Textile Design

Textile design is a creative discipline concerned with the development of fabric, surface, pattern, and material as vehicles for artistic expression and practical function. It encompasses weaving, knitting, embroidery, print, dyeing, and digital processes, and it sits across fashion, interior design, product design, and fine art in the roles it serves. Textiles carry cultural meaning, mediate our relationships with the physical world, and raise important questions about sustainability, production, and the social and environmental impact of the clothing and materials we use every day.

At Dundee you will study this four-year full-time degree, learning about textiles through hands-on experimentation and design thinking. You will explore the role of textiles within society, investigating questions of social and environmental impact, health and wellbeing, and inclusive design alongside the technical mastery of materials and processes. A year abroad is part of the programme, giving you the opportunity to study in a different creative and cultural environment, encountering textile traditions and industries that will broaden your practice and perspective.

Dundee has a strong tradition in art and design education, and the programme develops both your practical skills and your critical and conceptual understanding of what textiles are and can be.

Textile design graduates work in fashion and clothing design, interior and surface design, product and material development, textile art, set and costume design, and the creative and cultural industries more broadly. The growing importance of sustainable materials and circular design means that graduates with knowledge of the environmental dimensions of textiles are increasingly valued by brands and manufacturers. Many graduates also move into textile education, research, and curatorship, or establish independent practices combining making with commissions and teaching.

Postgraduate study in textile design, fashion, or sustainable materials is a natural continuation for those who wish to develop their practice further.