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- Luke Bullen & Jana Dahmen, BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear
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- Luke Bullen & Jana Dahmen, BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear
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- Luke Bullen & Jana Dahmen, BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear
LCF News caught up with BA14 graduate, Luke Bullen, as his collaboration with Jana Dahmen has recently been selected for the Fashion Scout Graduate Showcase. The two BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear alumni only graduated this year. Luke told us what to expect from the pair for London Fashion Week SS15.
Proof that amazing work can still be created on a budget, Luke used his passion for creative writing and illustration to create an innovative collection.
LCF News: Tell us what your SS15 collection is about…
Luke: My SS15 collection came from a long road of changes and different ideas. I like balancing contrasts and so I was playing with the idea of using cheap materials but using them in a way to make them look luxurious and also not having much of budget I hand painted all my illustrations onto the garments which where all telling different parts of a story I had written over the summer. So initially the collection was about creating garments around characters I had written about in a fable. Taking part in a lot different projects around LCF and being selected for the BA14 Runway Show further pulled my collection in a lot of different directions.
LCF News: How do you feel to be included in Fashion Scout’s Graduate Showcase?
Luke: I was and still am absolutely flabbergasted. I still can’t quite believe my collaboration partner and I were chosen. It’s such a great honour and most of all it’s just very moving to me that other people or someone else liked the collection enough or sees something in it. I’m very lucky.
LCF News: Why did you feel inspired to study Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear?
Luke: I come from a fine art background and was interested in learning about fashion but also wanted full creative freedom, so I decided to choose womenswear.
LCF News: Who or what has inspired you creatively in your life?
Luke: Anything and everything can trigger an emotion and idea or a story that I then try to capture in a piece. Before studying fashion, I only knew of a few fashion designers and one in particular, which was Alexander McQueen I was greatly impressed by. So much so, that after years of developing and exploring my own style, I think my own personal aesthetic still gravitates slightly towards a McQueen aesthetic.
LCF News: What is most important to you when designing?
Luke: This is hard to put into words – I usually illustrate more than actually designing as I like to create a developed person and personality and mood for the garment to tell a story. But when doing a design, the overall shape and proportion is the most important thing to me, to get an overview of what you want to develop or create. I try to not take it too seriously as it should be fun and that’s when sometimes the best ideas come to paper.
LCF News: Who would be the ideal wearer of your designs?
Luke: For my graduate collection it would be my slightly eccentric friends in London with a penchant for the dramatic. I designed the whole collection considering if it would be wearable, as I wanted the garments to have a life after graduation, in the wardrobes of my friends but as for the BA14 Runway Show, that was more of a show collection exploring further ideas and concepts.
LCF News: How do you feel London as a city has influenced you creatively?
Luke: I think greatly because whether consciously or not, you will feed from your environment and you are pushed and challenged by the standard and creativity of others and with London being the creative and cultural melting pot that it is, there is a lot to be inspired by.
LCF News: What are your plans for the future?
Luke: I don’t have any plans yet as such, I will try and apply for some jobs and take it from there. Whether I end up in fashion or not I will still always be doing my own projects on the side as I still have a lot I’d like to explore.
LCF News: What advice would you give to someone wanting to study your course at LCF?
Luke: Be passionate about what you do, be prepared to work extremely hard and most importantly don’t forget to have fun with what you’re doing.