The future fashion scene
Maybe you have noticed that we are in the midst of the Copenhagen Fashion Week?
I have. I have also noted that, although fashion was the stuff of my personal dreams for many years, the industry now feels ‘so last season’.
January 2025
I’m not saying that fashion is no longer relevant or that I have lost interest in it. My point is that I now seek my inspiration elsewhere, and that fashion is not about seasons but about a gradual movement that reflects the spirit of the times.
As I often observe, ‘Sometimes, we have to look to the past in order to move forward,’ frequently in reference to the importance of learning about materials and craft processes.
Prior to the Fashion Week, I had the pleasure of serving as an external examiner for the first class to complete the vocational programme Embroidery for Fashion and Design at the Copenhagen Academy of Fashion Design.
The Copenhagen Academy of Fashion Design is a private institute of education. In contrast to its public counterparts, it places a high priority on hands-on skills and craftsmanship.
The academy offers a two-year full-time vocational programme in fashion design, a Summer Academy programme, a Youth Academy programme for 13-17-year-olds and, since recently, a certified embroidery programme.
The embroidery programmes is headed by embroideress Berthe Bramsen:
2012 BA in History, Material Culture, with an elective in Museology, from the University of Copenhagen
2002 degree in Textile Communication from the teacher’s training school operated by Håndarbejdets Fremme, Copenhagen
1981 Broderie d’Art from Lycée Ganneron and Maison Lesage, Paris
At her workshop in Copenhagen, Berthe works with couture, costumes for film and stage and ecclesiastical textiles in collaboration with designers and artists. She also has extensive teaching experience.
The embroidery programme at the Copenhagen Academy of Fashion Design lasts four semesters, with classes five weekends per semester.
The information material about the programme emphasizes that it is a vocational programme but that, based on the learning objectives of the specific course modules, the individual students are expected to develop their own areas of specialization.
The programme introduces the students to the many tried and tested techniques and materials of the discipline. As an underlying basis of this work, it also provides broad insight into embroidery across different cultures and historical contexts. Further, it aims to prepare the students to communicate with prospective clients, including artists or designers, and to calculate price estimates.
To varying degrees, all of the first six graduates had professional experience from the textile field. Thus, to them, the programme serves as a supplement to or extension of their existing skills and knowledge.
The level was high; in some cases, sublime.
For all six students, their graduation project involved the development of embroidery for a specific client.
The graduating class included the following six students:
Jane Ingerslev, whose project was the decoration of a vintage dress, a clutch and a hat for Vintage Divine in Aarhus
Dorte Erichsen, who had developed loose cuffs and textile brooches for the Celli Freifeldt tailor’s brand
Marianne Madsen, who had worked with a reinvention of the traditional top for the traditional Fanø costume in collaboration with tailor Kathrine Bach
Bettina Popp-Madsen, who had drawn inspiration from visual artist Pernille Koch’s universe to create a pair of decorated trousers for the artist
Thit Moses, who had created embroideries based on the Flora Danica atlas of botany on commission from master tailor Johnny Wichmann, chairman of the tailors’ guild and warden of Københavns Håndværkerforening (Copenhagen Crafts Association) and JAn Michael Strømberg.
Stine Skytte, who had designed and embroidered decoration on a concert gown for pianist Marianna Shirinyan
I was joined in my task as external examiner by workshop manager Fernanda Toft-Mendonca of Selskabet for Kirkelig Kunst (Danish Society for Ecclesiastical Art), who vouched for the careful inspection of the technical level of the work.
You can read about the society’s activities here or in bookazine no. 10.
For my part, I thoroughly enjoyed closely examining the students’ concepts and designs.
It is easy to imagine embroidery having an increasingly prominent role to play in the future, as we alter, renew and supplement our clothes and other textiles instead of buying new products.
Måske har du bemærket at der er modeuge i København denne uge?
Jeg har, jeg har også noteret mig, at selvom mode for mit vedkommende i mange år var det stof, mine drømme materialiserede sig i, så føles branchen nu ”so last season”.
