Dopamine is the “feel-good” hormone, giving you a sense of delight and motivation. Dopamine is part of your reward system. Reward yourself by wearing mood boosting clothes.

Dopamine Colour creates looks which spark joy. The initial concept of this collection grew from a personal experience as a textile’s teacher at an American summer camp where fun, excitement, positivity, friendship, family, and creativity were celebrated. Inspired by the campers’ innocent imaginations, free creativity and childlike art led to the motifs, bold bright colours, and pattern clashes. Dopamine colour champions the spirit and feeling that a once in a lifetime summer at camp created. An endless release of dopamine, fun and motivation.

The collection is further inspired by Zandra Rhode’s vibrant use of clashing colour prints, Mark Rothko’s fields of colour paintings and Yayoi Kusama’s bold, polka dot kaleidoscopic environments. The textiles are informed by personal explorations into art therapy techniques, using mark-making and mixed media such as paints, inks, and pastels, informed from primary photos taken from Miami’s bright bold deco art. These explorations were collaged to create patterns. Art therapy allows people to use the creative process to explore emotions and self-expression and boost self-esteem. It is a form of mindfulness which can enhance mental health.

The colour palette is underpinned by colour therapy ideas and meanings. Bright colours infuse feelings of optimism, and highly saturated hues can lift energy levels. Pink conjures feelings of cheerfulness, orange creates happiness, green inspires growth, yellow positivity, and purple creativity. The silhouettes derive from shapes created from colour collages, using pattern cutting to form circle cut-outs juxtaposed with 3D circular shapes. The prints were developed by translating the colour collages and mark making explorations into digital. The prints are bright, bold, and playful to boost moods and create confidence. The collection features a range of print types from engineered placement to all over repeat with a mix of digital and screen print, layered and blocked. With aspects of modularity to enhance excitement and playfulness, such as a detachable jacket and dress or a reversible coat which means different prints can be featured, dopamine colour is a synthesis of clashing print, and explosions of motivating colour.