Fashion Symposium: Fashion Conversations at Museum of Vancouver

November 14, 2015

Organized by Dr. Katrina Sark, author of "Montreal Chic: A locational History of Montreal Fashion" (2016) co-founder of the "Urban Chic" series (Intellect Press), and founder of the Canadian Fashion Scholars Network, and Gregory Dreicer, Director of Curatorial and Engagement at the Museum of Vancouver, this was a great opportunity to learn and talk about research and practice in the world of Fashion. This entire day, following on the previous evening of "Why I Design", featured a dynamic exchange of ideas between scholars, business professionals, bloggers, designers, collectors, and neighbors, who are always curious about MOV programs and events, and are lucky enough to be so close to a wonderful resource, in a gorgeous setting. Kat has launched a website: Canadian Fashion Scholars Network - to "foster a community between Canadian fashion scholars and professions.

We attended the afternoon session and I'm including a few notes from each presentation below the event photos.

Myriam LaRoche, Founder of ECO Fashion Week

Myriam wearing a fabulous coat from Claus' collection

Claus Jahnke narrates the story behind a coat from his collection

The label and the lining

Ivan Sayers - Fashion and History come alive

Parker McIntosh - Old and New

Parker with confidence and style

Photo by Kat Sark - Fashion Symposium

Myriam Laroche, Founder of Eco Fashion Week, Vancouver

ECO Fashion events in Vancouver, involves partnerships to educate about the negative effects of fast fashion, mindless consumption and depletion of natural and human resources. ECO Fashion is everyone's responsibility. We have to have conversations about how to recycle better. We have to stop the blame game and take positive steps forward. One small but powerful event required us to wear our clothing inside out to display manufacturing labels. Looking at our own plus others' was a powerful lesson in ECO Fashion.

Photo by Kat Sark - Fashion Symposium

Katherine Soucie, Fashion Designer of Sans Souchie
Read more about her fantastic story in "Life Outside The Box: The Extraordinary Journeys of 10 Unique Individuals", by Marilyn R. Wilson. I have what I call, an art blouse, made by Katherine. It is made of pantyhose but so beautifully dyed (ECO, naturally and locally produced) that it is yet another example of recycling, upcycling and multipurposing everything, including waste.

Photo by Kat Sark - Fashion Symposium

Suzi Webster, Emily Carr University 

Technology and fashion and how they can intersect and become a familiar, comfortable part of what we wear and how we accessorize our lives.

Photo by Kat Sark - Fashion Symposium

Claus Jahnke, Fashion Collector and Historian, Vancouver

Researcher and Collector of German and Austrian clothing 18th-20th centuries. How politics and economics affect clothing manufacturing and design and history through style and labels. Claus should be part of every high school social studies curriculae and his collection is an absolute record of what happened in Germany.

Photo by Kat Sark - Fashion Symposium

Ivan Sayers, Simon Fraser University, Fashion Collector and Historian, Vancouver

'I work very hard for my audiences", he says and he is a non stop presenter at museums, galleries, costume societies, universities and all sorts of fundraisers. A life time collector and curator, Ivan's love of history and putting it all together, accurately, through his extensive collection, always brings the world right to you, in his selections, descriptions and stories. He does go out to the schools, but again, he has much to add to many of the courses.

Photo by Kat Sark - Fashion Symposium

Alano Edzerza, Fashion Designer and Artist of Edzerza Gallery, Vancouver

Alano is a gallery owner, designer, artist and teacher. He made jackets for the Dutch Olympic Team in 2010 and has his work displayed at the Museum of Anthropology here and at museums in Ottawa. Using his own family's and many other traditional First Nations patterns, he constantly highlights the importance of First Nations Culture in Canada and all over the world. The question, "How can designers tastefully and respectfully incorporate elements of First Nations (or any culture) into their work?", is key.

Photo by Kat Sark - Fashion Symposium

Kat Ferneyhough, Co-Founder of Vancouver Alternative Arts And Fashion Week (VALT)

She and Kat Kozak, launched VALT here, in 2012. Having seen it in Toronto and loving it as a side by side 'must' with Toronto Fashion Week, I was excited to see it, in all its Art, Glory and Statement, on the runway, especially at the Labor Centre and most recently, at the Chinese Cultural Centre.  VALT is both hard work and a labor of love.  It is slow fashion, ethnically representative, inclusive, ageless, technological, fun, serious, artistic, political and wearable in all seasons and forever.

Photo by Kat Sark - Fashion Symposium

Valerie d. Walker, Transmedia and Radio Artists, Concordia University

"Make beautiful things that don't destroy other beautiful things." Valerie talked about using natural, non toxic dyes and the use of natural indigo in Japan, where there is very little waste.  For her, garbage can be joy if it is repurposed in safe and creative ways. An Engineer, she has the experience and the scientific knowledge to teach others about natural dyes, sustainable practice and reducing environmental impact. Loved her soft and intricately patterned textile samples.  Wanted to make something with them, right away.

Photo by Kat Sark - Fashion Symposium

Parker McIntosh, Victorian Men's Fashion Designer, Vancouver

This is a very young Vancouver designer of Victorian Men's Fashions.  He wore a suit, including top coat, Beaver Hat and walking stick and can make them all, himself.  He drafts his own patterns and uses wools, linens and materials appropriate to the period.  He has access to Ivan Sayer's collection, and mentorship.  We will be seeing a lot more of his work, in the very near future.

Photo by Kat Sark - Fashion Symposium

Helene Day Fraser, Emily Carr University of Art and Design, lead researcher at Clothing(s) as Conversation.

Echoing Myriam Laroche's message that we must talk about clothing, consumer habits, production and its impacts on the environment, sustainability and more, Fraser is also about partnerships and finding out what others are doing in terms of "...new ways to design, produce and wear clothing." We also need to ensure that practices are written up, catalogued and accessible so there is a research record, and a sharing of what can be improved.

It was inspiring to hear and chat with researchers from so many disciplines and from universities and colleges local and across Canada.  All speakers were so committed to responsible fashion, to best practices and to inviting us to join them in buying local, supporting artists, designers, writers, and researchers in sustainability.