Irenebrination: Notes on Architecture, Art, Fashion, Fashion Law, Science & Technology

Designing for Health: M&S Launches Stoma Bag Knickers

Anatomy can certainly inspire fashion designers, as seen in the previous post. However, direct experiences with medical issues often play an even bigger role in sparking new ideas and products. Personal health challenges or caring for a family member with a medical condition can lead us to think about how design can improve our lives or theirs. Moreover, creating such products can help reduce the stigma associated with certain conditions. Take, for example, the stoma bag.

This medical device collects waste from the body after a surgical procedure that creates an opening (stoma) on the abdomen. The stoma is connected to the small intestine, large intestine, or urinary system, depending on the surgery. Stoma bags are necessary in various situations, including conditions like colon cancer and ulcerative colitis.

About 20 years ago, when a family member had to use a colostomy bag, I wasn't familiar with it. After they explained what it was, I doubted my ability to help with the changes because I was so terrified. However, my perspective shifted when we connected with a company that produced stoma bags and provided excellent products and patient support. In this case, thoughtful design played a crucial role in helping us accept this new medical reality. 

Last week, this experience resurfaced when I heard that UK high street retailer Marks & Spencer had launched a range of knickers designed to be worn with a stoma bag. M&S is a popular destination for underwear in the UK, selling over 60 million pairs of knickers a year, according to a press release of the retailer, but this is a first for them as well.

The range of stoma knickers - available on the retailer's website and in select M&S stores starting this month - features soft cotton pants with light control stretch and a pocket opening to keep the stoma bag securely in place throughout the day and night. These knickers are available in affordable packs of three, in four colors, including classic black and a mixed-color pack in rose quartz, pink, and magenta. They can also be coordinated with bestselling bras from M&S's main lingerie collections, offering customers the rare opportunity to match sets - something that’s not always possible with regular stoma knickers. Priced at £18 for the classic High Leg and Brazilian styles, with lace designs available at £20, they are more affordable than similar products in specialized stores and are VAT exempt.

The idea for these stoma knickers came from M&S employee Jiggy Sohi, who was inspired by her own experience living with a stoma. Her idea was echoed by other M&S employees, including Hannah Gadsby, a Customer Assistant at the M&S store in Norwich, and Denise Jones, a Bra Fitter at the M&S store in Newport Retail Park, who both submitted suggestions through M&S's colleague suggestion scheme, "Straight to Stuart."

Jiggy was one of over 20 M&S employees and customers who tested the product throughout its design and development process. The knickers were also created with input and support from the Colostomy UK association.

While there are influencers who have been documenting their lives with a stoma bag on social media, encouraging others, this new initiative will further increase visibility for people living with this condition. Colostomy UK estimates that over 200,000 individuals in the UK live with stoma bags, with 100,000 of them being women. This is why the launch of the first stoma knicker range for women at M&S is expected to be a success. Indeed, at the time of writing this post, one style has already sold out, and another is marked as being in high demand on the M&S website

M&S has consistently focused on creating more accessible and inclusive products, developing a successful range of underwear that caters to diverse needs. Their offerings include a new neutrals lingerie line that provides more skin tone options, VAT-exempt period knickers, post-surgery bras, and an easy-dressing range for children with sensory or physical disabilities. This range includes all-in-ones designed for casts (like those for hip dysplasia), and tees and dresses with pockets for feeding tubes, all made with soft materials, minimal seams, and hidden care labels to avoid irritating sensitive skin.

Who knows, maybe in future, we will see some collaborations between young fashion designers and M&S to make some of these items even more appealing. But this story reminds us that fashion should empower and uplift us, not make us feel miserable. While trend forecasters might use Artificial Intelligence to predict future styles, listening to people's needs can inspire products that may not be fashionably trendy but are essential and will sell well. With health conditions on the rise, it doesn't take a genius to develop better products, but it takes retailers and designers willing to listen to others' experiences and create garments that can truly improve their quality of life.

From Golden Records to Upcycled Couture, The Paris 2024 Closing Ceremony Was a Bold Visual Narrative

Fashion was one of the protagonists of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games opening ceremony: as LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton was premium partner of the games, one of its brands, Dior dressed Celine Dion, Lady Gaga and Aya Nakamura. Yet in the various segments of the ceremony there were also creations by independent Paris-based designers such as Jeanne Friot, Charles de Vilmorin, Victor Weinsanto, Alphonse Maitrepierre and Kevin Germanier.

A graduate of Central Saint Martins in London, Swiss Germanier launched his eponymous brand in 2018 and held his first show in Paris in March 2022. Germanier has gained recognition for his innovative and sustainable designs, characterized by the upcycling of materials like feathers, beads, and sequins, an approach he began as a student when financial constraints led him to re-purpose old sheets and beads. His work often incorporates masks, reflecting his passion for sci-fi, manga, and video games, that fuel his distinct, alien-inspired aesthetic.

At the Paris 2024 opening ceremony, Germanier dressed Italian Paralympic fencer Beatrice "Bebe" Vio Grandis for a segment that reimagined a fashion runway as a ballroom event. This segment also featured several drag queens, including Nicky Doll, Piche, Kam, and Paloma.

Bebe Vio stood out in a mini-dress adorned with feathers that extended outward, creating a floating effect around her. Germanier integrated her prosthetic arms and legs into the outfit by covering them in crystals and rhinestones, making them a seamless part of the ensemble. Unfortunately, this striking moment was overshadowed by the controversy surrounding the opening ceremony. Far-right politicians and conservative Christians criticized a tableau they perceived as a parody of "The Last Supper" (hilarious how, in their fervor to attack the ceremony, Italian far-right politicians who love celebrating nationalism at every opportunity, missed the chance to do so when they did not spot Bebe Vio).   

However, Kevin Germanier had a second opportunity to showcase his work during the Olympic Games ceremony on Sunday evening, which centered around a narrative that combined sci-fi elements with sports values.

Entitled "Records," the ceremony referenced Olympic sport records, but also the Golden Record - a time capsule sent into space by NASA's Voyager probe in 1977, designed to communicate the essence of life on Earth to extraterrestrial beings. This record, still floating in space, is design to serve as a manual for extraterrestrial visitors and it is filled with images, music, sounds and greetings. In the ceremony, it inspired the appearance of a unique visitor from the stars.

Directed by Thomas Jolly, the artistic director of the Paris Games, the ceremony celebrated the Olympic spirit, diversity, and solidarity. The central figure was a Golden Voyager, a space traveler who descended into the Stade de France and, with fellow explorers, uncovered remnants of the Olympic Games - symbolized by the five rings - lost in a distant future where the games had been forgotten.

