Kickstart of Parsons MFA Textile Program
About two months ago, we had our full staff meeting for the brand new Parsons MFA textile program (https://www.newschool.edu/parsons/mfa-textiles) at the New School.
There are less than 10 teachers, 17 students for the first semester of this program. We are covering areas from smart textiles, textile embellishment, the business of textile industry and textile histories.
I am in co-teaching with one of the founders of experimental fashion studio, threeASFOUR, Gabriel Asfour for the major studio high-tech textile class. We are leading students to find what kind of technology and interaction they are drawn to. We also help them find their ways in research and develop their own technology and design philosophy.
For my first week of introduction, I want to give everyone a brief presentation to the landscape of creative smart textile. These examples below expressed a few different ways creatives have been incorporating electronic technology with textile elegantly:
Also, a brief video filmed by the Verge of my own studio’s work, Wearable Media.
I also have a starters list for my students to begin their own research on smart textile. These are some inspiring designers and entrepreneur in the field of smart textile.
Despina Papadopoulos
Ying Gao
Sabine Seymour
Maddy Maxey
Billie Whitehouse
Barbara Layne
Marina Toeters
Cindy Hsin-Liu Kao
Pauline van Dongen
Iris van Herpen
Rebeccah Pailes-Friedman
