Epson and Central Saint Martins partner to encourage innovative design amongst students

Epson and well-known arts and design college Central Saint Martins have collaborated to support education and to encourage students to experiment with its large format digital textile printers.

Currently, Epson has a very successful relationship with British fashion designer Richard Quinn. Richard is a former MA student at Central Saint Martins and this year won the first Queen Elizabeth II Awards for British Design. He has emphasized the need for students to have access to the latest technology and has demonstrated the vibrant and outstanding results that can be accomplished using Epson’s digital printing technology.

The collaboration will allow students from Central Saint Martins who are part of the University of the Arts London, to use 3 new products from Epson. The line-up includes the newest dye sublimation printer (SureColor SC-F9300), a direct-to-garment (DTG) printer (SureColor SC-F2100) and an A3 scanner (Expression 12000XL). Approximately 1,250 students across jewellery, fashion and textiles courses can access the new portfolio of Epson products.

CSM’s 2D print specialist, Laura Baker says: “Experimentation is very imperative at Central Saint Martins. Students have the opportunity to learn what digital printing can achieve but in addition we encourage them to push the technology to its limits by combining disciplines and techniques like print and stick, print and knit etc whilst experimenting with different materials and designs. Students have access to printing facilities outside, however usually we find that the quality is not as high as we can achieve ourselves. In addition, dye sublimation and DTG printers are waterless and the printers’ sustainable credentials fit well with the college’s eco vision and values.”

Epson Europe’s Market Development Manager, Heather Kendle says: “We are excited to work in partnership with Central Saint Martins. Education is an important focus and we are continuously aiming 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 more constructive than just placing kit into the College since we will be able to use the students’ feedback to refine our technology even further than before.”

Epson plan to work with Central Saint Martins over the next year on a wide range of events including a print project for 2^nd Year BA Fashion students and London Fashion Week. Epson will also profile students who have used Epson technology to create their work.
Epson already has a long-standing relationship with The Royal Academy Schools and runs design competitions in partnership with Birmingham City University, where it is currently a module of the textiles BA course and the University of Leeds.