Unbiased Label

Unbiased Label

By Host Zara KorutzArtsFashion & Beauty
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Unbiased Label episodes

  • Is a $200K Fashion Education at Central Saint Martins Worth It? I ask Aleks Mitrovic.

    This episode is conversation between Zara Korutz and Aleksandar (Aleks) Mitrovic who both graduated with an MA from Central Saint Martins in 2020 during the pandemic.  Zara graduated with an MA in Fashion Communication: Fashion Critical Studies and Aleks graduated with an MA in Fashion (womenswear pathway).  Aleks spent the past 7 years at Central Saint Martins on the journey of becoming an elite fashion designer earning an MA, BA (Hons) and Foundation diploma in Fashion.  He also received the Ye Lin Scholarship and Nina Stewart award. Aleks is currently is an Associate Designer at DIETY New York and has interned at Hillier Bartley, JACQUEMUS, J.W. Anderson, Mary Katrantzou, and his designs have been featured in Vogue and 1 Granary.

    When launching his final MA collection during London Fashion Week 2020, Aleks expressed that in some ways the collection is a continuation of his pre-collection that was inspired by 1990’s dull office look. Aleks' final collection structurally stands on its own and is similar to the designer who was born in Serbia during the Bosnian Civil War era.  To Aleks, “The MA is all about looking inside of yourself instead of looking at outside sources.” He continued, “They drum into you it’s all about your vibe and things you are interested in.” This sentiment reinforces the idea that becoming a fashion designer at CSM is rooted in self-expression and is a journey of discovery.
    Considered to be an elite global fashion training ground, Central Saint Martins (UAL) is an art and design school in London, England with a history dating back to 1896. The MA Fashion course, launched in October 1978 by Bobby Hillson, has birthed internationally renowned fashion designer ‘gods’ like Alexander McQueen, John Galliano, Christopher Kane, Stella McCartney, Craig Green, Sarah Burton, Kim Jones, Ricardo Tisci, Jonathan Saunders, and more.  According to Business of Fashion, the MA Fashion course at Central Saint Martins, led by Fabio Piras, is ranked 1st in the world with a 11% acceptance rate, 56% international student population, 98% graduation rate, and 23:1 student teacher ratio.  At Central Saint Martins, the fashion tuition for international students is as follows: MA is approx. $46,000,  BA is approx. $95,116, and Foundation is approx. $25,315 (source: https://www.arts.ac.uk/colleges/central-saint-martins). 
    Please join us for a conversation between two CSM MA graduates of the class of 2020 during the pandemic, fashion school as part of the fashion structural system, and discuss the reality of pursuing a career as a fashion designer.

    #centralsaintmartins


    30 min
  • The Art of Conscious Fashion Design: Jebin Johny

    This episode is a conversation with Jebin Johny who is a sustainable luxury fashion designer based in Kerala, a state on the southwest Malabar Coast of India. Jebin launched his brand Jebsispar in 2015 at Lakme Fashion Week in Mumbai. His designs have been featured in Vogue India, The Indian Express, The Hindu and The Hindu Metro Plus, and worn by Hindi film actresses including Sonam Kapoor, Kalki Koechlin and Vidya Balan.   

    Jebin's handwoven and handprinted cotton fabric designs are rooted in the cultural identity of his home, inspired by his family and tells the emotional stories of migrants. The ethos of Jebsispar is art and soul as reflected in the brand's ethical way of existing from design to manufacturing. 

    Please join us as we talk about the fashion system in India, Art of fashion design, culture of Kerala, and examine the importance of consciousness in fashion focused on sustainability and ethical practices.  

    29 min
  • Fashion No Filter: Simon Ungless

    This episode is a conversation with avant-garde fashion legend Simon Ungless who is the Executive Director of the Fashion School at San Francisco's renowned Academy of Art University where he has a twenty-plus year tenure and was awarded an honorary Doctorate degree. His fashion academic approach is built around artistic first principles rooted in the passion to create, collaborate and above all, challenge the status quo. Ungless' own fashion brand When Simon Met Ralph reflects his signature bold designs and focuses on sustainable up-cycling that gives clothes new life. 

    In the early 1990s while studying at Central Saint Martins, Simon became friends and collaborators with schoolmate Lee McQueen. Simon's signature roadkill prints and multi-technique graphic patterns walked the runway of Alexander McQueen's prolific early collections including AW 1993 Taxi Driver, AW1994 Banshee, SS1995 The Birds, AW1995 Highland Rape, SS1996 The Hunger, and AW1996 Dante. 


