The self-confessed 21st Century Bohemian-Romantic takes us through the processes and influences behind her inspiring silk scarf collection
We have worked with some extraordinary textile designers in our time but when Fate Rising’s beautiful silk scarves rolled off our digital fabric printing presses we knew we were dealing with a wonderful new talent. Here, she tells us about herself, her eclectic influences, her collection, and her bright future.
Background
One look at Fate Rising’s work and it’s clear to see that she comes from an unusual background. Her childhood was spent living in and absorbing the myriad of cultures in Asia, Europe, and America with her earliest tuition in art, design, and fashion via homeschooling in Nepal, Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam. She went on to study fashion at Central Saint Martins, Fashion Design at Whitehouse in Australia and at SCAD Savannah in the USA, and is currently living in London studying Fashion Textiles at London College of Fashion.
Influences
Artistically she’s influenced by Botticelli, Bosch, Lynch, Klimt, and Picasso; Valentino, from the fashion world and Dante and Hunter S Thompson from the literary world, amongst others. However, it’s her grandfather, artist Tony Melendy, who is her greatest influence. He created some of the early works in the kinetic art movement and was an outstanding brutalist sculptor. As Fate says, “He wasn’t career-motivated – he was only in it for the art…and he saw it all”
Process
Fate sees it all too, immersing herself in her creative research and philosophical explorations of different subject matters to build her visions. She dedicates entire sketchbooks to developing a theme that results in extremely detailed and conceptual, symbolic designs, bursting with hidden meaning, and this process produces many interrelated fashion and textile designs simultaneously. Working with a variety of mediums and methods – alcohol inks, gouache, collage, Indian inks, fine liners, watercolours to name a few – Fate believes that “anything you can think about is open game for the creative process, so the world is a treasure trove.”
Silk Scarf Collection
With Forest Digital, Fate created the Kal Yuga and Cuddle Puddle silk twill scarves, both fascinating intricate and intimate designs that took our breath away. As Fate says they are “wearable canvases” that are “wonderfully collectible”.
The Kal Yuga scarf collection tells the modern-day story of Dante’s Inferno and the Seven Deadly sins. It is a contemporary exploration of the visual symbolism of 21st-century sin “a Bomb That Looks Like Candy in that it connects with the inner child to engage the awareness of the viewer about environmental and social issues of our times.”
Fate designed the Kal Yuga scarves alongside a textile/womenswear collection, so the scarves interact symbiotically with the garment silhouettes, structure and textiles.
As Fate says, “Through this interaction, I seek to tell stories which speak about the human experience and society as a whole.”
Fate’s Cuddle Puddle scarves were designed during the first lockdown while she was thinking about culture and desire from a quantum perspective and they are a symbolic portrait of the interconnected nature of reality. Inspired by Robert Sheldrake and his theories of morphic resonance, as well as the theories of Nassim Haramein; two scientists whose work deeply impacted Fate as a teenager. Whilst looking at advertising and cultural trends in the context of Sheldrake’s findings, Fate “saw the ways which we all react to each other, how one person’s desire becomes another’s, and how contagious we are as a species. I saw 7 Billion yearning souls with their 7 Billion Schemes, all connected together… the good, the bad, and the ugly… each perspective influencing the others, whether aware of it or not… and with that, I saw the whole of creation… the fractal nature of reality… the lucid mirage… there is self, there is no other, and we are all connected.”
We asked Fate why she chose Forest Digital to digitally print her silk scarves and bring her visions into reality….
“I was looking for high-end printing and finishing for my scarf company. Scarves are perfect for illustrative design and storytelling, and equally perfect for design that focuses on colour, pattern and mark making. As young designers and artists, they are also an accessible way to begin building a brand. I printed on silk twill as it is a timeless favourite but I have more fabrics I’d like to experiment with. The staff at Forest Digital were great and very helpful, and the final product is superb. One of my favourite moments of 2020 was opening the box of scarves from Forest Digital – I was so delighted, they looked sharp! They have been well-loved and I’ve almost sold out of the first run which is so encouraging, especially as I have yet to even photograph them properly or add them to my website!’
The Future
As a full-time workaholic student, Fate Rising’s brand is happening as time allows but the brand will officially launch this Spring and Fate has exciting plans. She is currently gathering together the final designs for her Going Out to Meet Success textiles collection and her next scarf collection which includes her ‘Fugitive’ shawl. She says, “I was given an opportunity through London College of Fashion to create a textile artwork in collaboration with Traces that tells a story of migration in the modern world. The shawl that I designed tells the story of the migration of women and children as a consequence of domestic abuse/violence. This was a project very close to my heart and all profit from the sale of these shawls will be donated directly to Finding Our Voices, a non-profit organisation that helps girls and women recognise, avoid, safely leave and heal from dangerous relationships; and to educate the general community about the complexity, insidiousness, and pervasiveness of domestic abuse.”
Her long-term goal is to continue building Fate Rising, she says “I have two benevolent forces tugging at my heartstrings…one of them is a fine art, and the other is fashion. I have a lot of people telling me that I have to choose…but I don’t have to choose between the sun and the moon, as I believe they compliment each other perfectly”
We wholeheartedly agree on Fate and thank you for your time and your creations, we are all looking forward to working with you in the future! Check out Forest Digital’s shop for beautiful digitally printed scarves.
Kal Yuga silk twill scarf is £333 and is available in three colour ways.
Cuddle Puddle silk twill scarves are £200 and are available in five colour ways.
They can both be viewed on Fate’s website, where they can be purchased from 7th February 2021. Meanwhile, they are also available by contacting Fate directly through her website.