The MA22 cohort at London College of Fashion showcases the breadth of talent that our students possess. Across the fields of visual communication, design and business, this year's set of students have taken inspiration from themes including gender fluidity, human connection and, from a sartorial perspective, innovative pattern cutting.
LCF Stories reached out to Heyun Pan, a MA Fashion Design Technology (Menswear) graduate. Heyun's body centred, futuristic menswear collection is stunning, and we wanted more insight into the process behind its development.
How has your research influenced you to develop your innovative stitching techniques?
This project is based on the neglected emotions in contemporary people's daily life. I have done a series of research on human visibility and invisibility. Taking the mobility of human structure points as the research basis, the garment structure is planarized by using the grid layout method. This research makes my design method guide the strip pattern cutting design methodology. In order to ensure the uniqueness of strip pattern cutting, the combination of topstitching and hand sewing with design methodology is the focus of my research in this project, because in the process of exploring garment manufacturing, I found that the traditional stitching method would greatly weaken the structure of the garment.
In order to keep the edges of the fabrics clean and separated, I cut them by laser cutting. In this case, the ordinary stitching method was more similar to the traditional cut line, rather than protruding the strip, leaving a sharp edge after cutting. The hand sewing method is formed by cutting the seam of the bonded fabric and then sewing it by hand, which is also suitable for the characteristics of the bonded fabric. Therefore, the combination of these two stitching techniques with cutting fabrics is a unique and innovative part of the process.
From a designer’s perspective, what is the relationship between your garments and the bodies of wearers?
The body is the centre, which is the reference and starting point of fashion design. In this project, I mainly studied the important role of garments in covering and exposing the body. To some extent, the exposed parts of clothing for people are related to their "impression of others" in the social background. Therefore, the exposed part of the skin, the degree of exposure and the coverage of clothes affect people's objective perception to a great extent.
In addition, the body can be understood as a journey between one fixed point and another. This means that the appearance of the body is affected by this invisible movement, which changes with perception and defines itself according to the movement point of the replacement body. Therefore, the fluidity of the human body can change the structure of the garment, and the garment structure can shape the body shape within a certain range.
Which thoughts do you want the public to take with them after viewing your collection?
The signature of brand design is one of the most important factors because it can well attract the public's vision and has a certain degree of transmissibility. Therefore, in addition to focusing on the unique design method and signature fabric technology, I also focused on the design of colour and pattern. The garments in this collection use a large proportion of colours with low saturation and a small amount of 'high-purity colours'. The combination of pattern design and pattern cutting also better highlights the changes of colour in the body. I hope to raise the public's attention and interest through colour matching and patterns.
What particular challenges have you faced during the production of your final showcase and how did you overcome them?
There were many challenges in final production. For example, the manufacturing process of fabric is almost an insurmountable mountain. Because of different bonding processes, the use of different fabrics and bonding technology, various reasons determine whether the final result can perfectly realise my design. In this process, I used hot-melt adhesives to conduct a manual bonding test on two different fabrics (wool, cotton, etc.), but the results showed that the firmness of the fabrics after bonding was not enough, and the fabrics could not get a clean edge.
On the other hand, the strip design methodology greatly increases the number and uncertainty of experiments, because different folding methods, coverage sizes and angles are enough to affect the design presentation of the silhouette, and the inclined angle between strips also affects the fitness of garment on the human body. This undoubtedly increased the difficulty of the experiment. I had to repeat the experimental steps until the perfect solution appeared. In this process, time planning is particularly important. Making a plan in advance is to ensure that all design processes will not become chaotic.
Do you have any particular highlights from your time on the course?
When reviewing this project, I think this project forced me to break through the boundaries of traditional tailoring, decompose and reorganize the garment structure through the investigation of the human body and clothing space, so as to develop a unique design methodology. Through this course, I have acquired and developed many skills in personal creativity and tailoring knowledge.
What are your hopes and plans for life after graduation?
I hope that design is not only a means of making a living but also a dazzling moment in life. In the process of learning, I am also constantly thinking, and my understanding of design is refreshing again and again. Of course, in the future, I will understand different design methods. The methods will never have specific advantages and disadvantages. I just hope that the exploration and pursuit of design will never stop.
In the future, I plan to use the design points I formed this year for development and extension. In addition, entering a brand internship would also be an important direction of development for me. It is hoped that I can try to find more materials and technical methods to create a new fashion collection, combining sustainable development, and creating unique fashion aesthetics.
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