This voyager was portrayed by French dancer Arthur Cadre, a specialist in breakdancing and contortionism, dressed in a costume designed by Germanier.

The design drew inspiration from the Golden Record (and obviously from gold medals...), but also from human anatomy, and the bodies of athletes. The costume featured indeed anatomical elements, such as a rib cage on the front and a spine on the back, evoking the structure of the human body. The character's antennae, reminiscent of Mugler's insect-inspired creations, added a futuristic touch.

One of the key references for the costume was Jean Baptiste Marc Bourgery's 1830 work "Atlas of Human Anatomy and Surgery," which has long served as an inspiration for fashion designers exploring the intersections of anatomy and design (first year fashion design students, please check it out if you've never heard it).

To ensure Cadre's ability to move freely, Germanier incorporated practical features like zippers along the sides of the costume, allowing for unrestricted dance movements.

Staying true to his eco-friendly ethos, Germanier adorned the voyager's outfit with over 20,000 upcycled gold beads and sequins, sourced from a supplier in Hong Kong. Some beads were oxidized, but they were used all the same to give the costume a weathered, slightly burnt appearance, suggesting the voyager's long journey through space and fall on Earth.

Germanier also designed costumes for the over 100 acrobats who unearthed the five rings during the ceremony. For these spacesuits speckled with silver glitter the designer employed textiles from LVMH's Nona Source (that's highly recommended not just for fabrics, but for high quality leather leftovers as well).

This project challenged Germanier to adapt his typically heavy, sculptural designs to ensure the acrobats could move freely and reshifted the priority on safety, given that they all had to wear harnesses (on his Instagram page Germanier shows a close up of the costume for the acrobats and reveals how the harness was covered in the same fabric of the costume so that it wouldn't break the linearity of the design).

The Voyager's quest ended with an encounter with the goddess Nike and a sequence with Gabriel Fauré's "Hymne à Apollon" performed by Alain Roche, who was suspended in the air and wore another of creation by Germanier, this time made from recycled VHS tape reels.

As the piano was lifted, it looked like a rocket leaving Earth to go back to space, but the the VHS tapes trailing from the design also created a comet-like effect, adding a poetic and moving dimension to the performance.

For this particular project, Germanier didn't have to search far for materials, he simply returned home to Switzerland and retrieved almost 200 VHS tapes from his mother's basement, including some of his favorite films, such as Pokémon cartoons (a note of caution for fashion students: if you decide to work with this material or with strips of 8mm or 16mm films, it's important to keep them away from open flames and avoid lighting cigarettes while working with them - it sounds obvious, but stress and lack of sleep can make you forget basic rules).

Germanier demonstrated that beauty and extravagance can emerge from materials otherwise destined for the landfill, bringing with them symbolic meanings that enrich the design. In this instance, Germanier remarked that his creations stitched together the past, present, and future.

Credit is also due to Daphné Bürki, the styling and costume director of the Olympic Games ceremonies and a fan of Germanier, who introduced the young designer to Thomas Jolly.

What's next for Germanier? Hopefully, more costume design opportunities. Cinema remains a dream for him, but he could start with theater, opera, or ballet.

Adapting his intricate beadwork for these art forms might require some adjustments to ensure dancers have the necessary freedom of movement, but you can bet that his unique style and passion for telling fashion stories has the potential to win over a new generation and bring fresh energy to these traditional forms of art.

Paris 2024 Highlights: Podium Worship, Lessons in Resilience & An Unlikely Mascot

Every edition of the Olympic Games offers lessons, and Paris 2024 provided us with something worth cherishing. Beyond the exhausting debates, there were some key takeaway moments we should hold onto.

Podium Worship

This isn't just about the crowd's adulation of sports heroes, but about athletes showing respect for their opponents. The trend began when Brazilian Olympic gold medalist Rebeca Andrade was honored by U.S. superstar gymnast Simone Biles, who took silver, and her teammate Jordan Chiles, who earned bronze, after the women's gymnastics floor final. Biles and Chiles bowed to Andrade on the podium, marking the first all-Black podium in the history of men's and women's gymnastics.

It was Chiles who suggested the gesture to acknowledge Andrade's gold, and, during a press conference, Biles, the world's most decorated gymnast, remarked that the viral moment, which even had the Louvre considering it for a spot near the Mona Lisa, "was just the right thing to do" (unfortunately for Chiles, she may have to return her bronze medal, which will be reallocated to Romania's Ana Bărbosu after a court ruled that the correction to Chiles' score, which placed her on the podium, was submitted too late by her coach; USA Gymnastics is disputing the decision).

Podium worship continued on Sunday, the closing day of the Olympic Games, when Li Wenwen of China lifted a total of 309kg to win gold, Korea's Park Hye-jeong took silver with 299kg, and Great Britain's Emily Campbell achieved a career-best combined total of 288kg for bronze. On the podium, while Li jumped in the air, Park and Campbell happily posed with their arms outstretched in celebration of the gold medalist.

In both instances, the athletes embodied the spirit of the games - healthy competition, sportsmanship, and mutual support. Rooting for each other and celebrating someone else's victory is a lesson we can apply beyond sports.

Today, schools and universities often foster unhealthy competition but rarely teach how to lose or celebrate others' successes and achievements. In fashion schools and the highly competitive fashion industry, this is almost unheard of, it seems that generating more resentment, envy, and stress tends indeed to fuel the industry. Can we make podium worship a healthy trend? Hopefully. Let's learn to celebrate each other in a positive way.

Lessons in resilience

Breakdancing, or breaking, didn't get the recognition it deserved at the Olympic Games, and the discipline is sadly set to be dropped from Los Angeles 2028. Unfortunately, much of this year's coverage focused on mocking Australian athlete B-girl Raygun, that is 36-year-old university lecturer Rachael Gunn, who didn't score any points for her style in the battles.

However, breaking provided us with other lessons: Olympic refugee breakdancer Manizha Talash, known as B-girl Talash, revealed a "Free Afghan Women" cape, giving a message to her country like Afghanistan's 100m sprinter Kimia Yousofi also did.

Talash was born in Afghanistan but fled the country in 2021 after the Taliban returned to power and sought asylum in Spain. Talash was disqualified from the competition for displaying the  political slogan as political statements and slogans are banned on the field of play and on podiums at the Olympics.

Breaking also showcased a performance by the Canadian dance company ILL-Abilities, which features B-boys with their own physical challenges. Among them is B-boy Luca "Lazylegz" Patuelli, who is also a motivational speaker. Born with arthrogryposis, a neuromuscular disorder that causes curved joints and muscle shortening, Patuelli dances on crutches.

