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by Purba | Oct 14, 2020 | Fashion Illustration |
For those who know Prada, they and everybody else should also know what Miuccia Prada, Italian head designer of Prada once said. She quoted, “Fashion is instant language”.
Getting deeper into this quote, we can discover how this quote can open many doors to learn and engage in the language itself. One of the ways is fashion illustration.
In other words, if fashion is a language, let fashion illustration be the words. Fashion illustration is, in fact, like a picture worth 1000 words. But doesn’t a curious mind want to know, what exactly fashion illustration is?
As Wikipedia would say- fashion illustration is the art of communicating fashion ideas in visual form. Now there’s going to be people who’ll think, “If this writer needs to quote directly from Wikipedia, I could’ve done it on my own”, right?
Well, defending on the writer’s side, there is actually more to it. Fashion illustration indeed is a form of art. But it not only visualizes the idea what a clothing should look like, but it also shapes the style of the current generation.
As fashion illustrator Graeme Aymer said, “Fashion illustration is a style itself, and it is currently enjoying a Renaissance”. Designing clothes through drawings and colors are the basic tools.
But an illustrator also has to think about the future before the actual creation of the clothes.
Fashion Illustration by hand. Image courtesy: Author.
Now the question is, what should an illustrator put into a fashion sketch? One must ensure to put embellishments, render the fabric accurately, put the prints and seams. But before all of these, one must know how to draw the human figure with appropriate body size, shape and most importantly- expression! You got to admit, a figure wearing clothes with profound expression is what catches the attention of clients and persuades them to buy the dress!
Putting aside all these somewhat boring theories, let’s look at something more interesting and fascinating. In the fashion world, broadly speaking, one can find fashion illustration to be of 2 types-
- The first type is what the writer would like to call ‘objective’. This refers to much realistic and sensible forms of arts. In this case, the fashion illustrator tries to put the fashion ideas in such a way so that the clients can easily understand what the clothing wants to say. Say, you are drawing a full-length evening gown made of silk with drapes and off-shoulder bodice, you may want to render the sketch off the fabric with shine and white highlights contrast to any other color you are using. And in case of making the sketch more ‘sensible’, one can try to sketch the figure with 8-head, 9-head or 10-head figures with appropriate measurements. This makes the sketch more lively and more relevant to real human figure.
This type of illustration helps the client to know exactly what the final outfit is going to be and this also helps to produce the garment if it is thought to be made in bulk.
As you’re interested in Fashion Illustration, you’ll also be excited to check 12 Fashion Illustrations Done by Students Which Will Blow Your Mind!
Now if an illustrator is enthusiastic and a big-dreamer who wants to start their own clothing business or wants to work with a design team, one must know the following 6 types of fashion sketches-
- Fashion Flat:
Fashion flats. Image source: Pixabay
This is a 2D sketch normally made in black & white. It can sometimes be a rough sketch. If further the designer has a solid idea, one can add details and color to the garment.
- Tech Sketch:
Tech sketch. Image source: makersow.com
In this case, some details are added to the fashion flat in written form.
- Spec: Specs have precise presentations of the illustration with specifications added such as trims, seams, cost, manufacturing process etc.
Specs. Image source: Online clothing study.
- Working Drawing: This drawing is made specifically for the pattern maker who would make pattern pieces according to the pattern drawings illustrated here.
- Presentation Drawing: This is made for the client or producer to make them visualize the final dress.
Presentation drawing. Image courtesy: Courtney Trowbridge
- Fashion Croquis: The term Croquis refers to ‘sketch’ in French. This is a template drawing over which one can trace and draw a garment to remake it or to modify it. There are great books for helping in drawing fashion flats that also provides croquis.
Fashion Croquis. Image source: Shutterstock
Well, this objective drawing is now what makes the fashion world go forward. In many cases, designers or illustrators can recreate already famous dresses by adding their own persona but still keeping it sensible to the viewers on what the dress is actually defining.
