Summaries of country reports

According to the application and the agreements in the kick-off meeting the individual country reports have been written in the national language of each individual project partner. However, the project team agreed on writing a summary of the report in English. The collection of these summaries is available as separate document.

Please click on the image below to download:

Country report Austria

The country report from Austria is ready! For downloading please click on this image:

Lisbon - fashion study

During the project meeting we, the project team, asked our target group members to do a research in Lisbon downtown. 

Their task was to discover fashion items and to analyze if there are significant differences to the actual fashion in their home countries.

Furthermore we asked them to take pictures (and ask for allowance to publish) and to summarize their work in an article. 

The result is available for free download.

The travel to Lisbon

The travel was not too far for me, nevertheless I took some notes and pictures. 

I felt somehow watched by CIA and got nearly afraid, but some moments later I could watch the very special design done by the portuguese railways, their seat and the sun.

Next time to be afraid was not too far from Santarem - the "gothic capital of Ribatejo".
A travel mate was dressed in black, but it was especially his ring which cought my attention.
After asking for permission I took a picture and thought by myself refering to my friend google: "Gothic fashion is a clothing style worn by members of the Goth subculture; a dark, sometimes morbid, , eroticized fashion and style of dress" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_fashion)
 Sometimes things really fit together!

The next pictures are from a gift shop in Oriente railway station in Lisbon. 

Did I mention that soccer is very important in Portugal?
The upper items are from the clubs in Lisbon ...

 ... but very near to the floor, on dog's legs height there would be a selection of Porto's soccer club merchandising articles.
Okay, just fine as this is in Lisbon - have to check the arrangements in Porto next time :-)

Later in the evening the project team came together for a welcome dinner and some street sellers had quite funny items to try (and buy) for us. I took some pictures - but I am even afraid to ask for publishing permission :-)
So this stays for imagination!

Fashion Talks - exhibition in Berlin opening in October

I am rather fascinated that there will be an exhibition in the Berlin Museum for Communication with a similar name as our Fashion Talk project: Fashion Talks. This is the announcement:

Fashion is all around us. We can play with fashion, follow fashion or rebel against it. Fashion is for both standing out in a crowd and belonging. It is fast, sometimes loud or subdued, and rushes to and fro between ‘in’ and ‘out’. This show looks at how we deal with fashion individually and as a group and at the messages we convey with the way we dress. What style codes dominate today’s youth culture? What identities are behind them? How do manufacturers serve their target groups and thus influence the market? Everyday pieces of clothing, such as jeans, are on display to show not only that subtle changes in cuts, patterns and finishings change dress codes, but also how the complex and intricate system of fashion works.

Fashion Talks will start October 7th, 2011.

Have a look: http://www.mfk-berlin.de/nc/ausstellung/vorschau/details/events/1917/p1/detail.html

We should cooperate - in a work shop? A competition? An action? Ideas are more thn welcome!

Country Analysis Report Germany

The German Report on fashion as a topic in adult education is now available!

Summary

Methodologically, the report is based on internet supported desk research, project experiences and conference follow-ups.

Fashion plays an important social role, specifically for young grown-ups, who partially define themselves by fashion: This is demonstrated by membership to certain groups of friends or colleagues, to social groups or events and rituals. Any reactions of outsiders of these groups support the self esteem and contribute to the stability of these groups - or vice versa. Because the fashion market is dominated by fashion chains, especially individual fashion items are highly appreciated. Temporary trends are confronted with adaptations and contemporary interpretations of historic patterns, cuts and jewellery.

Formal further education measures – offered in private schools and so called Volkshochschulen (“adult education centres”) – are complemented by informal offers. In both cases the offers are not primarily targeting employment but are closely connected with personal creativity, traditional events or rituals.

However, it seems that as part of the rise of creative industries there are developing new business fields which need high qualifications. This report identified three working field for further education in fashion. None of them is economically and socially explored yet:

§ „Fashion with migrant background“ means fashion trends related to migrant societies. The respective fashion items already have a big business potential.

E.g. connected with the so called „Turkish wedding industries“ it can be shown, that fashion bridges the gap between tradition and present trends. Here, fashion production is organised in an way which allows the participation of all ages. A business potential is clearly visible. This seems to be an extraordinary chance for young people who can act in the framework of two cultures.

§ “Recycling fashion” means innovative re-use of cloth, fabrics, clothes and other fashion items which are created in a new context.