In hip hop culture, "ill" indicates something impressive, so "ILL-Abilities" reflects exceptional abilities and the crew definitely showed them during their performance. ILL-Abilities will perform at the opening of the 2024 Paralympic Games on August 28th, and we can only hope they will remind us that being different can be a strength, that dance can take many forms and that everyone has something great to contribute to the world.

An unlikely mascot spreading upbeat energy & good vibes

A gold medal for the most unlikely mascot of the Paris 2024 Games goes to rapper Snoop Dogg. Serving as a primetime Olympics correspondent for US TV network NBC, just as he did during the Tokyo Games in 2021, and acting as Team USA's hype man, the hip-hop star spread positive vibes while watching competitions and exploring Paris.

More like a Team USA cheerleader, Snoop Dogg was ubiquitous - photographed modeling the Team USA parade uniform designed by Ralph Lauren, carrying the Olympic flame through its final stages in Saint-Denis, and offering commentary on various events.

Snoop freestyled on occasion, paid visits to athletes in the Olympic village, met their families and visited the Louvre. He also opened the b-girls' pre-qualifier battle with "les trois coups," the traditional three blows struck on the ground with a baton to signal the start of a show in French theaters. His presence extended to watching competitions alongside different athletes.

During a qualifying round, Team USA women's gymnastics stars Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles pointed to someone in the crowd and started dancing. The cameras revealed it was Snoop, standing in the first row and showing off his moves, decked out in his trademark sunglasses and a white Team USA jacket (with a Biles T-shirt underneath, as he later revealed View this photo).

In a promotional video for the games, Snoop had a special swimming lesson with Michael Phelps. The Olympic icon explained him that Olympic-level success in the pool requires wingspan and lung power. "You just described me!" Snoop responded, "I definitely have great lung power," humorously referring to his love of marijuana. And, talking about this passion, Snoop's Olympic pin, featuring the rapper blowing marijuana smoke rings in the shape of the Games' five rings, became one of the most sought-after accessories of the Games (View this photo).

Snoop often went viral for his customized kits and sneakers, shirts featuring Olympic athletes and necklaces adorned with the five Olympic rings or the Eiffel Tower. Snoop reached peak method dressing when he showed up at the dressage event in full equestrian garb, alongside his friend, lifestyle guru Martha Stewart, complete with jodhpurs, boots, a blazer, and a riding helmet.

Embodying the feel-good spirit of the Paris Olympics, the rapper also appeared at the end of the closing ceremony during the music segment from Los Angeles, which featured the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Billie Eilish, celebrating the Olympic Torch being passed from Paris 2024 to Los Angeles 2028. Clad in Team USA gear, he performed "Drop It Like It's Hot" and "The Next Episode" featuring Dr. Dre.

What made Snoop Dogg stand out was the genuine joy he brought to every moment, whether cheering on athletes or spreading optimism. His impressed expression while watching Simone Biles during the women's qualification rounds in artistic gymnastics on day two mirrored the awe we all felt watching her defy gravity.

NBC's strategy of enlisting a celebrity with such enthusiasm to draw younger viewers was a win. Now, other countries may have to find equally enthusiastic mascots for the next Olympics.

A comparison comes to mind: fashion ambassadors may look extraordinarily cool and beautiful, but often seem like lifeless mannequins at runway shows, sitting in the front row with serious faces and reminding us that fashion is serious business for beautiful people. Perhaps they could take a cue from an unlikely mascot like Snoop Dogg - if you're going to be an ambassador, at least be enthusiastic, and use your role to spread upbeat energy and good vibes.

Plush Toy Couture: From the Runways to Artificial Intelligence & Back

Designs featuring plush toys are nothing new. Consider Jean-Charles de Castelbajac's iconic "Arche de Noé" teddy bear coat from the A/W 1988-89 collection, famously worn by Madonna and later by Helena Christensen in Robert Altman's film "Pret-A-Porter" (1994).

That same season, Moschino introduced a less extravagant but equally cozy teddy bear coat with teddy bears placed along the neckline, paired with a towering headdress made of cute teddy bears (the idea was later borrowed again by Jeremy Scott for  Moschino's S/S 2014 collection).

When we look at the history of fashion, plush toy designs often involve clusters of small to mid-sized soft toys. This concept of aggregation is also embraced by interior designers.

Felicia Hansen's "Teddy Vessels (Also Known As Our Former Best Friends, 2022)" exemplifies this approach - vessels crafted from assemblages of discarded stuffed toys.

These colorful vases and sculptural objects are a testament to how post-consumer waste can be transformed into unique and playful design pieces. The vases show us that, even though we may have grown up, stuffed animals can still find a place in our homes if given a second life.

More recently, designers have explored recycling larger toys or creating garments with patterns of oversized plush animals.

Venla Elonsalo, a finalist at the 2021 Hyères Festival, for example, incorporated large plush toys into her designs.

Last year, while playing with Midjourney, I envisioned a playful and imaginative collection inspired by the whimsical world of claw machines and the vibrant colors of soft toys and plastic figurines from gashapon vending machines. My goal was to create designs that captured the carefree spirit of childhood fun.

The collection was meant to be joyful, rich in sensory stimuli, and filled with textile and surface embellishments. I wanted it to feature soft elements reminiscent of plush toys, but also include other items like hard plastic figurines or snacks and candies often found in claw machines.

Some of the first creations the popular Artificial Intelligence (AI) text-to-image generator created featured models surrounded by piles of plush toys or wearing designs incorporating them. While this wasn't the exact effect I was aiming for, it served as a useful starting point.

At Copenhagen Fashion Week, the idea of using plush toys in fashion made a nostalgic return with a coat and bra crafted from an assemblage of cuddly toys. These pieces were part of a collection showcased earlier this week during the fashion event, designed by (di)vision, a multidisciplinary brand and design studio founded by siblings Nanna and Simon Wick in late 2018.

Known for their colorful and playful approach to fashion, (di)vision specializes in sustainable design practices, including reconstructing, upcycling, cut-and-sew production, and creative sourcing. Their ethos revolves around creating from what already exists, exploring the possibilities of producing clothes from deadstock, recycled fabrics, vintage goods, and upcycled overstock.

The collection showcased in Copenhagen, entitled "The Dream of Steam City" (S/S 25), presented an eclectic mix of genderless designs and upcycled pieces. Inspired by urban maximalism and video games, it blended fairy grunge with Tokyo fashion nostalgia. The collection's visual impact relied heavily on layering and upcycling, with animal prints, plaid, and 2000s-inspired accessories.