    58 min
  • Global Editor, CNN Style: Fiona Sinclair Scott
    This episode is a conversation with Fiona Sinclair Scott, Global Editor of CNN Style, who oversees CNN's award winning international coverage of the arts, design, fashion, beauty and luxury. Prior to CNN, Fiona was an executive producer of video for I-D Magazine.
    In March 2020, CNN Style launched a new dedicated beauty section with coverage focused on "the expanding definition of beauty." In April 2021, CNN Style launched a new series called 'Hyphenated' exploring complex issues of identity among minorities in the United States.
    This week's segment of The Asian Fashion Journal with Jacqueline Pham explores the Chinese luxury consumer goods market. 
    A special thank you to the amazing Will Fitzpatrick at Soho Radio Productions for sound engineering.
    39 min
  • Starring Celebrity Hairdresser: Ted Gibson
    This episode is a conversation with Icon American celebrity hairdresser Ted Gibson who is known for his couture hair both on the runways and in magazines including Vanity Fair, Elle, Harper's Bazaar, In Style, Vogue, WWD, and Allure.  Ted's long list of Hollywood clients includes Angelina Jolie, Lupita Nyong'o, Anne Hathaway, Priyanka Chopra and Jessica Chastain, to name a few. 
    Ted along with his husband and colorist Jason Backe opened the World's First Smart Salon in Los Angeles named Starring by Ted Gibson designed by architect Francisco Gonzalez Pulido.
    In 2020, Ted and Jason launched The Worth Up Alliance Foundation which is a coalition of change agents, dream makers and emerging beauty entrepreneurs supporting the industry with education, coaching, mentoring, networking, and start-up capital grants.
    55 min
  • Masculinity Redefined: Fashion Designer Tokyo James

    This episode is a conversation with British-Nigerian Fashion Designer Tokyo James and American-Nigerian Photographer and Creative Director Mikey Oshai who is the man behind the brand's visual imagery.  Tokyo's studio is based in Lagos and since the brand's launch in 2015, has taken the fashion world by storm with impeccably tailored designs, strong cultural meaning and intensity of storytelling which is re-defining the modern man with an unapologetic intersectional aesthetic of individual thought and identity. Tokyo has received global acclaim by Vogue, I-D, W, CNN African Voices, and Harper's Bazaar U.K.  Recently, Mikey Oshai was featured in CNN Africa.

    In partnership with Jaqueline Pham and The Asian Journal we are launching a new segment highlighting fashion through the lens of Asian culture. Please tune in after the conversation for intriguing fashion insights by Jaqueline reporting from Vietnam.  

    Special thanks to Will Fitzpatrick at Soho Radio in London for sound production.

    #tokyojames #lvmhprize #Nigerianfashiondesigner

    58 min
  • The Psychology of Fashion: Dr. Carolyn Mair
    This episode is a conversation with Dr. Carolyn Mair who is a London based author, educator, speaker, consultant, Charted Psychologist and Fellow of the British Psychological Society.  In 2012, Dr. Mair developed the Psychology Department at London College of Fashion and created the world's first Psychology for Fashion Masters degrees (MA and MSc).  In 2018, Dr. Mair published The Psychology of Fashion.  The idea of 'fashion psychology' has now become a growing global phenomenon thanks to the original work by Dr. Mair who has been cited in numerous press outlets including Refinery 29, Vogue Business, NBC News, WWD, The Observer, ELLE, The Guardian, Harpers Bazaar, and The Atlantic to name a few.  
    Follow Carolyn on social media, particularly Twitter @Carolyn_UK and Instagram as Psychologyforfashion.
    45 min
  • I Deserve Couture: Hanan Besovic

    Season 2 kicks off with a conversation with fashion commentator Hanan Besovic a.k.a the Instagram handle "I Deserve Couture". Hanan holds the self-professed degrees of PhD in meme, Masters in throwing shade, and a minor in fashion.

    #ideservecouture

    42 min
  • The Fashion Archive: Odunayo Ojo

    This episode is a conversation with Odunayo (Ayo) Ojo, a British-Nigerian, who is a London based fashion wonder boy that has taken the fashion world by storm with his critical point of view rooted in deep research. Ayo's free-thinking perspective has created a fanbase with over 70k subscribers on his YouTube channel-- The Fashion Archives. Currently, Ayo is a BA Fashion Journalism student at Central Saint Martins.  He also writes for BOF and has launched his own publication The Fashion Archive Magazine. Please join me as I talk with Ayo about his Nigerian roots, fashion journey including becoming a YouTube fashion sensation, obsession for fashion, and academic life at Central Saint Martins. Connect: The Fashion Archive YouTube Channel  IG: @fashionroadman  @thefashionarchivemag

    31 min
  • The Power of Fancy Dress: Dr. Benjamin Wild
    This episode is a conversation with Dr. Benjamin Wild who is a U.K. based cultural historian specialising in the study of Fancy Dress Costume. Dr. Wild has authored many pieces of work including books A Life in Fashion The Wardrobe of Cecil Beaton (2016) and Carnival to Catwalk: Global Reflections on Fancy Dress Costume (2020).  Additionally, he is co-host with Lucy Clayton of the Dress Fancy podcast.  Dr. Wild is a Senior Lecturer in Contextual Studies at The Manchester Fashion Institute at Manchester Metropolitan University. 
    Fancy Dress also known as Costume or Fancy Dress Costume is defined by Dr. Wild as a performative form of dress, imaginative and incongruous, work for a discrete occasion and limited time that disrupts the place of the individual within the social and political relationships of a specific community (2020, p. 1). 
    In this episode, we explore ideas of history and culture reflected in fancy dress costume both in society and on the runway.
    39 min

About Unbiased Label

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Tune in for real talk on fashion x culture that cuts through bias. On this podcast, we believe that labels belong on clothes, not people! Join the journey of discovery at the intersection of industry and academia where we ask deep questions meant to inspire change.