www.fastcompany.com: In today’s era of sustainable fashion, eco-friendly garments take on many forms: there are sequins made from plant matter, fabric dyes made from fruit, and even thread made from bread. But repurposing natural materials isn’t the only avenue to climate-conscious clothes; recycling manufactured products—already present on our planet—are worthy ingredients too.
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The concept of sustainability is one of the most important conversations going on in the world at the moment. I have read some articles saying how harmful to the environment the fashion industry is, so having this entire collection that is completely made out of recycled materials is really productive. I do think there is a vast difference between reusing or recycling materials that would otherwise go to waste in a landfill and using those materials for alternate purposes and making a fabric or other material that can be reproduced with a lower environmental impact. I don’t particularly know how fabric versus film varies in sustainability, but I do know that VHS tapes are not being produced as much currently as fabric for clothing is. I do really enjoy the designs and creations themselves, but overall, if sustainable was the goal, I don’t think that these garments fit into that category.
Before I even started reading this article, the photographs of these garments drew me in. Colorful, regal, and just damn fantastic. The repurposing of natural materials is becoming a much more common “trend” in today’s political and social climate due to global warming. However, Benjamin Benmoyal took this to a whole other level - in a really great way. This fashion student at Central Saint Martins in London’s collection entitled “It was better tomorrow” is an exciting twist of recycled materials in a high fashion perspective. These garments look incredible, are sustainable made, both in production practices and in materials used and the meaning behind them is beautiful. There is a huge play and homage to nostalgia of a person’s lost naivety. And the re purposing of these tapes brings the rediscovery into a newfound appreciation and purpose. Benmoyal’s outlook on life seems very positive, and it’s something expressed in the interview that is showcased in this article. I love the ‘Utopian’ yet futuristic, yet acknowledgement of the past that he was able to tie into these garments. Truly such a cool fashion piece.
Every time I see an article about sustainability or recycling in the industry, I can’t help but read it. Waste is one of the biggest issues we face as humans, and the waste itself contributes greatly to the single largest problem we face today: climate change. This article in particular also caught my eye, though, because the idea of VHS and cassette tapes is particularly nostalgic to me. I remember as a kid, I had a handful of VHS tapes about heavy machinery and garbage trucks and other things that amused my young mind. I would watch these tapes through frequently, one of my favorite parts being rewinding the tape when it reaches the end. Nowadays though, with the advent of digital streaming, VHS and other tape-format storage has become all but obsolete, and it is quite sad. It is nice to see that this fashion designer chose to breathe some new life into those old little tape reels, instead of letting them end up in some landfill somewhere. Digital streaming is convenient and admittedly of a higher quality, but nothing will ever come close to the simple joy of rewinding a VHS tape.
When I read the title of this article with the mention of the cassette tapes and also saw the photos of the fashion, I thought the photo must be for something else because I see no reference to tapes at all in the piece. I think this line of pieces is the perfect example of repurposing materials, because the artist so cleverly manipulated the tapes to work in his favor. From what I’ve come across, when repurposing materials, especially manufactured technology parts, the final product ends up in the realm of the thing that was used (technology ends up being rigid or metallic). But, this artist inspired me in showing that while these tapes were being repurposed, you don’t have to use every single bit of it to make a small difference. I also think the bit the article mentions about reusing human manufactured items instead of just reimagining the way we use natural products is really important, since the man-made products are the ones filling landfills. This was an inspiring read.
I LOVE unconventional material use! I was excited to click on this article and when it first opened I got even more excited because the outfits look nothing how I pictured them in my head. When items such as CDs or VHS tapes get used for fashion, looks can be very basic neutrals or blacks and whites. However, Benjamin Benmoyal created a look that was avante garde and extremely colorful. The look immediately pops out to you and I could not stop staring at the pictures. I love seeing how creative a person can get when given materials that aren’t often used for fashion. It is something I take heavy inspiration from for all my work, so seeing outfits like these are the ones I can add to the pile of looks that inspire. This is the kind of work I strive to accomplish in the future and I am glad this is getting the attention it deserves.
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