The title of the collection hinted at an imaginary utopian place where pollution is replaced by the freshness of mountain dew. In Steam City, everything is made from pre-existing objects, and people recycle materials to create new things, such as belts made from nostalgic memorabilia, or a coat fashioned from old teddy bears. The goal of "The Dream of Steam City" collection for the design duo is to imagine alternative worlds that might exist if we embraced a different way of life.

And so, the story of the teddy bear coat - created by humans, accidentally remixed by AI, and re-imagined by a younger generation of fashion designers - continues.

Yet when we talk about plush toys re-used in a creative way, Charlemagne Palestine's installations of multi-colored soft toys also come to mind. In this case the stuffed toys are conceived by the artist as shamanic representations of the soul, directly linked to the teddy bear's invention in 1902 by an immigrant Jewish couple - Morris and Rose Michtom - in the same Brooklyn neighborhood where Palestine was born.

For the artist, the teddy bear’s invention is an obsession, a lens through which to explore childhood memories, melancholy, longing, and loss. After all, these soft objects metaphorically soothe the painful aspects of life, offering a sense of comfort and happiness.

In the end, isn’t that what we all crave? A bit of comfort, a touch of happiness? So, bring on the plush toy coat, it's more than just fashion; it’s a soft, gentle and enveloping hug, and, sometimes, that’s exactly what we all need in our lives.

How WGSN's Fashion Buying Tool May Shape AI-Enhanced Trend Forecasting

In the fashion industry, Artificial Intelligence (AI) not only enhances the accuracy of clothing recommendations, but can also generates critical insights into trends, streamlining the design process and enabling precise demand forecasting for hyper-localized products.

In the past there were already experiments in using AI to analyze trends. In 2018, IBM collaborated with Tommy Hilfiger and the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) Infor Design and Tech Lab on a project called Reimagine Retail. This initiative aimed to equip future retail leaders with AI-driven design skills and provide inspiration for upcoming trends and forecasts.

FIT students were granted access to IBM Research's AI capabilities, including computer vision, natural language understanding, and deep learning techniques, all specifically tailored for fashion data. The AI tools analyzed extensive datasets, such as 15,000 of Tommy Hilfiger's product images, 600,000 publicly available runway images, and nearly 100,000 fabric patterns. This trend analysis allowed students to develop designs that not only aligned with Tommy Hilfiger's brand identity but also reflective of current and emerging fashion trends.

While the initial collaboration between IBM and FIT focused on leveraging AI to identify trends for new designs, nowadays the broader application of AI in trend prediction is proving invaluable for fashion companies. According to companies using AI for this purpose, it facilitates faster product launches and minimizes lost sales.

WGSN is among the companies leveraging AI to identify trends: the consumer trend forecaster launched this week a new data-driven platform called WGSN Fashion Buying.

This platform builds on WGSN's trend expertise and integrates its proprietary TrendCurve AI predictive analytics. By combining retail data with insights from social media and runway shows, it offers a more comprehensive approach than other retail analytics platforms, which often rely solely on historical data from a single source.

WGSN Fashion Buying is designed to support buyers by providing insights into product direction and emerging trends across the entire development cycle, from pre-planning and development to in-season analysis. The platform promises "future-proof trend decision intelligence" with buying-specific forecasts tailored to each stage of the product life cycle and customized by category.

At the moment, WGSN Fashion Buying covers key categories such as dresses, cut and sew, woven tops, denim, outerwear, trousers, skirts, accessories, and footwear. The platform introduces four new forecasts: Trend Narratives, which identifies key items and colors for building seasonal stories and concepts; TrendCurve AI Color, offering data-backed color assessments and two-year color projections; TrendCurve AI Materials & Details, which tracks details and their usage across various retail segments and TikTok Trading.

The latter pinpoint opportunities to re-merchandise existing inventory, capitalizing on emerging and evolving TikTok trends that align with current seasonal sales.

Essentially, WGSN aids buyers in distinguishing between TikTok's fleeting viral moments and genuine trends that hold commercial potential. It also helps buyers checking out existing products in inventory that might already align with these trends, eliminating the need to add new products. By doing so, WGSN Fashion Buying contributes to addressing the fashion industry's waste issue. Recent research by WGSN and OC&C Strategy Consultants indicates that shifting to a demand-driven planning and buying model could reduce overproduction by 5-15 percent, mitigating a major source of unnecessary waste.

Opinions on AI's role in reducing waste are mixed, though. In May, during the Global Fashion Summit in Copenhagen, at the "Ending Oversupply" session, Dr. Ahmed Zaidi, CEO & Co-Founder of Hyran Technologies, criticized the use of AI to stop overproduction and overconsumption, comparing it to "attaching a jet engine to a broken process".

Besides, there may be another issue with AI-powered trend forecasting tools: while WSGN Fashion Buying platform promises to enhance seasonal planning and reduce decision-making risks, questions remain about its data collection methods.

AI forecasting tools typically rely on extensive datasets to make accurate predictions, which can include scraping images from the internet. This raises potential ethical and legal issues such as copyright infringement and data privacy. To generate timely trend forecasts, WGSN Fashion Buying requires diverse data sources, including social media, e-commerce sites, and runway images, besides, it will also have to constantly monitor and process the contents of TikTok.

However, whether WGSN uses direct scraping or other methods like licensed data feeds, APIs, or partnerships with content creators would depend on their specific approach to data collection, as well as their adherence to legal and ethical standards.

From Swipes to Sales: Shaping Modern Shopping with AI Technologies

When we're unsure about our options in a brick-and-mortar store, we usually turn to a sales assistant who can help us choosing products that match our tastes and needs. However, today, many consumers prefer to shop online, where the offer is extremely wide. This presents challenges for both consumers and retailers.

Consumers need to find what they're looking for quickly: indeed it's not uncommon to abandon a purchase if the search for the perfect item feels endless, like falling into a bottomless Alice in Wonderland-style rabbit hole. Time is crucial, especially for those shopping on a mobile phone with a low battery or browsing with a slower internet connection. Retailers, on the other hand, need to recommend items swiftly before the shopper moves on to a competitor's website.

Personalizing user experiences and driving engagement can help retailers win more customers. To achieve this, they must have a top-notch recommendation engine that can match products with individual customers effectively.

Recommendation engines often rely on Artificial Intelligence (AI), particularly machine learning algorithms. These systems analyze vast amounts of data - such as user behavior, preferences, past interactions, purchase history, and contextual information like date, location, and device used - to make personalized suggestions. By leveraging AI, these engines continuously learn and improve, becoming more accurate over time. They are widely used across industries like e-commerce, streaming services, and social media to enhance user experience and boost engagement.

