BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Surface Textiles
'Beauty Pressure' is a new collection by innovative knitwear designer Katie Witham. The collection takes inspiration from societies obsession with changing, altering and improving bodies to achieve cultural perceptions of beauty. Katie studied this recent obsession looking closely at body building, dieting, scarification and cosmetic surgery while focusing on the most extreme and grotesque cases. Knitwear has been created and designed to deliberately distort the body in order to show the effect that surgery and diet can have on the female form. Sculptural over sized silhouettes feature strongly in the collection, Katie studied restricted garments worn by performance artist Leigh Bowery and huge sculptures by Henry Moore resulting in highly unique silhouettes for knitwear design. African scarification and etchings in paintings by Pablo Picasso inspired Katie to create bold jacquard patterns. Vibrant primary colours lay next to soft creams and shades of grey which was inspired by Hans Bellmer's photographs of mutated dolls. Garments in the collection show case over sized strategically placed sock heels knitted with chunky felted wool. Other garments consist of paint covered cottons which use Katie's own new knitting techniques and expressive use of paint. Katie was selected for The British Fashion Council graduate preview day 2013, resulting in her work being photographed and shown in the London College of Fashion 2013 annual. Katie has also been selected to show her work at the prestigious London College of Fashion Press Exhibition 2013. Other achievements include being nominated by her tutors for Texprint 2013. CV Education London College of Fashion Foundation Degree Fashion Design Technology: Knitwear September 2010 - June 2012 BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: SurfaceTextiles Top up Year September 2012 - June 2013 Northbrook College Sussex BTEC National Diploma Fashion Clothinig with Textiles September 2007 - May 2009 Level Achieved - Distinction Blatchington Mill School September 2001 - May 2006 11 GCSE Passes Work Experience Knit-1, Fashion Textile Design Company Sample Intern (August 2011) Assisting with production of textile samples to be sold internationally. Craig Lawrence, Fashion Knitwear Designer Studio Assistant (May 2010 - September 2010) Assisting Craig Lawrence with the production of A/W 2010 and S/S 2011 in the run up to London Fashion Week. Highlights included the production of a fashion video and working to create a presentation at London Fashion Week. Achievement and Accolades - British Fashion Council, Graduate Preview Day 2013. Final Major Project work selected for London College of Fashion 2013 annual. - London College of Fashion Press Exhibition 2013 - Texprint Nominee 2013 - Selected by Tutors Skills Textile Skills - Dubied Machine Knitting - Domestic Machine Knitting - Hand Knitting and Crochet - Producing Samples / Swatches - Knowledge in Screen and Open Screen Printing - Sketching - Painting Fashion Skills - Hand and Machine Sewing - Production of Fully Fashioned Knit Garments - Basic Pattern Cutting - Jersey and Woven - Drawing and Technical Drawing (Hand Rendered) - Drawing and Technical Drawing (CAD) - Illustration (Hand Rendered) - Illustration (Multi - Media) - Manufacture Domestic and Industry Machinery - Research and Referencing IT Skills - PC and Mac Literate - Adobe Photoshop - Adobe Illustrator - Adobe In-Design - Microsoft Excel - Microsoft Word Management Skills - Arranging photo shoots - Sourcing models / dealing with agencies - Sourcing locations and studios - Client liason - Press Office liaison