02.179TS Fashion, Technology, and Innovation

The relationship between fashion and technology is dynamic, evolving, and multifaceted, encompassing the ways in which technological advancements influence the design, production, marketing, consumption, and disposal of fashion. This course explores the intertwined relationship between fashion, technology, and innovation, tracing their historical developments, current intersections, and potential futures in shaping how people express themselves and interact with the world. Students will learn how technology had been and still is the driving force behind innovations in fashion and how fashion inspires new uses for technology. Specifically, the course explores the intersections of fashion and technology beyond the usual domain of runway spectacles and focuses on their integration along the various segments of the industry value chain. Through critical analyses of cases studies, from the past and present, where the marriage of cutting-age technology and fashion have profound impacts on people’s lives, students will be tasked to device innovative prototypes that address pain points in fashion through creative engagement with technology.

Learning objectives

• Understand how technological advancements have shaped fashion trends, production methods, and consumer behaviour over time.
• Investigate the potential impact of emerging technologies in reshaping fashion design, retail experiences, and consumer engagement.
• Evaluate the applications and limitations of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the creative industry of fashion.
• Apply creative thinking and technological tools to address real-world problems within the fashion industry.

Measurable outcomes

• Individual reports assess students’ understanding and application of classroom knowledge through analysing the technologies behind personal wardrobe items and museum artefacts.
• Case study research examines specific instances where technology has played a key role in innovations in fashion.
• Final group project to develop a concept prototype (product/service) that addresses consumer-centred pain points in fashion through the creative use of technology.
• Throughout the semester, reading journals and class participation evaluate students’ ability to communicate their thoughts and arguments in writing and speech.

Assessment

(WEC = Writing, Expression, Communication)

Weekly schedule

Week 1: Introduction

Week 2: Pre-Industry tools and machines

Week 3: Industrial Revolution and the establishment of fashion industry

Week 4: New materials driving new fashions

Week 5: Focal points: wartime fashion and space age style
*This week serves as a wrap-up to the historical studies of the intertwined relationship between fashion and technology focusing on how innovations originally developed for battlefield and space exploration have found new and unexpected applications in the fashion industry.

Week 6: Third Industrial Revolution and the globalisation of fashion

Week 7: Recess week

Week 8: Techno fashion and avant-garde fashion designers

Week 9: Industry 4.0: the future of fashion

Week 10: The use of AI in fashion industry

Week 11: Focal point: fashion, healthcare, and wellbeing

Week 12: Focal point: sportswear and active wear

Week 13: Wrap-up and final reflections

Instructor

Courtney Fu