The GREEN GRADS Textile Challenge is proud to present Eco Stories told in patterns on cloth by breakthrough UK talent.
Sponsored by Epson, with support from FESPA, Prinfab, and Imageco Ltd, new graduates from art schools across the country were invited by GREEN GRADS to submit a portfolio with patterns that reflect their environmental concerns and/or love of the natural world, taking into account eco-friendly textiles, dyes, and methods of production.
The initial idea came from Barbara Chandler, award-winning design editor and founder/curator of GREEN GRADS, and the concept has been delivered by GREEN GRADS’s textile consultant and FESPA textile ambassador, Debbie McKeegan, the hugely experienced founder/CEO of Texintel.
GREEN GRADS (@greengrads22) is a platform for new UK graduates “With ideas to heal the planet,” said Barbara Chandler, adding:
“Pattern has been a powerful communicator since the earliest days of cave art,” she said. “We know that young people today are weighed down with environmental concerns. What if they could express them through design and put them onto cloth? And our final ambition for Eco Stories is to get these patterns onto the market to impact consumers as they go about shopping for the home.”
Debbie, with her unequalled background in digital textiles and a strong passion for sustainability and the environment, has nurtured Eco Stories from the beginning, securing our sponsor Epson at the outset. “Epson is the ideal partner for us,” she says, “as a leading supplier of digital technology, they are committed to responsible sustainable practice. Epson are at the forefront of digital innovation.”
Phil McMullin, Head of Pro Graphics Sales, Epson UK also commented, “Empowering young adults with the confidence and recognition to take their sustainable-minded business acumen to the next level, the GREEN GRADS initiative sets a great example I think every industry should be following. Reducing environmental burdens is fundamental in Epson’s pursuit to digitalize textile printing. And by showing graduates both the environmental and commercial attributes of manufacturing textiles in-market, on-demand, using sustainable printing technologies, we can help shape a future where profit doesn’t have to compromise the planet.”
A physical show for GREEN GRADS took place September 24–25, and Eco Stories plays a central part. However, once awarded, the GREEN GRADS are always Green Grads: their award never expires and it’s a badge of honor.
Having selected the winning designers, Prinfab, a company based in the UK, kindly offered to supply digitally printed textiles, featuring the winning designs. All fabrics were printed using Epson technology at the Prinfab production facility in the UK.
Oliver Mustoe-Playfair, co-founder of Prinfab, commented, “GREEN GRADS is a fantastic opportunity for Prinfab to support emerging talents in partnership with Epson, an organization that recognizes the environmental challenges that we face in the textile industry. Prinfab has provided the printed fabrics for the GREEN GRADS competition winners.
“By manufacturing in the UK, our clients here at Prinfab, have an oversight of the whole production process, giving a greater openness and transparency within the supply chain,” added Mustoe-Playfair.
And the winners are:
Eco Stories Gold Award
The Bateman Collection
Sarah Thorley: University of Bolton, School of Arts and Creative Technologies @colours_by_sarah
Here is a rich portfolio of pattern inspired by the Victorian National Trust treasure, Biddulph Grange Gardens, laid out by James Bateman in 1840. The Bateman Collection exudes Sarah’s passion for nature, conservation, restoration, and history, expressed in florals, foliage, architecture, birds, and nature. Respecting the values of Eco Stories, Sarah has used recycled papers for her artwork which has printed on linen; and she has re-upholstered charity-shop chairs. “My designs celebrate conservation and highlight the beauty of nature,” she says.
Says Debbie: “Sarah is a talented graduate with a wonderful career ahead of her. Her attention to detail marks her out for commercial success. She unmistakably loves nature and has carefully researched the sustainable manufacturing techniques that are vital for our planet’s future.”
Eco Stories Silver Award
Silken Bloom
Rhiannon Weaver: De Montfort University @rhiannoneleanortextiles
This is a beautiful upmarket textile collection with materials and principles that nevertheless respect the environment. Rhiannon looked to the 1970s hippie movement, where she found a then-new awareness of eco-fashion, with alternative fibers such as hemp and bamboo chosen over cotton. Fast forward, and she has sourced hemp linen and bamboo silk, and embodied sustainability and zero waste in her embellishments. “I want to show that if you carefully research alternative fibers and other materials, you can still have luxury and couture.”
Debbie comments: “Rhiannon is admirably committed to sustainable, recycled, or reclaimed materials. At the same time, her 3D luxurious layered creations are haute couture, richly tactile and sensory—an impressive balancing act. Congratulations!”
Eco Stories Bronze Award
Home Grown
Rebekah Longland, Birmingham City University, @rebekah.longland
Inspired by a visit to a walled garden, sparking a new appreciation for vegetables and plants, Rebekah’s portfolio extols the benefits of growing your own food. It expresses a passion for nature and the desire for a more harmonious way of living—in contrast to factory farming and industrialized food production. “Consider where your food comes from and how it is grown,” she says. Her vibrant designs, which started as collaged motifs, were digitally printed using eco-friendly colors and papers.
As Debbie says: “Rebekah taken what the earth provides and captured nature’s very essence in her patterns. They are a plea for a simpler life enriched by biodiversity, with organic food from your own garden or allotment.”
Eco stories will be unveiled on screens and with printed lengths at GREEN GRADS, September 24–25, Samsung Experience Space, Coal Drops Yard, King’s Cross, London N1C. Fifty UK graduates will platform new concepts for sustainability, biophilia, and the environment.
Huge thanks to all of the supporters of the GREEN GRADS initiative: Epson, FESPA, Prinfab, and Imageco Ltd., without whose support they couldn’t continue.
Green Grads is a not-for-profit event, organized with goodwill and with all time given freely.
@greengrads22
All images courtesy Texintel.