The fashion industry, in particular, has benefited from various technologies, including AI-driven recommendation features. Another innovation that some retailers have adopted is the swipe-able format and feedback loop, inspired by popular dating apps like Tinder, Bumble, and Hinge. These platforms use machine learning algorithms to recommend potential matches based on user behavior and preferences, coupled with swipe-able interfaces that let users rate potential romantic candidates.

The latest fashion app to adopt this sort of interface is FashWire, one of the three B2B2C platforms (with GlossWire for beauty products and PawWire for pets) owned by The Wires.

The platform's AI tailors product suggestions for shoppers, enhancing the user experience by predicting preferences and displaying personalized items. As the AI learns more about a shopper's taste, its recommendations become increasingly accurate. The swipe-able feature, similar to the swipe-right or swipe-left mechanism in dating apps, allows users to browse personalized product recommendations based on their feedback. Thanks to user feedback, the "Trending Now" section of the FashWire app is dynamically updated, highlighting the newest apparel, footwear, and accessories with each app visit

This feature, developed in partnership with tech company SnapSoft, will also be integrated also in GlossWire. AI will curate a selection of over 60,000 items (between FashWire and GlossWire) from more than 800 global brands spanning 60 countries. AI becomes therefore a necessity for managing the products of the emerging and established brands in the two fashion and beauty spaces.

Yet also brands will benefit from this application: AI will indeed provide real-time analytics to brands, allowing them to optimize their offerings. This real-time data will represent a game-changer for brands, allowing them to instantly monitor consumer behavior and feedback, fine-tune their product offerings and messaging, and make decisions that can effectively convert browsers into buyers, encourage repeat purchases, and build customer loyalty.

While these swipe-able technologies might not produce romantic matches, pairing the right products with the right consumers will still be a match made in heaven for the platforms and brands involved.

Fashioning the Vote: The Surprising Power of Trendy Merchandise in Modern Politics

Fashion has a way of creeping into politics in unexpected ways these days. A single garment worn by a politician or their partner can quickly become a meme or the subject of intense political scrutiny. At the same time, winning over voters now often involves tapping into fashion, popular culture, and current trends. A prime example of this was when, in July, Kamala Harris's campaign staff quickly acknowledged Charli XCX's post on X (formerly Twitter) declaring "Kamala IS brat." This savvy move resonated well with her supporters.

 

 

Now, the focus has shifted to the Harris-Walz merchandise with the campaign logo. The latter was unveiled as soon as Democratic Presidential candidate Harris announced her VP pick - Minnesota Governor Tim Walz - on Tuesday at a rally in Philadelphia. The design features a minimalist layout with tall, bold white lettering.

Some commentators noted its striking similarity to the posters from Shirley Chisholm's 1972 presidential campaign. Chisholm, who was the first Black congresswoman and the first Black woman to seek a major party’s presidential nomination, also used all-caps in her campaign materials. Interestingly, the Trump-Vance signs also feature all-caps, leading some to speculate that Harris may have chosen this style as a playful jab, making it harder for them to mock her logo.

The Harris-Walz logo now adorns T-shirts, mugs, and yard signs available on the campaign website, but there's one particular item that's quickly become a favorite among supporters.

The item in question is a camouflage hat with the Harris-Walz logo embroidered in bright orange. The hat seems to be Harris's answer to Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again” caps.

Despite only being released on Tuesday following the Harris-Walz rally, it has already sold over a million units, with official availability slated for early October. According to the Harris campaign, the hat also generated over $1 million in just 24 hours. The campaign site even touts it as "the most iconic political hat in America." 

The choice of camouflage may be a nod to Tim Walz's background as he served for decades in the Army National Guard, and he's also into game-hunting (orange is also a color used by hunters for safety purposes), yet it’s worth noting that, in 2023, Walz signed historic gun safety measures into law.

In a video released on August 6, where Kamala Harris informs Walz of her decision to pick him as her running mate, the Minnesota governor is also seen wearing a similar camo cap, which further fueled the buzz.

Interestingly, online commentators quickly drew comparisons between this hat and one released by Gen Z queer pop star Chappell Roan. Roan’s cap, which was part of the merch for her "Midwest Princess" tour (supporting her album "The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess") features the words "Midwest Princess" embroidered in orange on a camo background. Noticing the similarities, the pop singer took to X to ask, "Is this real?"

Whether the camouflage design was a mere coincidence, a metaphorical nod to the battle against political adversaries (especially given Harris's slogan, "When we fight, we win"), or a deliberate homage to pop culture (just like the official Kamala Harris HQ account on X embracing the brat reference and quickly updating their banner to a lime green background, using the same font featured on Charli XCX's album), it was a stroke of genius. The hat amplifies indeed its reach across different demographics and bridges generational gaps in the fight against Trump and JD Vance, appealing to more mature American voters who appreciate the hunting-inspired design and to younger generations drawn to trends (camouflage is making a comeback on the runways, with the latest interpretations seen in Pharrell Williams’ pixelated designs for Louis Vuitton’s men's S/S 24 and A/W 24 runways) and pop culture references. 

By echoing Roan's popular design, the hat not only appeals to her fans but also signals a broader cultural alignment between Roan’s audience and the Harris-Walz campaign. In a nutshell, the hat appears to serve a dual purpose - showing support for both Chappell Roan and Kamala Harris and Tim Walz's 2024 White House bid.

The similarities between the two products are unlikely to spark significant copyright tensions, especially if Chappell Roan views the design as a tribute rather than an infringement (and as long as Harris-Walz's design does not directly lift the background pattern from established hunting gear companies' proprietary patterns – remember the 2018 lawsuit between Columbus-based Jordan Outdoor Enterprises and Kanye West's Yeezy Apparel over similar camouflage patterns?).

While it's true that elections aren't won through merchandise alone, in today's world, creating excitement, viral moments, and even a bit of hysteria can be just as crucial as traditional campaigning. A product like this camo hat might resonate more deeply with younger voters than hundreds of rallies could. Just as the "brat" moment showed that Harris’s team is in tune with youth culture, this hat could reinforce the message that the campaign is listening to what young people care about and that their voices will be heard if they vote for the Harris-Walz ticket.

What's particularly striking about this campaign is its speed and its savvy use of popular culture. By borrowing tactics that feel more aligned with brands' drop strategies and by releasing merchandise items that call to mind the products by art collective MSCHF (that grab the attention and generate buzz through posts), Harris and Walz are tapping into the idea that the way to voters' hearts might just be through merchandise that shows a strong connection with popular culture.

Eco-Creative Design Solutions: "Matter of South - Biomaterial Cultures from Latin America" @ The Kunstgewerbemuseum, Berlin, Germany

Running until August 25th, "Matter of South: Biomaterial Cultures from Latin America" is part of the larger initiative "More than Human: Design After the Anthropocene," curated by Claudia Banz. This transdisciplinary project brings together international actors to explore the connections between humans and the environment. The initiative, featuring pop-up exhibitions, lectures, workshops, and panel discussions, will continue through the next year.

