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Met-a-porter: UEL students create high-couture from free papers

Wednesday 30 March 2011

UEL students model their dresses

Art Foundation students at the University of East London found fame last week when pictures of their imaginative designs, made from recycled copies of the Metro newspaper, were published in the multimillion circulation newspaper.

The aim of the project was to ‘Recycle, Recreate and Illustrate’ using only the ubiquitous free paper. Primary research was conducted looking at a number of sources from fashion designers to architecture, after which, the students explored a wide variety of paper folding, origami and construction techniques and created a series of design ideas and 3D samples. They were then split into groups of four or five and asked to create a garment, pooling the most inventive of their ideas together. Lastly they had to produce A0 size colour illustrations. All of the dresses were made in one day, each using between 15 and 20 copies of the newspaper.

To really show off the outfits a photo-shoot was organised, demonstrating that the designs were not only worthy of any catwalk but also genuinely wearable (although perhaps not in the rain!) The Metro was sufficiently impressed with the pictures to publish them in the paper last week.

Those involved in the photo-shoot: dress designers Amiera Mohey, Maddie Knight and Amulet Li, stylists Bettina Nelles and Huan Yang-Williams, photographer Riccardo Raspa and models Cristelle Delaporte, Grace-Blest-Hopley and Alma Jackson-Davis are all students who started at UEL this year.

Maddie Knight, one of the student designers, said: “The dresses were tricky to make because they had to be both elaborate and wearable. We all had the same materials and one day to make the garment. We all had searing glue-gun hands by the end of day!”

Course leader Kate Davey said: “All five groups produced the most outstanding and imaginative results for this project prompting me to feel they truly deserved some prestigiousrecognition for their talents and hard work.”

Now that the garments have caused a stir, it is hoped that they will be exhibited along with the accompanying illustrations, in a small show, later in the year.

Notes to Editors

The University of East London (UEL) is a global learning community with over 28,000 students from over 120 countries world-wide. Our vision is to achieve recognition, both nationally and internationally, as a successful and inclusive regional university proud of its diversity, committed to new modes of learning which focus on students and enhance their employability, and renowned for our contribution to social, cultural and economic development, especially through our research and scholarship. We have a strong track-record in widening participation and working with industry.

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