Threads of Home: LCF Graduates create an immersive VR exploration

From traditional illustration and storytelling to immersive virtual reality, throughout the course our BA (Hons) Fashion Imaging and Illustration students have the opportunity to tell stories through a wide range of different media.

Threads of Home is a 360° virtual reality film that invites viewers into an immersive exploration of South Asian culture, identity and belonging. Developed by students and graduates from BA (Hons) Fashion Imaging and Illustration at London College of Fashion, the project brings together illustration, storytelling and digital image-making to create a sensory experience shaped by community voices.

Created in partnership with Newham Libraries, The Space, Cream Productions and Arts Council England, Threads of Home was showcased as part of LCF After Dark: Past/Future Patterns, reflecting the course’s focus on socially engaged, collaborative practice.

Community-led storytelling

The project began during South Asian Heritage Month, with a series of creative workshops delivered across Newham. Led by artist Isher Dhiman, these sessions invited local communities to reflect on their lived experiences through mindful drawing, writing and shared storytelling. Participants explored ideas of home through memories of family traditions, celebration and everyday moments, producing a rich collection of illustrations and narratives rooted in personal experience.

This body of work became the foundation for Threads of Home, ensuring that the visual language of the film was shaped directly by the voices and stories of the communities it represents.

From illustration to immersive experience

Drawing on this archive of community-generated material, LCF graduates Ayushi Banerjee, Ivana Lam, Khadijah Bailey and Paulina Prawdjik developed the visual direction and storyboard for the VR film.

Using skills developed through BA (Hons) Fashion Imaging and Illustration, they translated handmade illustrations and recorded stories into digital assets, combining colour, texture, sound and movement to build an immersive virtual environment.

Their approach reflects the course’s emphasis on experimentation across image-making practices, where illustration, photography and digital media are used together to communicate ideas and narratives in new ways.

A sensory journey through memory

The film is guided by a narrative written by Newham-based writer Sharmila Chauhan and voiced by actor Shona Gulati. Viewers are taken through a sequence of memories that draw on family rituals, festive moments and emotional connections, offering a layered portrait of what home can represent across generations.

By blending visual storytelling with sound and movement, Threads of Home creates space for reflection on identity, memory and belonging, while highlighting the role of fashion imaging and illustration in shaping immersive cultural experiences.

Studying BA (Hons) Fashion Imaging and Illustration

For students on the course, projects like Threads of Home are an opportunity to experiment, collaborate and push the boundaries of traditional illustration. It encourages students to explore image-making in its broadest sense, developing technical skills alongside conceptual thinking and collaborative practice.

Through live projects, partnerships and experimentation with emerging technologies, students build portfolios that reflect both creative range and critical engagement with contemporary themes.

Discover how BA (Hons) Fashion Imaging and Illustration can help you develop your creative voice and explore new forms of visual storytelling.