Alice Drury

For my Final Major Project, I chose to ask What if Mary Quant met Frida Kahlo? I decided to combine two themes which really inspired me to create a new, interesting concept. I have always been inspired by Frida Kahlo- her suffering, her life, and her art. Kahlo combined with my love of pop art and bright colours in the 1960s helped to me create a unique idea. I also felt that Mary Quant and Frida Kahlo were strong women in their fields, and I want to portray strength in all my work. This also led to a feminism element in the project. Mary Quant also stood out to pair with Kahlo as they have similarities like wearing clothes for freedom of movement and their use of colour. However, it is their differences which allowed me to create more interesting experimentations and silhouettes in my designs.

I used lots of 3D experimentation as part of my design process and I enjoyed creating collages combining my ideas to inspire my designs. It was an experimentation with paper that gave me the most ideas for final garments and also creating a 3D mood board inspired by Mary Quant’s shop and the meeting of the women. I also tried some traditional Mexican techniques such as embroidery and pattern cutting based on the Huipil. I found it interesting as well to combine their styles in an obvious way like layering miniskirts over long dresses and seeing how the fabrics interacted.

I found that it was when I was making my final garments (two outfits) that I was most inventive and adventurous as I used new processes to problem solve such as quilting, box pleating, gathering and pattern cutting to create my most exciting designs. The most notable details include handmade coconut buttons, gold thread to link to Kahlo’s accident, flower earrings, plastic hat to link to Quant’s PVC collection and straps inspired by Frida Kahlo’s braids. I used a range of fabrics to make my final garments and tried to reuse as much as possible such as using old tablecloths which I dyed and an old sari. I also recycled a dress into a skirt. Being as sustainable as possible is a goal I am aiming for in my work and life.

My work is also on my Instagram @aliceddesigns.