The many reasons that prompted Martijn van Strien to start The Post-Couture Collective in 2015 could be reduced to one key concept - the disgust over fashion excess and overconsumption. The modern fashion industry is essentially based on high volume production that allows companies to keep the prices low.
Yet, being highly polluting and exploitative, the industry has become unsustainable for our planet, but also rather immoral as unsatisfying products are often irrationally pushed and promoted with catwalk shows, through advertising campaigns on traditional and social media and via the endorsement of celebrities, influencers and high profile bloggers.
Van Strien launched the Post-Couture Collective to offer an alternative to today's fashion system: the clothes produced by this group of designers - including five Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp alumni, Sofie Nieuwborg, Emmanuel Ryngaert, Sofie Gaudaen, Kjell de Meersman and Marie-Sophie Beinke - are indeed based on the principles of open-source.
The first collection was created around two years ago, but it is still fashionable since it is not based on trends, but it is conceived as a basic capsule of timeless, functional and practical designs.
The collection includes six archetypical pieces of clothing including a skirt, a shirt and a cropped top produced with Spacer fabric, a futuristic 3D-knitted material made from recycled PET-bottles that has got a liquid consistency and it is soft to the touch, breathable and strong.
The products come in a construction kit and consumers can either buy the made-to-measure designs or, as an alternative, the most adventurous ones can opt for the patterns.
In this case, after purchasing the digital download, consumers can alter some of the measurements (such as the length of a dress), then take the pattern to a local Makerspace and produce the pieces on a lasercutter.
The designs can be assembled quickly without sewing machines or other equipment as their construction is based on a series of connectors and slots or strings and slots. There is an interesting use of technology behind this system as the distribution of the connectors is developed using a generative script in "Grasshopper" that calculates the number of connectors that are needed for the ultimate strength.
By directly engaging with the design of the piece ordinary consumers turn from passive buyers into active players of the production process behind their garments.
The Post-Couture Collective called the first collection - created in collaboration with Leonie Tenthof van Noorden, Digipattern and Afdeling Buitengewone Zakenwas - "One | Off", a pun on the On | Off switches that start off the production process - being custom-made to fit the wearer's size, the garments are indeed "one-off" versions of the original designs.
The offer is currently wider and comprises totes, coats, jackets and tops with oversized leg-of-mutton sleeves in bold and bright colours such as rusty orange or forest green and with laser cut floral motifs creating three-dimensional motifs all over the designs.
There are definitely more pros than cons in this project: garments by this group of designers are indeed created on the spot by the collective's parametric grading software (Optitex) when someone wants to buy one design, and they are produced only when they're sold. This means that there is no waste and the problem of leftover garments that get thrown away at the end of each season is eliminated. Prices for the designs vary from piece to piece and it is obviously more affordable to buy a pattern (the cheapest one is around € 40).
The Post-Couture Collective's efforts were definitely rewarded as the project is currently among the nominees for the Ecodesign category of the 2017 Henry van de Velde Awards, an event showcasing national and international Flemish designers, enterprises, products, projects and services which, as a result of their design or their solution of a given problem, have a positive impact on the economy and society.
The winners will be announced in January next year, but between November and December, the general public can vote to select their favourites from the 18 finalists at this link. The 2017 Henry van de Velde Awards Nominee with the most votes is also eligible to win the Henry van de Velde Public Award. If you believe that clothing on demad is one of the sustainable paths for the future of the fashion industry, you should definitely cast your vote for The Post-Couture Collective.
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