The Modern Artisan project is a joint venture between The Prince’s Foundation, an education charity headed by HRH The Prince of Wales, and the Yoox Net-a-Porter Group, led by chief executive Federico Marchetti.

The goal? To offer a new generation of designers and artisans the opportunity to create a collection of sustainable luxury fashion – combining the latest in technology with the heritage of craftsmanship.

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Despite the complications brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, that vision has now been realised, with the capsule collection dropping across all four of the YNAP ecommerce platforms: Yoox, Net-a-Porter, Mr Porter and The Outnet.

“The concept for The Modern Artisan was born from a passion that HRH The Prince of Wales and I share, for educating and investing in the next generation of talent,” Marchetti tells The Australian, “particularly, in my case, when it comes to harnessing the convergence of technology and luxury fashion.”

Their “common ground” had been realised when Prince Charles accepted an invitation from Marchetti to visit YNAP’s London Tech Hub in 2018; Marchetti was then invited to Dumfries House, the headquarters of The Prince’s Foundation set on 2000 acres in East Ayrshire, Scotland, “to see their work with traditional arts and heritage craft skills first-hand”.

As a technology company, YNAP has already trained over 10,000 people in digital education; the Prince’s Foundation has a special interest in heritage skills including those in architecture and textiles. With the UK suffering from a loss of manufacturing skills as offshore manufacturing became the norm – a similar story to Australia across a number of industries, including fashion - the program was also a small way to address this for the future.

“All of The Prince’s Foundation’s work centres around their concept of ‘respecting the past and building the future’. It resonated deeply with me as I have always been interested in how seemingly opposite worlds can be united to achieve something special - be it cross-border collaboration in Italy and the UK, or working across different sectors, such as luxury fashion and technology, as we do at our Group.

“Therefore, we agreed that the founding principle of The Modern Artisan project is to look to the future: to empower the artisans of tomorrow by marrying the ancient profession of the artisan with contemporary technology and data-driven insights.”

In May 2019, six Italian students from the Politecnico di Milano’s Fashion in Process research laboratory were chosen to take part in the program. Later in the year, in the UK, another six graduate students were selected from some 40 applicants from a call-out to fashion institutions (only four would complete the program); they would soon be based out of the Textile Training Centre at Dumfries House.

“We didn’t advertise who the project was for,” said Jacqueline Farrell, education director of The Prince’s Foundation. “We were calling the project ‘future makers’ (at that point), calling it a production skills development program. What we wanted at the beginning was to make sure those who came along were really interested in the end of the project - to improve the manufacturing capacity and skillset in the UK.”

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AN INSPIRED APPROACH

The project coincided with the 500th anniversary of the death of Leonardo da Vinci, the polymath who combined art and science in his enormous oeuvre. It seemed the perfect point of inspiration for the Modern Artisan project.

And while this offered a creative spark to the designers, the collection was also informed by five years’ worth of sales data supplied by YNAP across its four retail platforms, and reinforced in workshops with the retailer’s buyers. By crunching this data from its 4.3 million customers, the retailer’s best-selling items, most popular colours and details were soon at the designers’ fingertips, allowing the collection to have not only the best chance of success, but also longevity after purchase, being less driven by trends.

“Supported by our buyers throughout the project, the purpose of this training was to encourage our artisans to keep customers, and their preferences, at the heart of their design process,” said Marchetti, “and to ensure they created pieces that will be treasured by our customers for many years to come, to minimise throwaway culture.”

This data also extended to sizing, and by using the company’s Artificial Intelligence Size Optimisation Tool “the correct quantity of each size and garment has been determined exactly and produced to avoid waste”.

“It was like seeing a collection come from the minds and the hands of the students, but also from our four million-plus customers. It is a new hybrid of luxury design, mixing data and AI with human creativity.”

For the designers, this information was an invaluable tool to help the creative process.

“Data was actually a really important part of the development of the collection,” said Italian designer Lorenzo Lanari.

“We did three fittings with the buyers. And each time we would sit and talk about the clothes that we were making, they would say, ‘This one will not sell, maybe change this thing.’ They never treated us like students, they always treated us like real fashion designers, with that level of professionalism.”

At the end of this process, the Italian students created the first prototypes, and in September 2019 they met with the British students for the first time in Milan to start their collaboration in earnest.

They would meet again in late October at Dumfries House, to present their initial samples and concepts to both Marchetti and Prince Charles, and a handful of global media, including The Australian.

With the designs finalised, the British students began developing their skills in small-batch production at Dumfries house. With the exception of the knitwear, which was made by Scottish heritage producers Johnstons of Elgin, the entire collection of over 400 units would be manufactured by the students. Production proper began in January – and then, everything changed.

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PANDEMIC COMES INTO PLAY

When Covid-19 hit Europe in late February, the uncertainty that swept the region also impacted the Modern Artisan project. When the UK went into lockdown in late March, production of the collection at Dumfries House was just past its halfway point, preparing for a planned June release.

“At that point things had been fairly well paced, but we were entering that stage of increasing the speed of the artisans and amount they were producing each day,” said Farrell.

“I was absolutely devastated,” said Scottish artisan Tracey Whalen. “We were all obviously unsure of what was going to happen. We didn’t know whether the project would go ahead. We had worked so hard for seven months and we wanted this collection to be complete.”

For those with equipment at home, some production continued during lockdown, before the artisans were able to go back into the Textile Training Centre.

While the rest of the world was about to discover the necessity of Zoom and video conferencing, the two groups of students had already mastered such digital communications thanks collaborating across different countries and were in touch daily.

