Vocational training and contemporary textile crafts
Vocational training and contemporary textile crafts meet through collaborative projects or masterclasses that Inés Rodriguez teaches in Design Schools or FP.
Through these training sessions with young people, contemporary textile crafts and knowledge of traditional techniques are disseminated for vocational training.
Young students can learn about and experiment with weaving, spinning and embroidery through textile design and crafts.
These students come from many different disciplines, fashion, product design, decoration, interior design, architecture, performing arts... they attend specialized Masters such as the one at the IED in Madrid.
They seek to learn the most traditional techniques found in contemporary textile crafts. This is a way to differentiate themselves and enrich their theoretical knowledge.
“Knowledge of these textile techniques is a very valuable tool for young designers.”
Masterclass given by Inés Rodriguez at the CIFP Donibane Textil excellence center
This is the opinion of I nés Rodríguez, an artisan textile designer and specialist in this field who has been working with Fashion Design schools in Galicia and Spain for years as a specialist teacher.
In this way, it brings the most innovative contemporary textile craftsmanship closer to vocational training.
In her classes she talks about the importance of knowing traditional textile craft techniques. She provides students with theoretical and practical knowledge about the loom, embroidery, and lace so that they can incorporate them into their textile designs.
The artisan textile designer has been teaching classes for several years in the Master of Textile and Surface Design at IED Madrid .
A module on Spinning and Weaving, in which students from all over the world will review textiles and materials such as wool, linen, and cotton through the history of weaving and its designers.
This weaving theory is combined with the most innovative textile materials on the market, optical fiber, dairy protein fiber or biomaterials.
It is also combined with practice on the loom that will allow them to learn traditional textile techniques and apply them to their designs.
“ From my experience in the working world and contact with young designers from Art Schools, knowledge of traditional textile techniques is very valuable for the industry and design.
Knowing the theory and practice of textile design gives you many work tools even if you are not the one who makes them.”
“You succeed with what you learn” said the great designer Coco Chanel.
It is a great phrase that really contains a truth. Knowledge of textile craft techniques allows for a very wide range of applications in the world of design in all its facets.
One of the latest projects that Inés Rodríguez has collaborated on as a trainer and teacher has been with the San Juan de Donibane Vocational Training Centre.
It is a centre of excellence within FP that belongs to a network created by the Ministry of Education of Spain to innovate within the textile world. For this reason, it has sought to unite vocational training with contemporary textile craftsmanship and innovation.
For these future masters of sewing, Inés held a masterclass on smart and innovative fabrics. In this training she spoke about the possibilities of combining traditional sewing and weaving made on a loom with new technological materials such as optical fiber and design.
After this training talk, with the teachers of the center and the students of vocational training in the textile branch, a practical class was held. Students, teachers and the artisan textile designer explored the design possibilities of a handmade fabric with optical fiber applied to clothing.
Inés had experience since she had made a similar fabric “Vagalume” that you can see in this link
The joint creation process with the students of the Center.
Inés Rodriguez at CiFP Donibane shows her textile design with optical fiber to students
Once the design was chosen, the artisan textile designer created fabrics with green linen and optical fibre of different thicknesses on her loom, ready to be installed in sports or work safety clothing as night visibility devices.
The result was spectacular, as you can see in the exhibition. It was combined with other designs made by students from the vocational training centre to show the possibilities of contemporary textile craftsmanship and smart fabrics.
The result of this experimental work with sewing and smart fabrics is now coming to light to show all the possibilities that have been investigated in this project. A successful example of the collaboration between the most innovative contemporary textile craftsmanship and Vocational Training Centres.
Detail of an exhibition of handcrafted textiles with optical fiber designed by Inés Rodriguez. Photo courtesy of CIFP Donibane Textil
Training is one of the activities of Inés Rodríguez, who promotes the inclusion of contemporary textile crafts in the professional training of young designers and students.
It is necessary for young designers to learn more traditional techniques in Design Schools and Vocational Training. Through talks, specific courses on textile techniques and advice on TFGs for design and fashion students, she tries to merge this textile knowledge. You can learn about some of them at the following link.
https://rirandco.com/formacion-consultoria-textil/
Inés Rodríguez, as winner of the National Crafts Awards, participated this year as a Jury in the Despuntes 2024 Fashion Show of the EASD Mestre Mateo. This event awards the best final year projects of young fashion designers, including a Prize sponsored by Artesanía de Galicia.
Mestre Mateo Award Jury. EASD Mestre Mateo 2024 Parade. School Students Photo.
Among the members of the Jury were also prominent figures such as Dora Casal, director of the Roberto Verino fashion brand, or Franco Quintáns, a well-known Galician designer.
This invitation, together with all the projects that the textile designer has been working on for years, contributes to making artisanal textile techniques known to students through more contemporary craftsmanship.
