Exploring textile and clothing heritage through the lens of childhood experience

Childhood can help us see heritage in new ways. By drawing on curiosity, imagination, and storytelling, this session invites people to question preconceived ideas about clothing heritage.

What to expect:

An exploration of how childhood experiences can shape the way we understand heritage.

Remarkable examples from children’s clothing collections in museums across Europe, looking at how they uncover the emotions and identities woven into clothing.

Time to reflect on your own experiences and talk about how clothing can connect us to identity, family, place, and belonging.

Experience an alternative approach to heritage inspired by research, creativity, and storytelling.

Using Dr Aude Campbell Le Guennec’s research and the Clo Kit project, this session positions heritage as a dynamic, interpretive, and participatory process, encouraging audiences to reconsider their role not as passive observers but as individuals capable of shaping how heritage is understood and valued.

Important points to note

This event is suitable for age 16+

Event format: This event is a workshop and may involve some audience interaction. This could involve group activities, individual activities, quizzes or hands-on activities.

Content warning: This event will draw on family and childhood memories, and the feeling of nostalgia. This may be a sensitive topic for some audiences.

Filming: Photography may take place at this event. Please let a member of the RSE Public Engagement team know if you do not want to be photographed.

SPEAKER

Aude Campbell Le Guennec

Reader in Design Anthropology, Research Lead, The Glasgow School of Art

Aude is Reader in Design Anthropology and Research Lead at The Glasgow School of Art. From her academic background in fashion history and her career as curator and director of the French Textile and Fashion Museum, she has developed a particular interest in the ways clothing shapes society. Specialising in children’s material culture, she completed a PhD at the Sorbonne University, addressing the socialisation of children through clothing from the 18th century onwards.

As a consultant and researcher, Aude has been involved in the coordination of international and interdisciplinary funded projects, including Dressed for School and IN2FROCC. She also develops innovative approaches to inclusive, sustainable, and participative heritage, with a specific interest in creative interpretation. Aude is co-chair of the funded network ACORSO – Body and Appearances (University of Lille 2, France). She serves on the board of Designing for Children’s Rights, where she advocates for children’s inclusive material culture.

SPEAKER

Laetitia Barbu

Designer, Researcher, Illustrious Lab and Ark-Ellia Design

Laetitia Barbu is a designer and design researcher working at the intersection of design, sustainability, innovation, and cultural heritage. Through her practice at Illustrious Lab and Ark-Ellia Design, and in collaboration with universities and research institutions, she explores how material cultures, craft knowledge, memories, and lived experiences can inform more sustainable and inclusive futures. Her work combines design research, participatory methods, and creative practice to investigate how people engage with objects, stories, and places, and how these relationships shape cultural meaning. Collaborating with researchers, cultural institutions, and communities across Europe and the North Atlantic region, she examines how heritage can serve as a catalyst for innovation, generating insights that inform future research, design processes, and new approaches to cultural participation, social engagement, and environmental challenges.

About the Curious festival

The RSE’s free Curious festival of knowledge is back, from Saturday 5 − Sunday 13 September 2026!

Curious is Scotland’s annual festival of knowledge. Across its seven-year history, Curious has welcomed over 10,000 attendees into its yearly programme of talks, workshops, discussions and exhibitions – all covering different topics and subject areas. There’s no need for you to have any prior specialist knowledge before coming along, just bring your curious self! With plenty of events both in person and online, you can take part from anywhere.

You can check out the full programme of events here.

Accessibility

We aim to make events as accessible as possible. If you have any accessibility requirements or have any questions related to how we can support this event, please contact curious@theRSE.org.uk. Accessibility information for the RSE building can be found on our website.

Step-free access: Ramped access for visitors is available via 26 George Street through Lakeland. Upon arrival, please call 0131 240 5000 and a member of staff will meet you and guide you to the event. Please note that the entrance ramp has a steep gradient (1:12).

Main lift: The lift’s door has a width of 79cm and a depth of

Description supplied by the event organiser.