For the occasion of the exhibition "Loov Kultuur" from December 8, 2017 to January 21, 2018 at La Cité de la Mode, a meeting will be held during which the Estonian designer Reet Aus, a true pioneer of upcycling in fashion, will exchange with Sakina M'Sa and ECO TLC. The screening of the documentary "Out of Fashion" will show us her approach by following her journey around the world, from occidental fashion weeks to cotton plantations in South America, to the epicenter of mass production in Bangladesh…
Despite the emergence of important questions about the environment in many sectors, the evolution of fashion towards an ecological consciousness has been slowed down due to the current trend of multiplicity and acceleration in the era of "Fast Fashion". The aim is to produce as much as possible at the lowest cost at the expense of low working conditions in textile factories. Excessive water and energy consumption are unfortunately part of this vicious circle. Furthermore, most mass-production manufacturers are left with an average of 18% of pre-consumer textile waste that usually is taken to landfill or burned.
Reet Aus
Designer Reet Aus has developed an industrial upcycling method called « UPMADE » that involves a complete lifecycle analysis of the garments. The method enables to circulate the leftover materials back to production inside the same factory. Each garment in Reet Aus’s collection saves on average 75% of water and 88% of energy loss.
Beyond saving water and energy, by her system of upcycling, Reet Aut invites us to fundamentally change the textile and fashion industry. Pure design, false-simplicity through the play of geometrical inlaid shapes, reinventing the basics ... are at the same time ingenious means of conception to implement the optimal reuse of raw materials, and give the impulse for « Slow fashion » against the current. Slower fashion is the goal as it returns us to fundamentals; to consume less but "cleanly" for timeless and modern garments.
We can hope that the upcycling system will expand and open to a maximum of industry in France and in the world. We invite you to take a look at the exhibition "Loov Kultuur" and to attend the meeting with Reet Aus and the screening of the documentary "Out of Fashion". For more information you could click on the link: http://www.citemodedesign.fr/fr/agenda/loov-kultuur
Reet Aus
Sakina M'sa Photographer Victoria Paterno
