Re:Create Fashion
New fashion from old clothes. That, in short, is the task for the European Fashion Award FASH 2022, whose topic is ‘Re:Create Fashion’. For the first time, it is not seeking out new fashion designs; instead, the aim is to produce a new creative look out of old garments.
Sustainable, fair fashion and the circular economy have been the subject of intense discussion for decades. Almost all fashion businesses have announced initiatives in these areas. In the media, too, there is a growing suggestion that the majority of the goods on offer consist of socially and environmentally sustainable fashion. In stark contrast to this is the fact that fashion consumption has more than doubled in the last ten years.
The facts are more than disappointing: the turnover of sustainable fashion is less than three percent, and not even one percent of old textiles become new clothes. The European Commission now wants to drive fashion towards sustainability with a comprehensive textile strategy. But despite many research and pilot projects, the circular economy is still a vision. How can we really make a change?
To part I Analysis: A downward spiral, not a circle
To Part II Options: Better than the same in green
We are convinced: we don’t need more clothes, we need to deal with clothes differently. FASH first sought out environmentally and socially responsible fashion in 2008. Awards were given for projects such as upcycling, favorite pieces, cuts that avoid waste or new fabrics made from waste. Since then, the majority of the submitted works have sustainable aspects. SDBI founder Klaus Steilmann had been one of the pioneers of sustainable fashion since 1989.
FASH 2022 goes one step further. The European Fashion Award FASH 2022 is not looking for new fashion designs, but a new fashion statement is to be created exclusively from second-hand clothing.
There is no thought of upcycling, i.e. sewing new clothes from older pieces. As useful as this is in the private sector, for small series and above all for a change in consciousness, it offers no industrial perspective. We want to give the impetus to think creativity in different directions.