Knowledge is power at Transformers
16/09/2021
Mr Hunt, a trained multi-product designer who describes himself as a specialist in “responsible” denim-making, continuously underscored the centrality of curiosity, open-sourcing knowledge, hands-on experimentation and forging professional networks throughout his 20-minute talk.
Encouraging attendees to “embrace getting lost down the research rabbit holes”, he recommended several strategies for building out one’s own research “web”.
In particular, art (Mr Hunt highlighted details from the work of contemporary artist Ian Berry), exhibitions (the Victoria and Albert Museum’s 2018-19 show Fashioned from Nature drew special praise for its educational emphasis on natural fibres) and vintage shopping (online recommendations included eBay, Depop and Etsy) were all singled out as fruitful resources for what he called denim “immersion”.
Careful review and investigation of vintage denim articles, including looking closely at their reverse (this way, the viewer can uncover why the garment’s face appears as it does, for example) to train the eye was just one suggestion.
Another was to reach out personally to dye and chemicals companies and machinery manufacturers, Mr Hunt said, in order to establish one’s own avenues for primary insights into the denim-making process and the latest innovations up and down the supply chain.
Very much invested in primary research methods himself, the denim consultant told stories of how he had managed to grow hemp in his own garden in England (to test out the rainwater situation), “bleached” denim with natural (English) sunlight on his mother’s property over nine months, buried jeans for a period of more than twelve months to see for himself how it would decompose in garden soil – for the record, the jeans were 100% cotton, complete with polyester threads and metal elements – and, finally, relayed how he had experimented with dyeing denim with natural elements, including leftover “rubbish”, with his children at home.
Digital denim-wise, Mr Hunt noted to the students watching how virtual artistry and design seemed something of a “niche” career path in denim at present, although he also continuously emphasised – and demonstrated – the power of learning from “real” garments. (On the always ongoing denim research process, he quipped: “Once you’re hooked, you’re hooked!”)
Mr Hunt concluded his talk by praising travel – for him, the very best form of education.
Image taken from Mr Hunt’s Instagram account for his Denim Research consultancy (@denim_research)
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