Eddy Ekete and Ndaku ya la vie est Belle

"Art that turns waste into gold of time. 

It is known that Europe sends massive amounts of its worn-out waste to Africa, adding to its life but also massively polluting the African continent. The art of the art collective Ndaku ya la vie est Belle and the visual artist/performer and cultural worker Eddy Ekete transforms waste into works of art through an almost alchemical process. This kind of art mobilizes the entire social community and confronts the local community with its own responsibility, turning us into active transformers instead of passive observers of the ubiquitous rubbish that surrounds us planetary. At Bierbais, Eddy in collaboration with Youth Biennial/(collective for Contemporary Art from Belgrade) worked on a prototype of Can Man, performing street costume made entirely from recycled materials. Photos: Stephan Gladieu"

 

Tristan Detwiler Stanclothing

 

Above: Jacket made from 1870-1880 "Cathedral Window" Quilt from Robbinston, Maine.

'Tristan Detwiler '  takes vintage textiles such as the '19th C economy patch quilt' above and repurposes them into stunning jackets with great flair, skill, design and pattern matching.

19th Century German Harvest, Chore coat.

Above: Chore jacket made from an early 20th century Kilim from Turkey.

1900 French table cloth, unconstructed blazer.

Above: Early 20th Century Suzani Jacket. Below: 1950's Light Suzani Jacket

Karun Thakar Collection

A selection of Japanese Sashiko garments using fabrics from the early 1900's part of the Karun Thakar Textile Collection, Many of the examples here were Kimono's made for babies. 

 

Unravel

Every year 100,000 tonnes of discarded clothes travel from western countries to be recycled in Panipat.
Unravel is a beautiful short film by Meghna Gupta is so revealing and humbling in so many ways.

ClaesMikael Svensson I

"My work consists of creating textile installations, costumes, sculptures, performance art and design profiles. The creation revolves mostly around the material, physical aging, physical design and a deeper exploration of historical needlework. Since I have a deep interest in needlework and timeless techniques mirrored it in my expression, material selection, design, and in the object's structure." ClaesMikael Svensson

This dress and head dress were made from plastic glasses to promote Oji Drinks, Forsman and Bodenfors at the Stockholm Music & Arts exhibition 2013 designed by ClaesMikael Svensson photographed by Lisa Hasselgren.

Deb Todd Wheeler

Deb Todd Wheeler is a American artist who makes objects and installations where she explores the impact of human activity. In 'So she floats' 2010 she created an inflatable dress of discarded plastic wrapping attached to inflating device shoes. It is a piece that references the island of plastic that is in the middle of the pacific ocean.

Anahi Araujo

Anahi Araujo is an Argentinian designer who uses textiles with history, sheets, curtains, tablecloths and bags of flour are all reinterpreted into stunning clothing with classical cuts combined with unique layering this collection is called 'The Second Life Of Things'.

Ninna Berger I

"I like to communicate that you can always do things differently, that you can create your own work, nothing wrong with being an anarchist from time to time, we don’t always have to follow the crowd. To be stubborn is important and to not give up as the easy way out is not always the right way out. Don’t run past the things you feel is important. Don’t stress about things that don’t matter, and try to do small every day things that you feel good about!" Ninna Berger

Ninna Berger's work transcends the boundaries of fashion, textiles, art and craft. These garments are from her work 'Reconstructional Clothing' which is an ongoing genesis of work from her MA at Konstfack University College of Arts, Crafts and Design in Stockholm investigating how it is possible to reuse and repurpose discarded design and material, from the grave of fashion and upcycle it back into the fashion system.

"There is always the question on how much recycling really saves energy and resources and if it is a green wash or a true sustainable evolution that we strive for. Working with recycling fabric from discarded clothing is a very time consuming activity and it is very tricky to do in a larger scale. I think recycling both on a domestic level and in the industry is an important and interesting way of working with textile. Ninna Berger 

Thank you Deb

John Parkes

John Parkes is an Australian artist who uses pre-used textiles and over works them with complex layers of stitching.
"Parkes’ works with second hand/recycled/found cloth is underpinned by notions of decomposition and temporality, the recognition that neither cloth nor user will last forever. Whether small fragments to affix talisman-like to clothing or larger pieces for the wall, his works reflect gentle processes of layering and stitching. India Flint