As part of this initiative, the Kunstgewerbemuseum has introduced two special projects. The first, "Wunderkammer#2," focuses on materials and objects in the digital world. The second, "Matter of South," explores the relationship between people and their environment through the lens of biomaterials and alternative approaches to extractivist practices (we looked at an example of such an alternative in yesterday's post in which we examined the sports flooring at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, made with crushed shells).

Curated by Heidi Jalkh, Gisela Pozzetti, and Valentina Aliaga Vargas - who work in Argentina and Chile - the exhibition showcases the transformative potential of biomaterial cultures in Latin America and features 200 initiatives selected through an open call across 11 Latin American countries. The exhibition includes biomaterial samples, films, and documentary records, offering insights into various manufacturing processes and local production contexts. Visitors are invited to explore and experience the diversity, uniqueness, and richness of biomaterials firsthand.

Besides, the exhibition presents a tentative "Manifesto of Biomaterials," crafted by a group of prominent figures from different disciplines within the biomaterials field in Latin America representing independent initiatives, academic projects, institutions, and entrepreneurial ventures. The Manifesto serves as a platform to explore the motivations, contradictions, and disagreements surrounding biomaterial practices. It acknowledges that definitive conclusions about these materials are premature, as we are still in the early stages of experimentation. This part of the exhibition captures a snapshot of collective efforts at this particular moment in time, providing a space to reflect on current projects and consider future directions.

The "Biomaterial Archive" section of the exhibition showcases biomaterial samples and documentary records of various processes and manufacturing contexts from across the region. These elements are interconnected through a dynamic map that illustrates the diverse landscape of biomaterial initiatives from multiple locations. Visitors can explore the development of these initiatives across Latin America - from Argentina and Brazil to Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Peru, Puerto Rico, and Uruguay - and experience their diversity, uniqueness, and richness firsthand. This interactive map also creates visual connections between projects, fields, and individuals engaged in biomaterial and biomanufacturing explorations.

The exhibition features a wide range of samples and items, from textiles and jewelry to interior design elements and experimental materials that could be applied to the architecture field. For instance, Elia Gasparolo from Argentina presents "Tejido Conectivo" (Connective Tissue), a series of clothing and accessories made from bacterial cellulose. This bio-leather results from a symbiosis of yeast, bacteria, and cellulose. Other intriguing materials include textiles made from grape pomace, oranges, tamarind, coffee, and avocado waste, some of which are even edible.

Colombian designer Lauren Ordoñez explores the connection between food waste and design through her project "Biocrafter Kitchen," which focuses on recycling biomaterials and turning them into new creations. For several years, she has been crafting leather from fish skin.

These new materials are not limited to the fashion industry; they extend to interior design and include phono-absorbent panels made with biomaterials.

Another innovative project, "Bioconductor Fugaz" by Lara Fernández Vallone, combines a bio-platelet made from an eggshell bio-composite recipe from Labva Group with circuit bio-conductors conceived by Elisabeth Lorenzi and Clara Davis, offering cleaner energy solutions.

Paola Maldonado, Camila Marabotto, Fenja Geisel, and Zoë Powell Best from Uruguay focus on the applications of biomaterials in the performing arts. Their work highlights how these materials can be expanded to other fields - fashion shows also come to mind as biomaterials could be employed in a variety of situations, including building temporary sets used during runways.

Mushrooms continue to take center stage in numerous biomaterial projects. Mycelium-based composites are widely used for thermal insulation, but innovative applications abound. For instance, Chilean designer Daniel Monsalve has created a mycelium mask inspired by the Japanese Setsubun tradition, a ritual intended to drive away evil spirits and bad fortune. This mask also carries a symbolic meaning, representing a shift towards ecological material culture - a cleansing from the past to forge a new relationship with nature.

One of the standout installations is "Fluorescer" by Florencia Cesari Tommarello and Heidi Jalkh. This project discovers the invisible world of the Ganoderma multipileum fungus, highlighting the vibrant colors and unique shapes it produces when exposed to ultraviolet light and excess CO2 (an extremely intriguing project for fashion designers - can these bizarre shapes and colors inspire us solutions for garments or accessories?).

This rich exploration within the "Biomaterial Archive" section not only showcases innovative uses of biomaterials, but also prompts visitors to think about the broader implications and potential applications of these practices for a sustainable future. Could we, for example, develop clothes and accessories based on photochromic textiles incorporating the Ganoderma multipileum fungus that could change color when exposed to excessive amounts of CO2 and that could help us monitoring the air quality or CO2 buildup for workers in confined spaces or be employed in smart masks and garments for monitoring patients' respiratory health by detecting CO2 levels in exhaled breath?

Last but not least, these projects demonstrate that the benefits of biomaterials extend beyond environmental impact. Indeed, as discussed in previous post, companies developing biomaterial projects do not just help the environment, but encourage community engagement, inspire positive change, and create new job opportunities. Thus, the potential of biomaterials encompasses environmental, social, and economic advantages.

Image credits for this post

1. Fluorecer "Ganoderma multipileum" under UV light, Florencia Cesari Tommarello, Heidi Jalkh, Sistemas Biomateriales, © Heidi Jalkh.

2 & 3. Growing colour, Heidi Jalkh, Leonardo Majul, © Heidi Jalkh.

4. Tejido Conectivo, Elia Gasparolo.

5. Bioconductor Fugaz, Lara Fernández Vallone.

6 & 7. Fungal interactions "Ganoderma lucidum and Pycnoporus sanguineus," Leonardo Majul, Aldana Kremer, Sistemas Biomateriales, © Heidi Jalkh.

8. Mycelium Mask by Daniel Monsalve.

Biomaterials & Algorithms Help Track & Field Athletes at the Olympic Games

The cardboard beds at the Olympic Village went viral when athletes tested their sturdiness by jumping on them, debunking the myth that they were "anti-sex" beds. But the beds are just one example of the eco-friendly materials featured at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

Another striking innovation is the lavender and purple sports flooring introduced during the track events. Traditionally, running tracks are brick-red, but the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics already broke this norm with a blue track.

This year's lavender track not only looks aesthetically pleasing but also has psychological benefits for athletes. The color purple inspires indeed power and energy, but also harmony. The choice of lavender aims to evoke the lavender fields of southern France, while the material itself is even more fascinating for fans of material sciences, it is indeed made from mussels.

