THE IRISH LEGACY

IRISH DESIGNER RÓISÍN PIERCE LEVERAGES ON THE POWER of FASHION TO TELL A STORY, and SHINES A LIGHT ON THE DARK HISTORY behind WOMEN'S RIGHTS IN IRELAND

- JAMIE LEE

Empowerment means different things for different people. In the case of women like 28-year-old Irish designer Róisín Pierce, it means having a choice and a voice. Pierce, who founded her eponymous label back in 2019, is known for her all-white ensembles, delicate lacework and intricate crochet techniques. Yet, behind the shimmering whiteness of her romantic pieces lies a much darker message: the troubled history of women’s rights in Ireland.

Born and raised in Ireland, Pierce’s connection to fashion was natural. Her mother, who worked as a seamstress and now works at Pierce’s brand, taught her how to sew. In her teens, with support from her mother and influenced by designers like Issey Miyake and Karl Lagerfeld, Pierce learnt how to construct simple garments and by the time she enrolled in Dublin’s National College of Art and Design, the designer had already learnt techniques like 3D knitting and patchworking.

After graduating with a degree in Textile Design in 2016, Pierce worked in Copenhagen and Dublin, and eventually launched her own brand in 2019 with a debut collection titled “Mná i Bhláth” which translates in English to “Women in Bloom”. Pierce was inspired by the women from the Magdalene Laundries, which were state-funded institutions in Ireland that confined and forced “fallen women” — which included single mothers and sex workers — into unpaid labour. They would wash, iron and pack laundry, as well as sew, embroider and produce textiles like Irish lace by hand. Failure to comply would result in being starved of food, solitary confinement, physical abuse and humiliation rituals which included the shaving of their heads.