- Now the other type of illustration is both old and new. This is something that can be called ‘abstract’. In this case, you as an illustrator can draw fashion sketches in your own twisted and unreasonable way. There is no standard measurement, rather however you present a theme of a dress, it is perfect in any way. Although these illustrations are somewhat difficult to comprehend, they do give the essence to exaggerated and independent taste.
One of the famous fashion illustrators is Antonio Lopez. This Puerto Rican illustrator was famous for his illustrations being futuristic, bold and dynamic. His first works of art was named El Museo del Barrio, which was made in 1978 using watercolors and pencils. You will definitely notice how the body structure and shape of the garment looks absurd but that is the way this creates the modern art look, putting fashion as a form of visual ornament in a non-representative way.
This form of illustrations is highly used to recreate already made garments in a new style to promote them in magazines and books and also to keep them in the history of fashion. This unusual type of illustrations are now becoming popular day-by-day, although these forms of art had a decline in the late 30’s when the magazine covers started to use photographic images instead of abstract arts.
Tasphia Zaman Department of Textile Fashion and Design, Bangladesh University of Textiles. ID: 2018-1-6-009, TFD-44
As you have read this interesting article about ‘illustration, no illusion’, you might want to learn how to do beautiful fashion illustrations. So, we have covered that for you here!
Free and Paid Fashion Illustration Courses for you
As you’re interested in Fashion Illustration, you’ll also be excited to check 12 Fashion Illustrations Done by Students Which Will Blow Your Mind!
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by Purba | Oct 13, 2020 | Our works, The story of Fashionnovation |
Digital Wall Magazine: The Very First of Its Kind in The Varsity!
In 2019, we felt that there isn’t any platform for the TFDians to publish their write ups though they are extremely talented in writing.
Kazi Purba, being a writer of Kaler Kantho and Textile Today himself, immediatedly took a decision to do something for it. He asked Md. Mahamudul Hasan and got his positive feedback. As there wasn’t any funding, Kazi Purba came up with a new form of magazine-‘Digital wall magazine’ and launched ‘Ronger Jadukor’ with his hard earned money from feature writing!
All the students who wrote in Ronger Jadukor, showed that we, the TFDians are not only creative in drawing, painting, we are also master at writing.
The students from TFD-43, 44 came up with wonderful stories, poems and illustrations. we became overwhelmed by reading all of the writings and a seed of another venture started to grow in his mind.
What’s the venture? Well, let’s keep it a secret now! By this time, the venture is well alive. If you are a member of Fashionnovation, you already know it. But if you aren’t, you just need to keep patience and go through our next history timeline writings!
Kazi Farhan Hossain Purba, the Founder and President of Fashionnovation standing beside the digital wall magazine ‘Ronger Jadukor’. He is also the editor and publisher of the magazine
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by Purba | Oct 13, 2020 | Our works, The story of Fashionnovation |
Back in 2018, there wasn’t any platform for the students of the Department of Textile Fashion and Design (DoTFD) of Bangladesh University of Textiles (BUTEX) to express their artistic minds and to showcase their creative works. Being the most creative bunch of students by nature, there was no place for them to show their talent. There wasn’t any activity driven space for them and so it felt like the death of some creative souls in a puddle while they should be diving in an ocean. This situation always bothered a then second year student studying in the same department. This predicament made him to dream big. He started to talk about his dreams with his classmates and his mentors Dr. Abbas Uddin Shiyak, the Assistant Professor of Dyes and Chemical Engineering and Md. Mahamudul Hasan, the Head of the Department of Textile Fashion and Design. With everybody’s inspiration the boy decided to set sail. He took the decision to make something big with all what he had-his friends, his juniors, his mentors and his ambition to conquer.
That student is none other than our Kazi Farhan Hossain Purba, the founder of Fashionnovation. With courage and belief, Kazi Farhan Hossain Purba started from the scratch. He asked his classmates to be the host and the students of Batch: 44 who were then studying in the first year to be their guests for a knowledge based quiz competition. Everyone unanimously joined the event. All the teachers happily gave their consent and Ummey Hani Barsha, the Faculty of the department joined the event as the judge. Thus the first ever fashion based quiz competition of Bangladesh University of Textiles (BUTEX) if not of the entire country came into being. A new era of creativity and extracurricular activities started with a shine on the 7th of July 2018.