Det betyder ikke at mode er uinteressant, heller ikke for mig. Det betyder blot at jeg søger min inspiration andre steder, og at mode ikke handler om sæsoner men om en glidende bevægelse, som reflekterer tidsånden.
En af mine mest benyttede sætninger er: ”Nogle gange må man se sig tilbage for at komme fremad”, ofte er det når jeg taler om vigtigheden af at tilegne sig viden om materialer og håndværksprocesser.
Som optakt til modeugen havde jeg fornøjelse af at være censor på afslutningen af første kuld studerende på “Broderi for Kunst og Design” udbudt af den Københavns Mode-og Designskole.
Københavns Mode-og Designskole er en privat uddannelsesinstitution, som i modsætning til de offentlige designuddannelser vægter håndværksfaglighed højt.
Skolen tilbyder en erhvervsrettet 2-årig uddannelse på fuld tid i beklædningsdesign, en sommerskole og et talentprogram for 13-17-årige, og nu også en certificeret uddannelse i broderi.
Broderiuddannelsen foregår under ledelse af brodøse Berthe Bramsen.
2012 Bachelor i historie med tilvalg i Museologi og afgangseksamen i Materiel kultur fra Københavns Universitet
2002 Tekstilformidler Håndarbejdsfremme Seminarium, København
1981 Broderie d´Art & Maison Lesage and Lycée Ganneron, Paris
Berthe arbejder fra sit værksted i København med couture, kostumer, kirketekstiler i samarbejde med designere og kunstnere, desuden har hun lang undervisningserfaring.
Undervisningen på broderiuddannelsen er lagt til rette over fire semestre, med undervisning fem weekender pr. semester.
I materialet betones, at der er tale om en professionel uddannelse, men også at den enkelte studerende forventes, med udgangspunkt i de forskellige modulers læringsmål, at videreudvikle sine egne specialiseringer.
Under vejs præsenteres fagets mange velgennemprøvede teknikker og materialer, ligesom teknikkerne forankres i en bred viden om broderi i forskellige kulturer og historiske sammen hæng. Desuden lægges der vægt på at eleverne klædes på til at kunne kommunikere med potentielle opgavestillere som kan være kunstnere eller designere for eksempel, herunder at kunne prisberegne.
De seks studerende på første årgang havde alle, i større eller mindre omfang, erfaring med at arbejde professionelt med tekstil, og uddannelsen tjener derfor for dem som et supplement eller en videreudvikling af et eksisterende fundament.
Niveauet var højt, nogle steder sublimt.
Eksamensopgaven var, for alles vedkommende, at udvikle broderi til en specifik opgavestiller.
De seks var:
Jane Ingerslev, som havde dekoreret en vintagekjole, en clutch og en hat for Vintage Divine i Århus.
Dorte Erichsen, som havde udviklet løse manchetter og tekstile brocher til skrædderiet Celli Freifeldt.
Marianne Madsen havde, i dialog med skrædder Kathrine Bach, lavet forarbejde til en nytænkning af den klassiske Fanødragt-overdel.
Bettina Popp-Madsen havde, med afsæt i billedkunstner Pernille Kochs univers, skabt et par dekorerede bukser til kunstneren.
Thit Moses havde, for skræddermester, formand for skrædderlaget og oldermand i Københavns Håndværkerforening og hans kollega Jan Michael Strømberg udviklet broderier med afsæt i Flora Danica.
Stine Skytte havde udviklet og udført et broderi på koncertkjole til pianisten Marianna Shirinyan.
Som min meddommer, og garant for at det tekniske niveau blev gransket, havde jeg værkstedsansvarlig Fernanda Toft-Mendonca fra Selskabet for Kirkelig Kunst.
Du kan læse om deres virksomhed her eller i bookazine 10.
Selv granskede jeg koncept og design, med fornøjelse!
Det er let at forestille sig hvordan broderiet i en fremtid, hvor vi ikke bør købe nyt, men snarere forandre, forny, og supplere det allerede eksisterende, kan komme til at spille en større rolle.