Marie Sophie Beinke
As this year’s round of final presentations begin at fashion’s top universities, Sleek talks to last year’s MA graduates about life after college. How did they overcome their struggles, and was the most important thing they learned in the world’s best fashion schools?
Miriam Laubscher
Miriam Laubscher
Royal Academy of Fine Arts Class of 2015
On studying at the Royal Academy in Antwerp
I found out about the school when I visited the Bernhard Willhelm exhibition at the MoMu. Right away I realised that fashion went far further there, it was more like a story combined with drawings and installations. Creativity above all. My heart went at a hundred miles an hour and from that instant I knew I wanted to study there. As well as its fantasy, the academy brings together a lot of different cultures, which pushed me to broaden my horizons. The main thing I learned there was how to focus and how to be my own best critic.
On life after graduation
I didn’t have a clear plan for the future when I graduated. I was thinking that maybe I’d go back to work for Alexander McQueen, where I’d worked before. But quite unexpectedly Katsura-san, head of design at Uniqlo, asked me to visit Tokyo and see how the company works. I had never worked before in fast retail and for me it’s a completely new world.
However, I was very positively surprised. Now I work with an amazing team; I learn so much and get a chance to see the whole process – from sketching to production. Before it was very abstract for me. I knew the creative part but I had no clue about the business side.
Now I design clothes and travel to factories in different countries. I can say that I’m certainly getting a better understanding of today’s global culture. Japan – where I’m based now – is so different from everything I knew. There is no place that I could compare it with. It’s fantastic with all its beauty and extremely polite people. I’m happy to be here and learn the world from a different angle.
A piece of advice for fashion students:
You must think for yourself, figure out what you want to do and do it!
Hayley Grundmann
Hayley Grundmann
Central Saint Martins Class of 2015
On life after graduation
During my MA I had ideas of what I would like to do, but what I ended up doing was quite a surprise and definitely not planned or predicted. As I was taking the remainder of my stuff from the end of our MA presentation home, I received an email for a potential position at Acne Studios in Stockholm. After a quick interview in Paris a few days later, I started working with their main womenswear team. This was an exciting whirlwind! I’ve been working at Acne for a year and have decided to concentrate on starting up my own label. I’m currently doing the research. I want part of my label to upcycle and recycle waste textiles and clothes. The goal is to join forces with recycling textile companies in the UK and to champion collaborative creativity and skills while thinking about the environment and then be able to give a percentage of the sales to different charities and organisations. I think that would be amazing!
On what she learned at CSM:
The most important thing that I learned at CSM was to never give up – to push an idea and then push it some more, to continuously challenge yourself, believe in yourself and always remember who you are designing for. I think the MA prepared me for a lot things. I remember those long nights when I would still work, under a lot of pressure trying to meet the tight deadlines. When you get your first job you also realise that creativity comes with lots of paperwork, emailing and organisation.
A piece of advice for fashion students
The advice that seems funny to say but really did help me when I was studying – it’s really okay to sleep! It is important to keep your mind clear and focused even if you think you could use those extra few hours sometimes. Besides, be true to yourself and don’t worry about what everyone around you is doing; have confidence on your idea, don’t overdesign it; and embrace, export and learn from every moment you have at school!
Marie-Sofie Beinke
Marie-Sofie Beinke
Royal Academy of Fine Arts class of 2015
On life after graduation
I have always been fascinated by the artistic and personal approach of education at the Fashion Department of the Academy. I felt that this was the place I had to get in. This time last year I already knew what I was going to do next – an internship with Walter van Beirendonck. I still work for Walter, where I have an assistant job in his studio. At the moment I am working on my second collection at the company. Additionally, I’m creating costumes for a dance performance that will be shown during the “Zomer van Antwerpen” in Antwerp this summer, I am also taking part in the innovative Post-Couture Collective project and I am just about to start developing the concept for a short fashion movie. I feel incredibly inspired and very excited.
On what she learned at the Academy:
The most important thing that I learned was not to be afraid to be myself and stay true to my values. If there was anything I was not prepared for? Well, I’m a very optimistic person, so I think, you can never be prepared for every step in life. You just have to take the opportunities that life has to offer and do your best
A piece of advice for fashion students:
Take the opportunities that come your way, try to always give your best. Work hard. Enjoy!
Fengyi Tan
Fengyi Tan
Royal College of Art class of 2014
On life after graduation
I’ve always wanted to launch my own label – and I finally did after graduation. Now I am working on the SS17 collection while trying to get my head around the business aspect of running a company. That’s definitely not what you’re normally taught at a fashion school, so I have to push myself and learn as I go along, which is actually an interesting challenge. Apart from the new experience of running a label I am full of plans. In the future, I would love to go beyond fashion design and try collaborating with people from other areas – and use mediums like performance, video or installations to talk about the concept of my brand.
On what she learned at RCA:
In the beginning I just wanted to have the experience of studying in London, as most of the designers I admire were educated in London, so I decided to come to London after my BA in Beijing. I did a one-year course at CSM, then I got an offer from RCA. I wasn’t sure if I was ready to start the label, so I decided to spend two more years looking for answers in an academic environment. It was nice to share a studio with architecture students and there were a lot of opportunities to collaborate with people from other departments. It makes you look at fashion from different angles. I think the most important thing that I learned during my time there was never to work on too many things at once, and instead do one thing at a time and do it extremely well.
A piece of advice for fashion students:
Listen to yourself, and don’t be afraid to make mistakes.
James Theseus Buck, images by Lucy Macdonald and courtesy of James Theseus Buck
James Theseus Buck
Central Saint Martins Class of 2015
On life after graduation
Now I’m working on the Badge Taste project and Rottingdean Bazaar with my partner Luke Brooks. In a couple of weeks Luke and I are going to be opening a pop up shop. However, we are trying to think about Badge Taste as a series of individual projects rather than a label or brand because we want to have total freedom to do what interests us rather than lay down a manifesto. The most difficult parts we find are specific aspects of presentation – things like fonts. A tyranny of choice…
The most important thing he learned at CSM:
To be able to recognise when you’ve made something which might be interesting to a wider community rather than just yourself.
A piece of advice to fashion students:
Do your work in a way that you genuinely enjoy.
All images courtesy of PR unless otherwise noted