More Research

I have been doing some more research in to the fashion industry as a lot of the information I had found previously was about international clothing chains. I watched a 3rd Degree investigation in to fast fashion in New Zealand which revealed that the Just Group (Just Jeans, Jay Jays, Dotti etc.) is yet to sign a legally binding agreement to improve working conditions in Bangladesh. This confirms that disasters like the Rana Plaza are very relevant to New Zealand consumers.

Interim

Today we had interim, I showed three ideas and got mixed feedback. At first people in my group liked the fashion crime poster, but it was pointed out that there was no connection to child labour, which is obviously crucial. I only made it yesterday and at the time it seemed to make sense but hearing feedback it's good to realise that it isn't really working. People also felt that the sequin face wasn't clear enough. The one I had least refined was the zip but everyone felt it was the clearest message, so I will try and continue with that.

Exploring other ideas

Today in class we tried to refine our ideas and to continue exploring possibilities. Ive been thumbnailing more ideas but still want to try continue with my sequin face and refine it more. Also the zip idea seems simple and clear, but also needs refining.

Superstore Focus

I have decided to focus on fashion superstores, and taking a negative stance against their exploitation of workers throughout their supply chain, paying people extremely low wages, and making them work in dangerous conditions in order to make a profit while maintaining low prices.

Topic & Initial Research

I have chosen the superstores as the social issue I am going to focus on. I watched an undercover BBC investigation in to the working conditions in Amazon's warehouses which showed how exploitative the company is, putting stress on their workers by literally making them run against the clock for every item they have to pick off the shelf. I was frustrated with the power that superstores like amazon have, as they can get away with so much, so obviously I am going to take a stance against superstores.

I also found an inforgraphic detailing the aggressive tactics Amazon uses:

Initial Concepts

I've been working on some concepts, a lot of them to do with child labour and just generally who is making your clothes and the conditions under which they are made. I've been playing with using objects of garment making, e.g. needles, thread, zips and trying to arrange them in ways that show them in an oppressing way.
One of the things I was drawn to was using sequins after seeing the BBC panorama expose showing people sewing sequins for tiny wages in back streets. I feel that sequins are a juxtaposition to this, being a symbol of tacky glamour and fast fashion, when behind the scenes is an exploited work force.

Garment Industry research

I have been researching stories about the fashion industry and the exploitative practices they use to produce their clothes and found a lot of information that it is hard to know where to start. One of the most stocking things, was a BBC panorama investigation in to Primark, which found children adding finishings such as sequins to garments in back streets and homes for tiny wages. And even worse was that they were told that people in refugee camps were also being exploited as they had no other way to earn money.