Welcome to the new Houndstooth Wrap – Houndstooth 2.0. We have migrated to RMIT WordPress hosting but you can still access all of our archival editions through the link in the Houndstooth Wrap Archives Post.
Spring time – Poorneet, Tadpole Season – in Melbourne is always a time of variety. We have hot days, with warm winds blowing in from the northern plains and cool days with night rain keeping our gardens hydrated.
In this month’s Houndstooth we meet TJ Cowlishaw, who visited the Brunswick campus from Perth to give us an inspiring presentation about her First Nations Fashion Label AARLI; learn about new collaboration between RMIT School of Fashion and Textiles and the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology (BIFT); hear from Daphne Mohajer va Pesaran, Lecturer in the Advanced Fashion Studios, who recently visited London as part of her British Museum Research Grant; see Elle Quebec that PhD candidate Rachel Lemarche-Beauchesne was featured in; and check in on our ladybirds, who were released into the Garden Studio last month and have happily made themselves at home.
AARLI
Friday 20 September
A very special event was held at the Brunswick campus on the 20th September. Teagan (TJ) Cowlishaw, Founder and Designer of First Nations Label AARLI and member of RMIT’s Ngamai Entrepreneurs Meet-Up Group, gave a presentation about her work in the Australian fashion industry. Teagan shared her journey, telling us about how she has built her brand with a conscience, focusing on ethical and sustainable practices, as well as her experiences as an indigenous entrepreneur.
AARLI is Australian sustainable and ethical street wear brand that specialises in custom streetwear, eco couture gowns and unisex and youth deadstock apparel. Since establishment in 2013, AARLI has endeavoured to build its own unique aesthetic through the use of next generation storytelling prints, sustainable fabrics and deadstock apparel partnerships.
TJ Cowlishaw’s kinship lies with the Bardi people (grandmother’s ancestry), Ardaloon of the Kimberleys, Western Australia (Family name: Hunter). She is a descendent of the Chinese Pirates of Shanghai (grandfather’s ancestry) (Family name: Jan), and was born and raised in Darwin, NT as well as growing up between Perth, Broome and Darwin. Her Indigenous heritage has led to the name of her label, AARLI, which means ‘the fish’ in Bardi language (from the Broome area in Western Australia).
TJ is Founder + Creative Director of AARLI as well as Assistant Producer working alongside Grace Lillian Lee on 2019’s ‘From Country to Couture’ event as part of the movement – ‘First Nations Fashion + Design’. She aims to empower an emerging generation of ‘Urban Warriors’, influence society’s perceptions of First Nations people, and provide developmental opportunities to continue storylines through platforms and programs which connect next generation creatives, designers and develops First Nations fashion designers and brands.
BIFT Visit
The School of Fashion and Textiles along with RMIT Global Development, recently hosted a delegation from Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology (BIFT). The Houndstooth Wrap got in touch with Deb Ives and Mick Peel to find out more about the visit.
“The delegation visit at the end of September followed some months of informal meetings with BIFT academics, at both the Brunswick and City campuses. The purpose of the visit was to work collaboratively in developing a joint award between the two institutions for an off-shore Bachelor of Fashion (Design) delivered in China. Dr. Denise Sprynskyj, along with Sang Thai, Kate Sala and Nyssa Marrow participated in presenting a snapshot of some of the new Bachelor of Fashion (Design) courses to the delegation. This is the beginning of what we hope to be an exciting and productive relationship between the staff at BIFT and our on-shore program, with opportunity for further future collaborations.
Prior to the formal meetings in September the School of F&T had welcomed BIFT academics Xiaotang (lecturer) and Associate Professor Liang Yan to Melbourne for a period of several months. During this time, they worked together with RMIT Fashion Design program staff to develop potential program structures and gain a deeper understanding of the fashion design discipline at RMIT. They expressed their appreciation for the warmth extended from the many staff they met and were a little sad to be leaving.”
We look forward to seeing this collaboration flourish!
British Museum Research Training
Lecturer in Fashion Design in the RMIT Advanced Fashion Studios, Daphne Mohajer va Pesaran, was recently awarded a grant from The British Museum through the Endangered Material Knowledge Programme (EMPKP). In September, she travelled to London to undertake a week of research training at The British Museum to prepare her for the research. The Houndstooth got in touch to hear more about the research training and the research Daphne will be conducting in 2020.
