Championing representation in Fashion Styling & Art Direction | Degree Show Stories
02 July 2026
Students in Falmouth’s Fashion & Textiles Institute are supported to take ownership of the direction of their creative practice from day one. For BA(Hons) Fashion Styling & Art Direction final-year student Josie Tang, that creative freedom has led to her producing a powerful final major project exploring the representation of disabled people in fairy tales.
As someone with lived experience of multiple chronic illnesses, Josie’s multidisciplinary project is inspired by her own story, as well as the opportunities she had to connect with other disabled people in the creative industries during her time at Falmouth.
We chatted to Josie about her vision and how the freedom of the course has helped her to flourish, ahead of her upcoming involvement in a Disability Pride Catwalk event in Manchester.
“I'm Josie Tang, and I study BA(Hons) Fashion Styling & Art Direction. My final major project is titled ‘Tales of the Other’, and it explores the representation of disabled people in fairy tales.
“My project basically asks and invites people who have been othered to see themselves as the hero and the protagonists in their own stories.
“Connecting with other disabled people in the industry, that's been really lovely to see and is really important: to know that we're here and we exist. That's been influential in my work.
“I really liked the idea that [on the course] I could have a creative vision and just make it happen. I could do loads of things at once and look at styling and accessories and different things in fashion, as well as photography and making my own pieces.”
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