Kazi Farhan Hossain Purba, the founder and president of Fashionnovation is anchoring the final round!
Our special guest of the event Ummey Hani Barsha, the Adjunct Faculty of Department of Textile Fashion and Design handing over the prize to the champion team
A group photo of all the participants along with our special guest
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by Purba | Oct 13, 2020 | Our works, The story of Fashionnovation |
Fashionnovation is a hub of energetic youths who are committed to change the world positively through fashion and innovation.
This is a platform of the students of Textile Fashion and Design which helps them to unite, learn and showcase their creative works.
Founded by Kazi Farhan Hossain Purba, a student of Bangladesh University of Textiles (BUTEX), this platform initiated its journey by encouraging the students of BUTEX’s Department of Textile Fashion and Design to know more about fashion by arranging a quiz competition named Fashioknowledge Fiesta.
Our Founder and President Kazi Purba giving his speech on the cultural event of Saree Punjabi day.
With the passage of time this organization has arranged many seminars, webinars and competitions to help and encourage the fashion students.
Now Fashionnovation is in its way to unite all the fashion institutes of Bangladesh and other countries to give the momentum to encourage and to be encouraged.
The fast fashion’s devastating role on the humans and the environment always bothered us. That’s why our goal is to preach sustainability in the fashion sector of Bangladesh and other countries by creating an ideal model. For that we arrange knowledge based quiz competitions, create contents and update people with the latest news of fashion.
We are also on our way to create sustainable products using natural dyes and natural resources. The satisfaction of our journey lies in spreading light through fashion and innovation. That’s how we are up and running and going towards to reach our goals.
by Purba | Sep 27, 2020 | Our works, The story of Fashionnovation |
Fashionnovation is an extraordinary platform developed for the fashion loving students of BUTEX by Kazi Farhan Hossain Purba, and it is bound with an aim to bring new ideas & innovations in fashion which will be something out of the box! We are going to take you through the journey of Fashionnovation which is no less than a fairy tale!
Before knowing about Fashionnovation, we need to know at first what fashion means. Actually fashion means a popular trend, especially a styles of dress and ornament or manners of behavior accepted by a large number of people. And the word innovation means the process of coming with new methods, ideas or products. So, Fashionnovation the word stands for newly created designs, concepts or themes which are actually based on the main theme of fashion.
Fashionnovation was established by Kazi Farhan Hossain Purba who is a student of batch 43 of Department of Textile Fashion & Design(TFD) of Bangladesh University of Textiles (BUTEX). Basically, Fashionnovation started its journey on the 7th of July, 2018 by arranging a fashion related quiz competition named “Fashioknowledge Fiesta”. By keeping the main theme or concepts of fashion, Kazi Farhan Hossain Purba and his team Fashionnovation organised competitive quiz competitions, prize giving events for inspiring book reading, Fashion Illustration competition, Fashion related courses, etc. for the textile engineers who are actually intersted in fashion design.
Kazi Farhan Hossain Purba, the founder and president of Fashionnovation is anchoring the final round!
Mr. Kazi Purba said about Fashionnovation, ”There are many meritorious students in the department of Textile Fashion & Design at BUTEX who have keen interest to do something innovative. When I was admitted into this department I perceived that we need a platform by which we can uphold our creative thinkings to the world. And from that realization I arranged “Fashioknowledge Fiesta” with my batchmates & juniors. When I was only in Level-02 Term-01 I started to give contexture of our dream institution Fashionnovation. We had lack of sponsors at the beginning but our thinking out of the box enabled us to overcome those unfavorable situations.”
“Fashioknowledge Fiesta” was a thrilling quiz competition based on the knowledge of the elements of fashion & basic fashion. In that competition there were 6 teams who participated spontaneously & every team consisted of 3 members. Those teams were named Applique, Pallab, Blooming Bud, Invincible, Third Degree Burn and Dream Team. With the combined efforts, love and strong interest of all participants and the active participation of TFD-44, this fascinating intradepartmental quiz competition was organized for the first time in the history of the University. Never before any quiz competition related to fashion was arranged in BUTEX, so it is the first of its kind in the university if not in Bangladesh There were a lot of good wishes and co-operation from all the teachers including respectable Assistant Professor Sutapa Chowdhury madam, Rebeka Sultana and current Head of the Department Md. Mahsmudul Hasan sir.
