Epson and arts and design college Central Saint Martins in London have partnered to support education and encourage students to experiment with its large format digital textile printers.
Epson already has a relationship with British fashion designer Richard Quinn, a former MA student at Central Saint Martins who this year won the first Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design. He has highlighted the need for students to access the latest technology and has shown the vibrant and show-stopping results that can be achieved on demand using Epson’s digital printing technology.
The partnership will enable students from Central Saint Martins, part of the University of the Arts London, to use three new products from Epson. The line-up includes the latest dye sublimation printer (SureColor SC-F9300), a direct to garment (DTG) printer (SureColor SC-F2100) and an A3 scanner (Expression 12000XL). About 1250 students across fashion, textiles and jewellery courses will have access to the new portfolio of Epson products.
Laura Baker, 2D print specialist at CSM said, ‘Experimentation is really important at Central Saint Martins. Students will learn the effects digital printing is capable of achieving but we also encourage them to push the technology to its limits by combining disciplines and techniques such as print and stitch, print and knit and so on while experimenting with different materials and designs. Although students can access printing facilities outside, we often find that the quality is not as high as we can achieve ourselves. Furthermore, dye sublimation and DTG printers are waterless and the printers’ sustainable credentials fit the college’s eco vision and values.’
Heather Kendle, market development manager for Epson Europe, said, ‘We are delighted to be working in partnership with Central Saint Martins. Education is a key focus for us and we are constantly looking to encourage students to learn new skills and to push the boundaries of design and creativity to their limits using our products. This partnership will be far more constructive than simply placing kit into the College as we will be able to use the students’ feedback to refine our technology even further.’
Epson will work with Central Saint Martins over the next 12 months on a wide range of events, including a print project for 2nd Year BA Fashion students and London Fashion Week as well as profiling students who have used Epson technology to create their work.
Epson already has a long term relationship with The Royal Academy Schools and runs design competitions in collaboration with Birmingham City University, where it is a module of the textiles BA course, and the University of Leeds.
EPSON www.epson.co.uk
