Slid Needham is a politically-charged young creative, whose expertise cannot be put into just one category. Her make-up looks are abstract, her outfits uncensored – a fact that has left her at odds with Instagram’s nudity guidelines. In the past, the platform has removed Needham’s account, inciting her to test the boundaries and raise the question, “Are we being overly censored for displaying our own bodies?” Last year, the CSM womenswear designer collaborated with Vivienne Westwood on the Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood show performance, whilst working closely with MUA Val Garland on the models’ make-up looks. In conversation with SLICK, Needham opened up about the nature of creative plagiarism, the need for authentic, well-meaning representation in the industry, and the role her sexual and gender identity plays in her design process.

Photograph courtesy of Slid Needham.

Slick: How did your collaboration with Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood come about?

Slid: In the beginning of my second year of university, I curated – alongside Adam Leach and Lucas Nettleton-Tate – a performance/installation piece. Through Instagram, it caught the attention of a member of staff at Vivienne Westwood and we were all called for a meeting to discuss a performance at the Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood show in March 2018. The rest is history 🙂

Slick: What are your thoughts on plagiarism within the industry?

Slid: I think that taking someone else’s work and claiming it to be your own is wrong. I think we can all agree that we have been victim to it, in some degree. It’s so difficult when we live in an age of the mass consumption of imagery online. At the end of the day: credit where credit is due. Help support young talent, don’t exploit it!

Slick:  If there was one thing within the creative industry that you could change, what would it be?

Slid: I think we still need equal/fair representation (not just shoving a few trans models in because it’s trendy or progressive).

Slick: Does your interest in design coincide with your everyday?

Slid: I have always found my work and my everyday to be one blur almost. My process always seems to be different to the people around me. I’m not only inspired by my beautiful and talented friends, but also my experiences with my sexuality and my gender identity. The process itself, I feel, has to be lived and projected back and forth between the mannequin and myself (kind of like a conversation).

Slick: When was the first time you wore makeup?

Slid: I know that the first time, I must have been incredibly young, but I only really started experimenting properly at the beginning of college (LAU) 2016.

Slick: If you could travel back in time 5 years and give yourself some advice, what would it be?

Slid: More self love, take even more creative risks, and most of all accept help when you need it!