Specialized Studios II FINAL

Title: TRANS-

Course name/number: SS 2: Collection Men’s / PUFD 3331

Collection brief:

My collection of this semester started with the idea of fashion business in and throughout North Korea. I am expecting a great potential in fashion industries in North Korea because their business environments have not developed as much as other countries due to various limitation from their ideology and sanctions from the complex diplomatic relationships. I also think that since geographical reason, North Korea is a significant location to trade from Asia to Europe and vice versa. Additionally, North Korea could contribute to high quality and economical labor sources for the productive fashion business. From those ideas, I have researched geopolitics, conflicts, and history in the Korean Peninsula because the particular situation in the Korean Peninsula requires those background knowledge and information as a base in order to reach the successful fashion business. While I was studying those subjects such as law, history, etc., I felt sadness because of the painful history in the Korean Peninsula and it is frustrating to be separated by the historical incidents such as unfair treaties and wars. I started to design my collection from the conflicts, separation, misinterpretation, distortion and those concepts turned into creating optical illusions on my clothing. Then, I wanted to develop my collection further so, I used layering and check patterns to deliver the idea of re-joining and connection. I have tried to approach to make a garment with non-typical patterns and unusual closers. Although my topic is inevitably related to history, I tried not to bring the elementsKorean traditional garments into my collection. I also do not want to stick with the stereotypical North Korea fashion style. I used grey color mostly for this collection and it means literally, there are not only black and white in the Korean Peninsula. People need to be more opened and flexible to this issue because no can answer right and wrong on these complicated relationships and history. I also use brighter colors like lemon color and pink for my spring/summer collection and they convey the positive forecast and hope in the Korean Peninsula. Along with the unique closers and details, I attempt to make the construction as simple and minimalistic which is I had never tried before. Despite the minimalistic design, I played with various colors as long as the color balances are harmonized. I hope to finish my collection to harmonized design and colors with subtle details to express my belief that business is not only for profits but also it deeply affects human lives, a good business can improve human rights.

Process images

Sketches