Mondo Spa, a global leader in sports flooring based in Alba, Piedmont, Italy, and a veteran designer of Olympic tracks since 1972, partnered with Nieddittas, a prominent fishing cooperative from Arborea, Sardinia. Established in 1967, Nieddittas is renowned for its mussel farming and fishing. Together, they created an innovative production chain that repurposes mussel shells, promoting environmental sustainability.

Typically, running track flooring is made from calcium carbonate, naturally found in chalk, limestone, and marble, and usually obtained through mining, which contributes to carbon emissions and landfill waste. This year, however, Mondo developed a new running track compound incorporating shells from bivalve mollusks like mussels and clams, rich in calcium carbonate.

Nieddittas handles the production, cleaning, and preparation of the shells, which are then ground into powder. This eco-friendly supply chain transforms waste into a valuable resource, creating a new generation of resilient and sustainable flooring. This bio-inspired approach applies biological knowledge to flooring design, biogenic calcium carbonate is indeed used to offset emissions equivalent to a Euro 4 diesel vehicle driving 60,000 km.

Additionally, this process prevents the disposal of dozens of tons of waste in landfills, demonstrating how recycling mussel shells reduces CO2 emissions and mitigates mining's environmental impact.

This collaboration resulted from three years of research and experimentation in the laboratories of both companies. After receiving initial calcium carbonate samples from Nieddittas in 2021, the teams assessed the technical feasibility and necessary treatments for use in Mondo’s formulations. The companies also aligned business processes with natural cycles, such as using sun drying for the mussel shells, further enhancing sustainability.

Through these innovations, the Olympic Games showcase how biomaterials and eco-friendly technologies can support athletes and promote environmental sustainability.

Yet there's more. The lavender sports flooring is proving successful not only for its color and material but also for its performance - it is indeed helping athletes run faster. Manufactured with the collaborative efforts of mathematicians, engineers, chemists, and physicists, alongside professional athletes, the track is designed to be two percent faster than the Tokyo Olympic track. This is achieved through a layer of honeycomb air cells that absorb and return the energy of a runner’s foot.

The underlayer of the track incorporates a new generation of the polymeric granules inserted in the Tokyo Olympic track. These newer tracks are generally more elastic: multiple algorithms are used to optimize the shape and dimensions of the elliptical air cells inside the track, reducing energy loss and potentially improving performance.

Thanks to its with a geometric structure the lower layer of the track provides shock absorption, energy storage, and energy return. The top layer of colored rubber compresses under an athlete’s foot, absorbing the impact and converting the stored energy into forward momentum. This minimizes impact and vibration, enhancing athletic performance.

The track is also consciously designed for Paralympians, guaranteeing a good grip for wheelchairs and prosthetics, and works better with the new generation of athletic shoes.

Fashion-wise, the pastel lavender allows the fluorescent orange, green, chartreuse and yellow shoes of the athletes to pop on TV, drawing viewers' eyes to the feet and generating interest in consumers.

The collaborations between Mondo and Nieddittas offers significant benefits as it promotes environmental sustainability, but also contributes to economic development. Local Italian companies have indeed been involved in managing the technical aspects, ensuring that the final product is an excellent substitute for mineral calcium carbonate.

Can this be applied to other fields, and can other materials be used (will we be able to reuse the exoskeletons of crustaceans, such as shrimps, lobsters or blue crabs at some point)? Time will tell, in the meantime fashion may want to look into the matter and check out innovative biomaterials for runways and catwalk sets.

Olympic Dreams vs. Social Media Nightmares: Women in Sports Under Siege

Barely two weeks ago, I wondered if female athletes would receive the same level of recognition and importance as their male counterparts, along with equal media coverage at sports events, particularly the Olympic Games. In hindsight, I wish I hadn't asked this question, as women have indeed received a lot of coverage since the games started, but often for the wrong reasons.

The controversy began with backlash against the opening ceremony. Far-right politicians and conservative Christians worldwide accused a tableau scene of being blasphemous. This scene featured performers of all shapes and colors, including several drag queens and the naked singer-songwriter Philippe Katerine painted in blue. It resembled more of Fellini's "Satyricon" than a blasphemous moment. However, hallucinating like a bad Artificial Intelligence gone rogue and applying to that context their limited knowledge, these esteemed commentators interpreted it as a reference to Leonardo da Vinci’s "Last Supper". Ironically, this wouldn't offend true Christians, as Jesus surrounded himself with all sorts of people, including prostitutes.

Creative director Thomas Jolly denied any connection with "The Last Supper", explaining that the scene, titled "Festivity," represented a feast of Gods, with Dionysus, the god of feasting and wine, and the father of Sequana, the goddess of the River Seine, arriving at the table.

Art experts in France and the Netherlands also clarified the source as the 17th-century Dutch painting "The Feast of the Gods" by Jan van Bijlert. Unfortunately, the damage was already done, and those featured in the scene began receiving online abuse.

Among those targeted was Barbara Butch, DJ and lesbian activist, the central character in the tableau scene. Unmissable in her attire, which included a crown radiating from her head (an accessory that won her comparisons with Apollo, god of the sun in Jan van Bijlert’s painting), she received death, torture, and rape threats online. Thomas Jolly also faced online abuse, prompting French prosecutors to open two inquiries.

You might argue that Barbara Butch isn't an athlete, so she shouldn't be mentioned in a piece about Olympic coverage of women's sports. However, this incident set the tone for further aggressive behavior against women.

Coverage of women’s boxing was particularly toxic. Last week, the controversy surrounding Algerian athlete Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-ting from Chinese Taipei (Taiwan competes at the Olympics under this name to avoid objections from China) was overwhelming. It wasn't triggered by a sport-related decision but fueled by online critics based on incorrect gender identification allegations. Critics included former US President and current Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, Italian far-right Minister of Infrastructure and Transport Matteo Salvini, and Italian right wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

Last Thursday, Khelif won the women’s 66kg preliminary round match against Italian Angela Carini, who quit 46 seconds into the match due to the pain inflicted by Khelif’s first punch. Frustrated and in pain, Carini refused to shake Khelif's hand.

Soon, things got out of hand on social media rather than on the ring. Trump announced in a speech in Atlanta and then pledged on Truth Social to keep men out of women's sports, while Tesla CEO Elon Musk agreed with Riley Gaines, a former collegiate swimmer, who posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, stating "men don't belong in women's sports."

J.K. Rowling, known in recent years for her transphobic views, also called Khelif a man. She commented on a picture showing the Italian athlete crying with Khelif behind her trying to comfort her, saying, "The smirk of a male who knows he's protected by a misogynist sporting establishment, enjoying the distress of a woman he's just punched in the head, and whose life's ambition he's just shattered." J.K. Rowling also attacked Lin on X, ending up being criticized by the Taiwanese community who posted background stories on Lin, explaining the athlete started boxing as a young kid to protect her mother from domestic violence.

