Creating Textiles: Heritage, Innovation and Sustainable Futures

As a city built on textile innovation and creativity, Nottingham presents an ideal location to explore the history and creative potential of textiles. This course will explore the origins of industry and its global impact and enquire what we can learn from the past to help transform the future of textile production and consumption for a sustainable planet.

In this course you will explore the future of ethical and sustainable textile making by drawing on Nottingham’s heritage as a centre of the textile industry. You will visit historical sites of textile making and participate in creative workshops and fieldtrips, including visits to the Nottingham Trent Lace Archive, the Framework Knitters’ Museum, and Waverly Dye Garden.

You will also experiment with textile techniques such as upcycling, visible mending and sustainable production and create a short portfolio of work including examples of stitch, weaving and printing techniques which you will present to the class.

You will explore the following themes:
- An Introduction to sustainable design: History of textiles in Nottingham
- Material Culture
- Makers’ narratives: Fieldtrip to Ruddington Framework Knitters’ Museum
- Creative development: Fieldtrip to Derby Museum of Making
- Sustainable thinking in textiles production
- Changemaking through creative workshops
- Environmental impact and accountability: Fieldtrip to Cromford Mill
- Material Witness incorporating a Fieldtrip to Calke Abbey
- Ingenuity and Imagination: Portfolio building
- Textiles futures.

Course leader

Dr Rebekah Pickering Wood

Target group

This course is ideal for students with some prior knowledge of textile production methods, but this isn't essential.

Course aim

K1. Improve your understanding of textile heritage and industry through taking part in creative workshops, fieldtrips and class-based activities and discussions. K2. Explore Nottingham’s history and heritage through an exploration of textile artefacts and sites of industry and making.
K3. Engage with critical discussions about the future of textile manufacture and its impact on society.
S1. Communicate a creative response to places, materials and histories.
S2. Demonstrate and apply relevant creative textile production skills.
S3. Create textile samples that respond to contemporary critical themes of sustainability.

Credits info

10 EC
10 UK Credits / 5 ECTS, Certificate of Attendance, and an official transcript of results.

Fee info

GBP 1200: Apply and pay your tuition fee by 30 April 2024 and receive our Early-Bird discount of £100. Tuition fee includes course materials, field trips, our exciting social and cultural programme, support from our friendly team of student buddies, use of our GSS Hub with free drinks, and a trip to the beautiful university city of Cambridge.
GBP 440: Accommodation in our on-campus student halls. All rooms are single with ensuite facilities and shared kitchen and living spaces. Halls are self-catered and kitchen and bedding packs will be provided. Our accommodation is right in the heart of the city and so there are lots of food shops, cafes, restaurants, bars and takeaways just a short walk away.

Scholarships

£100 Early-bird discount if tuition fee payment is received by 30 April 2024. A further discount is offered to groups of 10+ students travelling from the same University.