British designer rues dearth of pattern cutters in fashion world

New Delhi, April 26 (IANS) Why do most students of fashion institutes only want to become designers, wonders Durham-based designer Giles Deacon, who feels creative people must engage themselves in other jobs as well within the industry -- for instance, pattern cutting.

A fashion designer, high street enthusiast and an illustrator, Deacon is on his second India visit to announce his collaboration with online fashion company Koovs.com to create an exclusive women's wear collection titled 'GILES AT KOOVS'.

In an interview with IANS from Mumbai, he said: "I would really hope that there would be a point of time where everybody leaving fashion colleges just don't want to become fashion designers. We can't find really good pattern cutters because all the people at fashion colleges who study just want to become designers. And there isn't enough room for everybody."

It's time for people to explore other facets of fashion, he feels.

"People should really realise that you can get paid extremely well, have great job security and it may not be the so-called excitement, but there's lots of really good jobs within the fashion industry that aren't being the name of designers. It's not as easy as everyone thinks it is," Deacon added.

Having studied at London's Central Saint Martins College of Arts and Design amongst the likes of Alexander McQueen and Hussein Chalayan, Deacon has a clientele that includes Kate Moss, Angelina Jolie and Gwyneth Paltrow.

He feels that institute was a "hugely inspirational place to go and work."

"It was a much more of an art college than a fashion college, weirdly. So you'd be working alongside people who would do fine arts, sculpture and it was a really good mix."

"It's a very creative place which resulted in those people graduating and doing what they do now," said the designer, who later went on to work for myriad fashion companies to hone his skills, starting with a two-year tenure in Paris at Jean-Charles de Castelbajac.

Year 2003 marked the launch of the Giles brand, setting up a communal studio with fellow Central Saint Martins classmates, such as Luella Bartley, in the Rochelle School in East London. His first show came the following year at London Fashion Week.

Now offering his design sensibility to Indian customers, he feels the girls in the country are "looking for interesting statement pieces and instantly recognisable pieces that have got the wow factor".

"With that in mind, we wanted to get a broad cross section of the supposed visual looks that would look more pop, and logo prints to the feather and the kind of print which has a more ethereal and decadent feel to it. And then the crystals and diamond print which has a much more glamorous take on it," he said.

Deacon has a love towards Indian fashion, and he says he follows it "religiously".

Calling himself a "big fan of Pero by Aneeth Arora", he said: "I think she has got a fantastic collection. And from a more classical perspective, I like Sabyasachi Mukherjee a lot. I really adore the kind of historical references he puts in a very modern context. It is really beautifully done. And Manish Arora also."

So any pearls of wisdom for new designers?

"I kind of like the idea of fashion to be aspirational, inspiring and (offering) creative beauty. It's really important for not just fashion, but designers in general -- from cars to products to homeware. The more thought that goes into all of those designs, the better it is for everybody."

(Nivedita can be contacted at [email protected])

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