GCSE Art and Design (Art, craft and design)₈₂₀₁

Textile design is defined here as the creation of designs and products for woven, knitted, stitched, printed or decorative textiles that might have a functional or non-functional purpose.

Areas of study

In Component 1 and Component 2 s tudents are required to work in one or more area(s) of textile design, such as those listed below:

• a rt textiles
• f ashion design and illustration
• c ostume design
• c onstructed textiles
• p rinted and dyed textiles
• s urface pattern
• s titched and/or embellished textiles
• s oft furnishings and/or textiles for interiors
• d igital textiles
• i nstalled textiles.

They may explore overlapping areas and combinations of areas.

Knowledge, understanding and skills

Students must develop and apply the knowledge, understanding and skills specified in the Subject content to realise personal intentions relevant to textile design and their selected area(s) of study.

The following aspects of knowledge, understanding and skills are defined in further detail to ensure students’ work is clearly focused and relevant to textile design.

Knowledge and understanding

The way sources inspire the development of ideas, relevant to textile design including:

• how sources relate to cultural, social, historical, contemporary, environmental and creative contexts which might be determined or influenced by functional or non-functional considerations
• how ideas, feelings, forms, and purposes can generate responses that address personal needs or meet external requirements, such as client expectations and any associated constraints.

The ways in which meanings, ideas and intentions relevant to textile design can be communicated include the use of:

• figurative and non-figurative representations, stylisation, simplification, surface embellishment, constructional considerations and imaginative interpretation
• visual and tactile elements, such as:
  • colour
  • line
  • form
  • tone
  • texture
  • shape
  • pattern
  • composition
  • decoration
  • repetition
  • scale
  • structure
  • surface.

Skills

Within the context of textile design, students must demonstrate the ability to:

• use textile design techniques and processes, appropriate to students’ personal intentions, for example:
  • weaving
  • felting
  • stitching
  • appliqué
  • construction methods
  • printing.
• use media and materials, as appropriate to students’ personal intentions, for example:
  • inks
  • yarns
  • threads
  • fibres
  • fabrics
  • textile materials
  • digital imagery.