The students helped each other through tricky parts of the production process, even preparing videos of how to work through difficult procedures.

“There were various Whatsapp groups for production,” said Farrell. If advice was needed on button placement or other details of a garment, “the Italian students would jump back in and advise us”.

The British team didn’t reunite at the Textile Training Centre until August 2, once it had been reconfigured to safety protocols. There, they could focus on finishing the collection.

Farrell said that the learning curve of the manufacturing students was “quite phenomenal”; upon finishing the project, they have received a Modern Apprenticeship Award in Heritage Textiles in partnership with Glasgow Clyde College.
Whalen for one is hoping to launch her own sustainable women’s wear label, and Farrell believes that the ripple effect of the Modern Artisan program, will continue to be felt.

“We are going to be continuing our relationship with the artisans. The idea is to regenerate the UK’s capacity for manufacturing. With Tracey setting up her own business, hopefully she will be able to employ others. Others are going into the manufacturing side only (for other companies). We expect great things from these artisans in five years’ time, that they will have a real impact in the fashion world.”

Marchetti believes that the project is even more relevant now since the pandemic began, “and the social and economic challenges that it will create”.

“One thing we can do, I believe, is to create new opportunities for the next generation that combine digital skills with traditional careers and professions.”

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A SUSTAINABLE FOUNDATION

For both Marchetti and Prince Charles, who met with the British students on a number of occasions to follow their progress, sustainability was the foundation for every aspect of the Modern Artisan project.

“I’m a believer that a sustainable future for fashion is within our grasp and I’ve driven this message for over a decade – since before sustainability became a buzzword,” said Marchetti.

“For this project and collection specifically, the biggest priority throughout was ensuring the collection is made to last, in the spirit of our purpose – connecting people with the joy of luxury and fashion that lasts a lifetime and beyond.”

The materials used are all natural, mostly organic, local, traceable and single-fibre, the latter meaning that they are more easily recycled at the garment’s end of life. Suppliers included Scottish mill Johnstons of Elgin for cashmere and wool, including end-of-stock fabrics, and Italy’s Centro Seta for peace silk. Buttons include those made from sustainably sourced horn.

“Moreover, it’s been a unique opportunity to train our emerging artisans on the importance of mindful production practices, ensuring they’re briefed on how the use of data and tech in design can enhance sustainability and how to handle high-quality, organic materials, so they are already ahead of the sustainability curve when they launch into their career paths.”

The learning curve for students on the subject proved invaluable.

For Whalen, “sustainability was just a word thrown about”, before starting the program. “Coming here has educated me. I was aware of it but only in the last couple of years.”

“Before starting this project didn’t know much about sustainability,” added Lanari. “Understanding the importance of designing for your customer, the importance of recycling, the materials that you use, the fabric waste, recyclability of the fabric. These are little things that may change the world some day.”

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THE COLLECTION

The resulting collection, under the brand Yoox Net-a-Porter for The Prince’s Foundation, has taken all of the sales data and da Vinci’s artistic inspiration and distilled them into 18 limited-edition pieces, 10 for women and 8 for men. The profits from the collection will go to The Prince’s Foundation to develop and deliver further training programs in traditional textile skills.

For women, the collection includes a coat and matching pleated-front culottes in camel-coloured wool; a silk blouse with pussy bow that can be worn at the front or tied at the back; and a checked cashmere suit made with double-breasted blazer and wide-leg trousers. The data had shown, for example, that while slim-leg trousers come in and out of fashion, wide-leg trousers always sell well.

The tailored jumpsuit, made from herringbone cashmere, includes smocking details at the sides, and was made in navy as this is the best-selling colour for jumpsuits according to the sales data.

“We actually looked at the length of the dress or what kind of coat would be the best to design (thanks to the data),” said Lanari, who since finishing the project has started working in Milan for Off-White.

Both men’s and women’s collections include a cable-knit rollneck sweater in ivory; according to the data, rollnecks are a customer preference across both men’s and women’s knitwear.

Interestingly, the men’s collection offers relaxed tailored separates and soft knits, but no full suits. It includes tailored navy wool trousers, and a more casual style with drawstring waist, and classic shirting in white and blue.

“In the man’s shirts you see that they are really classic, but they have this little detail that we wouldn’t have done without the data, the hidden buttons under the little placket,” said Lanari.

A bomber jacket in grey cashmere is a favourite of Marchetti and Lanari, and a further acknowledgement of the polished but casual approach popular with the YNAP male consumer.

While the supplied data often led the artisans to clean lines and silhouettes, and a largely neutral colour palette – navy, grey and ivory, for example – the details in the collection are inspired by da Vinci.

Both the smocking details, found on a number of items, and the cable designs on the knitwear are reminiscent of da Vinci’s obsession with knots, such as those seen in the embroidery details on Mona Lisa’s bodice, and which are both decorative and mathematical. His architectural studies are reflected in the linear pleated details on a silk blouse, while the softer lines and draping details on the midi dress and blouses are inspired by his renditions of fabrics in paintings and artistic studies.

Each piece in the collection has its own digital ID, so that its new owner can learn about its production, the artisans behind the style, its fabrication and future care.

For Marchetti, the result is one he hopes will resonate with consumers as much as it does with him. “I’m so impressed by the beautiful final collection from our Modern Artisans. The end result shows their creativity, understanding of the customer, quality of craftsmanship, and the high level of attention to detail they’ve learned during their training. The collection is a wonderful celebration of the heritage of artisanal expertise that is embedded within the cultures of the UK and Italy.”

Glynis Traill-Nash travelled to Scotland as a guest of Yoox Net-a-Porter Group.