The competition was devided in many rounds based on some creative & intelligent questions related to fashion. Through competitive fights among those teams, team Applique & team Pallab went for the final & in the final round by keeping difference of 7 points with team Pallab, team Applique won that glamorous competition. The special guest, Ummey Hani Barsha rendered the most expected prize to the winning team,”Team Applique ” and the main part of the event ended with her concluding remarkable speech.
On 26th June of 2019, Fashionnovation published a digital wall magazine named “Rong er Jadukor” for the very first time at BUTEX. And during the pandemic situation of COVID-19, Fashionnovation didn’t sit workless. Kazi Farhan Hossain Purba, the Founder and President of Fashionnovation, took initiatives to arrange “Fashionknowledge Fiesta 2.0” for TFD batch:45. TFD-45 participated there spontaneously. It was also a fashion related quiz competiton and it was the second season of the flagship event of this organization.There were 4 teams consisting of 3 members in each & every team. Those teams named “The Kingpins”, ”SARS”, ”Fuego” & “The Counterfeiterz”.This event was the very first intradepartmental “Fashion related online quiz” event. Again there was no other online fashion quiz related event arranged in the university. Fashionnovation launched it for the first time in the university’s history. In the competition the teams had to face various questions and basic knowledge about fashion. After a hardcore battle between the teams, In the final, team “Sars “became the champion and the team “Fuego” became the runner-up.
After that Mr. Kazi Purba also tried to introduce Fashionnovation with the totally new batch of BUTEX batch-46. Fashionnovation started an online course based on textile printing on 11th May of 2020. Mr.Shawkat Hossain Sohel, chief designer of Unifill Composite Dyeing Mills Ltd., who started teaching the members of Fashionnovation along with its guest members from Chittagong Unviersity, Jahangir Nagar University and Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University all over printing design,digital printing design, chest printing design & pattern design respectively. Mr. Sohel said, ”The fashion designers of our country make many innovative designs by their creative thinkings. But they have not enough knowledge about printing technology & so that they are unable to make a position in apparel fashion.” But he is optimists that the fashion designers will make a place in the international world swiftly. This online course was launched by respected head of TFD, Md. Mahamudul Hasan. And the special guests were Setara Begum, Head of the Department of textile at BUFT & Yesmin Tuli, Lecturer of Fashion Designing at NITER and hosted by .Kazi Farhan Hossain Purba. Batch 44, 45 & 46 of BUTEX participated in this course. And it is a matter of pride that now Fashionnovation is not closed only in the four walls of BUTEX. Because in this recent online printing course, with the students of BUTEX, the students of Chittagong University(CU), Mawlana Bhashani Science & Technology University (MBSTU), Jahangirnagar University (JU), Shanto Mariam University of Creative Technology & BGMEA University of Fashion and Technology (BUFT) are also participating.
After all, by participating in this kind of fascinating competitions, one can easily show his talent in fashion world. And it is a fantastic and great platform for a textile engineers to show his/her creativity, art work and the power of innovation. And ,we can say that Fashionnovation has started its journey not to be stopped at anywhere. And it has started with a dream to create a platform for the students of Department of Textile Fashion & Design to showcase their fashion related works, kindle their passion & love for fashion. So,we can hope that Fashionnovation will create knowledgeable fashion designers as well as textile engineers who will be able to represent Bangladesh to the whole world.
Nashita Ahmed
Department of Environmental Science and Engineering
Bangladesh University of Textiles (BUTEX)
Mahmud Hosen
Department of Fabric Engineering
Bangladesh University of Textiles (BUTEX)
You might be interested to know about a club called BUTEX Career Club with which Fashionnovation is a media partner. To make us your media partner, you can reach us at fashionnovationfd@gmail.com