“This grant will enable me to travel back to Japan to document knowledge related to paper clothing (called Kamiko). Essentially, I will be gathering data (including drawings, photographs, audio, writing, video, maps – anything!) which documents knowledge (technical, legendary, historical, dreams, material/immaterial – anything!) related to Kamiko, especially that which is connected to Shiroishi, a small town in Japan’s northern mountains (宮城県白石市). This data will then be uploaded under a Creative Commons license into an open access archive to preserve it in the British Museum.
As part of the grant, I undertook a week-long research training program at the British Museum with other grant recipients. My cohort was a group of people from all over the world — Africa, South America, Oceania, Asia, Europe — and their projects were as diverse as their languages. Broom-making in Nigeria, honeybees in Kenya, pottery in the Amazon, wild silk harvesting in Benin. Here we were able to share our collective (or nonexistent) knowledge of data gathering equipment, as well as our reflections on how knowledge can (and should) be documented.
My strategy is to expand the scope of the research in terms of expressions of knowledge, modes of documentation, and research subjects, and then curate this data to a smaller selection to give to the British Museum. Rural paper-makers, monks, and locals are on board already, while my fingers are firmly crossed to get into the Issey Miyake archive to see his 1984 Kamiko pieces!
I am honoured to be a part of this programme, and will be doing the fieldwork aspect of the research project throughout 2020 with a rough aim to have the data made public in mid-2021 (seems so far away!).
Congratulations Daphne! We are so looking forward to hearing more about this very exciting project.
RMIT PhD Researcher in Elle Quebec
RMIT Fashion and Textiles PhD candidate Rachel Lemarche-Beauchesne was recently interviewed by Elle Quebec when she was in her native Canada. The feature was published in the November 2019 issue, which is also online here. Given that the article is in French, Rachel gave us her translation here:
Rachel Lamarche is a PhD student at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, in Australia. This Quebecer, who briefly worked for Stella McCartney, is researching fashion and its relationship to veganism and animal rights. She thinks that “fake fur is much more than a passing trend: it is the result of an increased awareness from the general public which is extremely positive.” What about leather? Isn’t it hypocritical for most of these brands to reject fur while creating leather goods? “I see it as a work-in-progress. Businesses follow the pace of consumers, and rejecting fur is the first phase of a reflexion around ethical fashion, she states. When innovative plant-based leather replacements become more accessible and allow for the creation of high quality products, brands will get on board.”
‘Garden Studio’ Growings and Ladybird Check-in
September to October is Poorneet, Tadpole Season. It’s true spring. Temperatures are rising. Migrating birds like the sacred king-fisher are returning south. Yams and water plants are ready for eating.
In the Brunswick Garden Studio, spring has sprung. Here are some Garden Diary notes from dye garden extraordinaire Dani Andree:
“Hey I noticed some pollen on the seed stalks of one of our swiss chard plants…pretty cool!
The bees are always having a party on the Lavender so planting them in the garden was definitely a good move.
The ladybirds seem really happy and settled in the Blood Sorrel pod – actually one of the plants has started sending up seed stalks!
Also, the Angelica looks like it’s seeding or going to flower – not sure which, but it is really very beautiful. The French Sorrel is also doing something, there are little tiny capsule type formations appearing.
I’ve noticed Woad and Weld sprouts coming through, the Red Clover is looking very vigorous, and the very first tiny Japanese Red Shiso sprout has appeared. The African Marigolds are blooming and the petals are quite wonderful and frilly.
The first Blueberries have appeared and there’s lots of new growth!
The Raspberries have some new growth,
The Foxglove is blooming…..wow! Check it out :)”
Our ladybirds have settled in and made themselves at home. Do pay them a visit if you’re on campus and fancy saying hi!
Remember to follow us on Facebook or Instagram for up to the minute Garden Studio updates.
As the weather is warming up we are putting out a request… for HATS!
Editor’s note: This is the last issue of Houndstooth compiled and edited by Harriette, who has been keeping the issues flowing since August 2018. Harriette will be handing over the Houndstooth baton to the very capable hands of Julie Macindoe, who starts in December. Do get in touch with Julie if you have exciting events you think the Houndstooth would be interested in profiling.