Recycling fashion can have a back ground in a general approach of treating natural resources with care. Here fashion gets social relevance as an expression against materials mainly produced for consumption and the waste bin.

§ In “smart fashion” communication technologies become integrated part of clothes and fashionable gadgets and foster life quality for those wearing them.

Electronic sensors and chips are processed in clothes in order to give information about or for the person who wears these clothes. This can be for health reasons as well as for leisure time activities

Specifically interesting in the working context of Association Culture & Work: The development of business fields happens in all age groups. New, highly innovative and exciting labels are not specifically founded and started by young people only. E.g. women after their family time or at the end of their active business life seem to be quite active in this field. This seems to be a kind of signal that demographic change has reached fashion industries.

Considering this background, Fashion Talk has a unique chance, not only to target young people of different European countries for exchanging experiences in the field of fashion beyond the established education systems. The project also offers the chance to learn more about new possible business fields on the back ground of demographic change.

The integration of people with migrant background as well as demographic change will be important issues of European societies during the next years. In further education for fashion industries this does not play a role yet, but the relevance is clearly evident and can be targeted in Fashion Talk in a most productive way.

 The full report in German is available for download.

Logo creation - the story of the winning logo

01 – Book Presentation

Logo Title: In The Hair

Graphic designers: Laura Basso, Silvia Blazina

Project: Fashion Talk

02 – Report

IN THE HAIR

After a careful analysis of the project objectives of “Fashion Talk, a long research started to define the graphics and try to represent all the target to which the logo is designated

A Brainstorming took place to collect a massive structure of information and ideas, that were not only related to the concept of “fashion” but the way in which people from different social backgrounds are differentiate in the community. We arrived to the point that people are different not only related of what they wear but also from different reasons that go from the items they use, the way they speak and listen and even from the haircut that “they wear.” And it is from this point that we started. Starting from a very simple and clean sign we have represented three different figures, respectively: 

-          the Emo (from emotional), recognizable from the long hair's lock on the eyes and marked by an absent smile,

-          the famous punk for the omnipresent crest tense to an often hostile expression 

-          and the Rasta, happy among the hair always ruffled. 

The primary objective of this observation aimed at the idea to recognize the different styles inside a context that could be read today, in the past and be recognizable in the future.

The used font comes from an analysis which aim was to emphasize the concept of the project and to harmonically assemble it to the represented illustration. 

After various tests on the position in comparison to the image we chosen to place it not above or over but a side, to underline the idea that each follows the other, trying to hold them in the same run, then, we selected to gather together the images through a rectangular frame giving the same idea of the famous label positioned inside the suits, to remind of what the fashion follows that is quality and contents.

Despite the project asked for a very coloured imaginary the use of the black and white seemed more appropriate there and of impact in comparison to what we were representing. 

03- Mood

In The Hair

The style is defined also from the hair cut that we “wear”.

Used as tool to categorize one person and associate her/him to a group/thought.

Country report: Portugal

Please find the documents here:
Country Report Portugal (Portuguese)
Summary of Country Report Portugal (English)

Country report: Italy

Please find the documents here:
Country Report Italy (Italian)
Summary of Country Report Italy (English)

Fashion Motivation: Logo contest for FashionTalk in Italy

Cramars organized a logo contest with great success. More than 30 high quality designs have been presented. The project team had really hard work to choose the favorites.

Moreover the works presented did not just include the logo itself but a reasoning and the way of creation.
In this article we would like to share the impressions of the winning logo.

 "Style is also defined by the cutting and "wearing" of hair. Used as a tool to label a person and a group association or way of thinking."

Here the final result:

Congratulations to the winners Laura Basso and Silvia Blazina and a big thank you to all contributors!

Berlin - meeting preparation started

The timeframe for the next meeting in Berlin is fixed:
Friday, May 20, 2011 10:00 -
Saturday, May 21, 2011 16:30

A most interesting part will be the visit of the open day at Oberstufenzentrum Bürowirtschaft and Verwaltung, where fashion is integrated in communication and other soft skill training and education topics.

Rumors say that partners already started to book their flights :-)

National report Portugal - an introduction

The final version of the national reports needs still some time.
In the meanwhile the project meeting in Italy (Udine / Tolmezzo / Sutrio) resulted in a winning logo out of a competition of 35(!!) proposals made by students.
The winner was asked to apply the logo design to a document template and the printable version of the national reports will be done in this style.

However, this presentation gives an introduction to the national report from Portugal.

Open publication - Free publishing - More education

We hope you enjoy!