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Technology in the Fashion Industry
Artificial Intelligence and other types of technology have been broadly present in our daily lives, and it is no different to the fashion industry. From garment manufacturing to trend forecasting AI has become key to this field. However, as valuable this is, there are lengths this technology can’t reach. Haute Couture, a field in fashion where gowns are perfectly tailored to the customer, and sewn by hand is a perfect representation of the eternal need for the human presence. The intrinsic value put in the time invested by humans and their emotions is something technology will never be able to provide. Thus, making it impossible for any technology to make the human being obsolete.
The Value of Craftsmanship
For the field of Haute Couture certain requirements must be fulfilled in order for an atelier to be qualified. “To qualify as an official Haute Couture house, members must design made-to-order clothes for private clients, with more than one fitting, using an atelier (workshop) that employs at least fifteen full time staff. They must also have twenty full time technical workers in one of their workshops.” (“Haute Couture | Fashion A-Z | BoF Education | The Business of Fashion | #BoFEducation,” 2021). As seen aside (“the ATELIERS,” 2014), each single piece, pearl, jewel, and piece of fabric is carefully hand sewn by the couturier and the atelier staff. The process can take more than 700 hours for a single gown to be made, it is the time and dedication of these people that puts the value in it.
Thus, if it was simply made by an advanced type of technology, a Haute Couture daywear dress wouldn’t be valued at $20,000 and its wedding pieces at a minimum of $100,000 would no longer be worth all of that. (Haute Couture Definition and Cost — CoutureNotebook, 2014). The time that it takes for a certain technology or equipment to manufacture a product doesn’t have the same price rate of a human being.
The quote by the renowned designer Christian Dior illustrates this need for the human presence in fashion: “In a machine age, dressmaking is one of the last refuges of the human, the personal, the inimitable.” (Christian Dior). It showcases the importance of human craftsmanship in dressmaking, as being made by a human being is what makes it so personal and inimitable, and having a machine make it would remove this personal touch.
The creative process of emotions
Another important point tied to the value of Haute Couture is the emotion tied into its design process. As said by the designer Christian Dior “Everything I know, see or hear, every part of my life is transformed into dresses. They are my daydreams, but they have passed from dreamland into the world of everyday items to wear.” (KEY TO COUTURE, 2019) Thus, as his designs are daydreams, how could they be drawn by technology if machines can’t dream?
Firstly, it is important to understand the process of emotion:
It takes the processing of both external, and internal stimulus. Although technology - AI in particular - has come to the point of handling its external environment, and even recognizing emotions in order to produce a compatible reaction, there is no internal stimulus. (“Will artificial intelligence ever have emotions or feelings?,” 2018)
The lack of introspection in technology won’t allow it to have feelings, therefore nothing that comes from emotions can be produced by them. A great example of the presence of emotion in Haute Couture design is the dress Muguet by Christian Dior, hand stitched in 1957. (Tyler, 2019) This design was reflected by Dior’s passion for botanics, created by the admiration of his mother's love for gardens and his own love for her. This emotion of love, and admiration that led to this famous dress is something that can’t be produced by any type of technology. Although machines might be able to sew it, the creative process and the feelings embedded in it can’t be reproduced. Bringing daydreams into the real world through fashion requires human presence as only we are able to have these dreams.
“Couture is emotion. Couture is freedom. Couture is not thinking about pricing and not thinking about craziness. You can do whatever you want to do in couture.” (KEY TO COUTURE, 2019) This quote by the Italian designer Riccardo Tisci truly delineates the importance of emotion in designing, as couture is emotion and if it can’t be felt by a machine, then it can’t be expressed by it.
Conclusion
Haute Couture truly represents the forever lasting need for human presence and how although technology and artificial intelligence can be of help when manufacturing or forecasting trends, it can’t replace the actual hands that embroider each piece so carefully into a dress. Without introspection, there are no emotions, and as machines don’t present internal stimuli, these feelings can’t be replicated. In addition, the creative process needed to actually produce these designs are directly tied to emotions, thus it can’t be reproduced by technology.
This type of art in fashion requires something that only the human brain can produce, and a value that only human time can have. Thus, the length that Haute Couture reaches with its creativity and craftsmanship can’t be reached by technology as it can only be done by the hands and minds of exceptional men and women.
References
the ATELIERS. (2014). Retrieved October 14, 2021, from Blogspot.com website: http://littleaugury.blogspot.com/2014/11/the-ateliers.html
AI in Fashion: An Extensive Guide To All Applications For Retail - Intelistyle. (2020, January 16). Retrieved October 14, 2021, from Intelistyle website: https://www.intelistyle.com/ai-fashion-retail-applications/
Gkionaki, M. (2021, January 14). How does Artificial Intelligence work? Retrieved October 14, 2021, from European Investment Bank website: https://www.eib.org/en/stories/how-does-artificial-intelligence-work
Will artificial intelligence ever have emotions or feelings? (2018, October). Retrieved October 14, 2021, from Bitbrain website: https://www.bitbrain.com/blog/artificial-intelligence-emotions
Tyler, E. (2019, February 3). How Christian Dior’s Gardens Inspired Fashion Greatness | British Vogue. Retrieved October 14, 2021, from British Vogue website:
https://www.vogue.co.uk/article/christian-dior-gardens-inspiration
Haute Couture | Fashion A-Z | BoF Education | The Business of Fashion | #BoFEducation. (2021). Retrieved October 14, 2021, from The Business of Fashion website: https://www.businessoffashion.com/education/fashion-az/haute-couture
Haute Couture Definition and Cost — CoutureNotebook. (2014). CoutureNotebook. Retrieved October 14, 2021, from CoutureNotebook website: https://couturenotebook.com/haute-couture-definition-clients-and-prices
KEY TO COUTURE. (2019). In a machine age, dressmaking is one of the last refuges of the human, the personal, the inimitable. Retrieved October 14, 2021, from KEY TO COUTURE website: https://www.keytocouture.com/post/183352063461/in-a-machine-age-dressmaking-is-one-of-the-last
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