broad skills and interests, so I thought this course would allow me to explore different fields in fashion communication, from moving image to art direction.
What did you enjoy most about the course, and what did you find most challenging?
I liked the cross-disciplinary nature of the course. You can choose to focus on photography, short film, art direction, digital media or installation. Also, the possibility to work with industry companies during the Collaborative Unit, such as Diesel in my case, allowed me to collaborate with students from other courses, as well as seeing the group project come to life. On a Masters level, the most challenging part was that the course is very self-directed and sometimes it is not easy to develop project by yourself, especially because you have to learn a lot on your own.
MA Fashion Media Production graduate Irene Rodriguez.
What is your favourite thing about studying in London?
Definitely just being in a multicultural city as London is a source of inspiration as anywhere else. All positive and negative aspects of this city have been inspiring for my creative work.
Have you undertaken any work experience or placements whilst at LCF?
I worked part time as picture editor assistant for a photography agency based in Richmond, where I learned a lot and got an insight in the photography environment.
Describe your work in five words…
Self-reflective, minimal, deconstructed, contemporary and digital.
Who is your biggest inspiration or muse?
I don’t have a muse but I get a lot of inspiration from everything that surrounds me, as well as cinema and artists of the past. Especially the creative approaches of Leonardo Da Vinci and Bruno Munari, both are a source of inspiration to me.
What are your future plans and how do you think the course has helped you realise this?
Definitely! The course helped me to understand better my skills and interests. Future plans are still unclear, especially because I’m interested in broad fields; for the moment I am hoping to develop further my skills in art direction and photography.
LCF moving to Stratford: What do you think about the university moving east?
I think they will miss the campus in central London, but it is great to have one place where students can move from studios to the library in the same building!
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