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her disappointment, claiming that Khelif had high testosterone levels and should not have been allowed to compete. Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance also took to X, dragging Kamala Harris into the controversy: "This is where Kamala Harris's ideas about gender lead: to a grown man pummeling a woman in a boxing match. This is disgusting, and all of our leaders should condemn it."

In Italy the backlash started before the match with Mr Salvini, who, having abandoned his geographical sweatshirts that served him as a GPS device to orientate himself in space and now tuned into Putin propaganda channels that distort his (already distorted) views and send him messages against the LGBT+ community, claimed on social media the Italian boxer had to fight against a trans woman and blamed woke ideology.

The problem with all this uproar is that both Lin and Khelif are not transgender women; they were born female and have not changed their identities. Both boxed without incident at the Tokyo Olympic Games. However, they were disqualified from competing with women at a 2023 International Boxing Association (IBA) tournament after failing an unspecified eligibility test that wasn't made public. At the time IBA President Umar Kremlev told the Russian news agency Tass that a DNA test showed the athletes had sufficient XY chromosomes to disqualify them from the women's event. Incidentally, the decision came shortly after Khelif beat Russian boxer Azalia Amineva, who was previously undefeated.

While the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has withdrawn recognition from the IBA, citing corruption concerns, Khelif and Lin were cleared by the IOC to compete in the women's 66-kilogram and women's 57-kilogram matches respectively at the Paris Games.

In the meantime, the IBA has lost further credibility as an impartial governing body after offering Carini, her coach, and the Italian Boxing Federation (FPI) $100,000 as if the athlete had won the match. Carini and the federation refused, and Carini has since apologized in the Italian daily La Gazzetta dello Sport for not shaking Khelif’s hand. She also expressed regret for what happened and said she would like to hug her.

This controversy, fueled by unnecessary commentators with too much time on their hands and too eager to jump on the anti-trans bandwagon, caused significant stress for everyone involved (consider that Khelif comes from Algeria, where homosexuality is outlawed and where there is no LGBTQ+ culture, so raising suspicions that she is a trans woman may have had dangerous repercussions).

Maybe the best comment was offered by transgender and nonbinary Olympic American runner Nikki Hiltz who wrote in an Instagram story last week. "Anti-trans rhetoric is anti-woman. These people aren't 'protecting women's sports,' they are enforcing rigid gender norms and anyone who doesn't fit perfectly into those norms is targeted and vilified."

In the meantime, Khelif beat Hungarian Anna Luca Hamori on Saturday, securing Algeria's first Olympic boxing medal since 2000. Lin also won, defeating Svetlana Kamenova Staneva of Bulgaria in a featherweight quarter-final on Sunday.

After her match, Khelif stated to the media, "I want to tell the entire world that I am a female, and I will remain a female," a statement that shouldn't have been necessary, as nobody should be obliged to reassure the world about their sexuality.

There have been other incidents involving women: at the Tokyo Olympics, US gymnastics star Simone Biles decided to retire to preserve her physical and mental health. At the time, JD Vance attacked her on Fox News, stating, "I think it reflects pretty poorly on our sort of therapeutic society that we try to praise people not for moments of strength."

At the Paris Olympic Games, Biles returned stronger than ever. The 27-year-old athlete became the most decorated gymnast in American history, winning three gold medals and a silver medal, bringing her total tally to 11 medals - seven golds, two bronze, and two silver. Biles marked her return to splendid form; this girl can definitely fly. Yet, instead of thanking her for making gymnastics fabulous while teaching us that taking a break and taking care of ourselves is more important than playing heroes, some commentators complained about her "messy" hair on social media. Why do they focus on her hair rather than on the fact that she can perform a Yurchenko double pike, the most difficult vault in women's gymnastics, eventually renamed the Biles II?

Like Biles at the Tokyo Olympics also Italian swimmer Benedetta Pilato, 19, received some nasty comments: finishing in the fourth place in the 100m breaststrokes, she claimed she was happy about her achievement, which obviously unleashed trolls wondering how could she still be happy when she had actually lost.

But some misogynistic behavior also came from TV commentators: Bob Ballard, a commentator for Eurosport, addressed the Australian women's national swimming team as they received the gold medal for winning the 4x100 freestyle relay on the first day of the swimming trials, stating that they were late leaving the venue as they were doing their make-up. Eurosport immediately removed him from their list of commentators.

Yet there are also women raising two fingers to trolls. American Olympic rugby player Ilona Maher, 27, went viral for sharing snaps of her cellulite online and reminding women that it's natural to have it, even for athletes. "Rockin' my cellulite," the Olympic medallist added.

Abuse, misinformation, trolls, and attacks - amid all this confusion, one thing is clear: everything depends on what a woman is allowed to be. You're a powerful athlete at the Olympic Games, but you must have perfect hair. You should be strong and muscular, but cellulite is bad. You should be indomitable yet feminine, otherwise you'll be labeled as a trans woman, a man, or even a monster (sadly, the Carini/Khelif match was compared to a Beauty and the Beast situation by trolls online). I'm dreading tuning in to see any matches now. I'm dreading the closing ceremony and the Paralympics, wondering if there will be more comments on able and disabled bodies.

As a woman and spectator, I find all these controversies and comments depressing and exhausting. What if we actually focused on the sport and not on the look and learnt to celebrate winning and losing as well? 

Indeed at these Olympic Games there have been women who won even without actually winning a medal: Afghanistan's 100m sprinter Kimia Yousofi, 28, sent a powerful message to Afghan women. As part of the six-person Afghan team competing in Paris - three men and three women - she finished last in her 100-meter preliminary heat.

Afterwards, she turned the bib with her name on to reveal the words “Education," "Sport" and "Our rights" in black, green and red, the colors of the Afghan flag, a message to Afghan girls not to give up and not to let others decide for them.

Yousofi bore her country’s flag at the Tokyo Games but fled to Iran when the Taliban took control in 2021 and then relocated to Australia as a refugee. Her team in Paris was selected by the Afghanistan Olympic Committee, which operates outside the country, but the Taliban only recognize the three men in the team.

With her face as expressive as Renée Jeanne "Maria" Falconetti as Joan of Arc in Carl Theodor Dreyer's silent film "The Passion of Joan of Arc" (La Passion de Jeanne d'Arc), Yousofi stood as a heroine without a medal, but still a heroine, in a world full of self-righteous men and women with too much time on their hands commenting from the safety of their homes and behind the security of a screen. Holding the message, Yousofi reminded us that sport is a vehicle for positive and empowering messages and not a weapon to belittle and offend athletes.