May 12th 2022 – By Promostyl
BRITISH FASHION COUNCIL’S NEWGEN : BETTING ON THE FUTURE OF FASHION
The fashion industry is, has always been and always will be future oriented. Wether it’s bettering itself, saving the planet or simply giving way to new voices the focus in fashion is evolution. It is why grants like the BFC’s NEWGEN are so important, and some of this year’s recipient make for a great new hope in fashion.
Our first stop in Acuta Sarca turning the shoes department on its head by capitalising one of its many ugly ducklings : the kitten heel. Entirely sustainable in her practice, Sarca’s approach sees her source secondhand and surplus Nike sneakers from charity shops around the capital, before merging them with the kind of diminutive heels once relegated to the over-50s. “I always loved Nike’s aesthetics but at the same time I associated it with menswear or masculine shoes,” she explains. “The idea behind this was to reuse my old shoes and feminise the trainers by pushing the boundaries of what they can become.”
Then we have sustainable and clean fashion wiz Bethany Williams, and trust us, we’re not using the term ‘clean fashion’ lightly here. In one of the greatest effort at making our industry better, Williams has an holistic approach to sustainability. She merges upcycled fabrics and social manufacturing using fashion production to create dignified work for communities struggling to find employment, with plastic-free packaging and the London Living Wage (a rate higher than the national minimum intended to lift more Londoners out of poverty and improve quality of life). Simply outstanding !
Beyond ecological and social rescue, there’s also a will to celebrate people as they are as well as their bodies, histories, and origins.
Such is the case when looking at the work of young designer Dimitra Petsa. Her designs explore female sexuality and deconstruct feelings of shame surrounding the female body. More recently, her Memory of Touch dress, crafted in heat-reactive vegan leather, is meant to hold and commemorate the act of touch :
“ The dress is about the memories that our body holds: the touch from a stranger, a head resting on our lap, or our self-hug. I feel that all our experiences that happen through the body create imprints that fade into our skin. We may forget these interactions but our body has a different memory, which has the ability to change us. These pieces are a visualisation of that; they show the marks and language of skin and touch.”
Our final profile is a beautiful example of the rise of heritage fashion in our industry.
Founded in 2015, Labrum London is a modern-day menswear brand telling the untold stories of West Africa to help bridge the gap between western and West African culture. Driven by a desire to create looks that are wearable yet idiosyncratic, and inspired by a lifetime of travel, exploration and pilgrimage. Labrum London delivers innovative garments with an uncompromising commitment to quality and design.
