DAY 4: Arty Designers
Activity 1: Fashion forward [4 points]
Coco Chanel was a French fashion designer from the early 1900s. She was very influential because she
designed clothes for women that were beautiful, but also comfortable and practical. Before Coco came along, European women wore corsets which pulled in their waists, and dresses that had lots of lace. Coco Chanel introduced a completely new style, influenced by men’s fashion - trousers (pants), monochrome (black and white) fabric, and looser tops.
Twenty Seven Names is a contemporary (current) New Zealand fashion label that is quite influential. The founders of the company are two friends, Rachel Easting and Anjali Burnett. Rachel and Anjali met when they were at primary school. When they left school, Anjali studied fashion design and Rachel studied art, before they set up their own business designing and making clothing. They named their company after the 27 people who helped them start their business.
For this activity, please read about how another famous New Zealand design company, the Allbirds, got their name. Former All White turned entrepreneur Tim Brown launched Allbirds (a footwear company) back in 2014. Brown said the name was an ode to New Zealand. "When people first settled in New Zealand, there were no other mammals on the island, just birds. It's also a reference to our sustainable mission – birds are a great predictor of environmental health and well-being, so when the birds are
thriving, it's a good sign that an ecosystem is doing well," Brown said. "As a brand that uses sustainable materials and draws inspiration from New Zealand's incredible natural environment and birdlife, it was important for us to choose a name that communicates that to our customers."
If you had to choose a name for a footwear company, what would it be? Once you have chosen the name think about what inspired you to choose that name. Post both the name of your company and information about what inspired the choice on your blog
If I was to choose a name for a footwear company, I would call it "Elfhex". There is no reason behind it, I just really liked the name.
Activity 2: Try Your Own Tapa [4 points]
Fatu Feu’u is a Samoan artist who lives in Aotearoa/New Zealand. He is mostly known for being a painter but he also creates sculptures, pottery, prints and glass works.
As an artist, Fatu Feu’u is primarily influenced by tapa cloth (siapo) patterns from Samoa, as well as tatau (tattoo), weaving, carving, and mask designs.
Many Pacific Islands have their own versions of tapa cloth. In Tonga it is called the ngatu, in Fiji - the masi, in Niue - the hiapo, in the Cook Islands - the tapa, and in Hawaii - the kapa.
For this activity, please create your own tapa cloth design. You can draw your design on paper or use the computer. Post an image on your blog (photo or screenshot) of your tapa design and describe what each part of your picture represents (means).
Activity 3: Top Secret Street Art [6 points]
“Banksy” is an influential artist from England. He is very private and secretive. In fact, almost
no one knows who he really is - he always creates his art in secret! Banksy often uses
stencils to create his street art.
Street art, or graffiti art, is all around us. Sometimes the art tells a story, sometimes it makes a
building look more interesting, and sometimes it makes us think hard about something. In
2011, the city of Christchurch experienced a huge earthquake. A lot of the central city
buildings fell down. It takes a long time to rebuild a city, and there are areas of Christchurch
where buildings are still damaged and/or need to be rebuilt. Street artists in Christchurch have
seen this as a chance to create artwork that helps to make the city beautiful again. You can
see lots of amazing street art in Christchurch at the moment!
For this activity, we have provided two different pieces of artwork from Christchurch. Look carefully at both and identify at least two similarities and two differences between the pieces of art. Post your work on your blog.
