Taskin Goec makes AI work for him

The collection is the culmination of Taskin’s time in London, studying for a master’s degree at the London College of Fashion. Now back in Berlin, unlike many of his contemporaries, who scratch their heads wondering how much time they have until artificial intelligence makes them redundant, the graduate designer has embraced the new technology in his work.

Taskin’s process begins with a visual dataset composed of his existing work and a carefully formulated prompt which explains the aesthetics of his work to the software. Once the training phase is completed, the designer can request the AI to perform tasks for him, such as producing hundreds of iterations of a garment or an outfit within the desired visual code. Presented with multitudes of computer-generated ideas for the design, Taskin begins to sketch the garment’s outline.

What follows resembles traditional means of fashion design – interpreting the visuals, pattern cutting and sampling until a finished product appears. The only perceivable difference is the tools used; for a digital garment,  3D design software such as CLO3D replaces the old-school pen and paper.

An avid gamer since his teens, Taskin first began experimenting with 3D design in computer-generated worlds he’d immerse himself in. Through fashion, he found a way to convert this into real life. “I was kind of obsessed with the idea of creating a perfect world, and I found that through clothing, I could bring aspects of this fictional world into my immediate surroundings.”

At high school, Taskin had already realised the importance of gaining a technical proficiency in design, so upon leaving school, he went to study a BA in Fashion Design at Kunsthochschule Weissensee Berlin. “It’s important to know what you want to get out of it,” he advises future students. “Fashion design courses are so open that when you start without knowing, you will get lost in questioning. It’s too short a time to figure it out.” Taskin remembers his time at Kunsthochschule Weissensee fondly, a university that encouraged creative freedom and the possibility of exploring his identity as a designer. However, he believes it’s the master’s degree at LCF that truly prepared him for the business side of the industry.

Now, in between working on personal collections, Taskin is a consultant to brands interested in introducing their product to the digital sphere. Unsure of the novelty, some companies require persuasion. “It’s hard to explain and takes a lot of trust,” he says. “In the end, give me some time, and we will figure out what works for your brand.” The designer plans to expand his work by engaging with more and more labels as the curiosity around AI grows.

Taskin sees a digital-first production model as a potential means of overcoming excessive sampling and product variety. Being able to visualise items digitally would enhance the client’s experience and increase the chance of a successful transition from current consumption models. “The thing is, those changes can happen if a lot of brands participate. As someone who wants to be a pioneer, who wants to accelerate this process, I think it is crucial for me to spread some of the knowledge”.

The young designer believes we are moving towards a revolution, urging us all in the industry to prepare for new digital spheres for consumers. He also encourages us to be optimistic about this, too. “Living in the digital world is not supposed to be numbing or less than,” he finishes, “there should be a sense of frivolity and intensity.”