Between COVID-19 bringing the fashion industry to a halt, to the fight for racial justice, the ties between identity, politics, and fashion have never been clearer. In the last few months, the industry has had a reckoning. Brands are being forced to contend with their problematic cultures and practices, whether that’s racist corporate cultures or not paying their garment workers amid a global pandemic (after already receiving orders).

IKIGAI LABELS´ slow fashion video project entitled FABRIC FOR THE MIND is exploring themes like the Japanese philosophy ‘ikigai’, slow fashion, inclusivity, emancipation, and social sustainability.

The project is a refreshing reminder on how brands can be extending their role in the fashion landscape— not only as pushers of product, but as champions of larger conversations— about culture, identity, and reimagining fashion’s future. 

The series encapsulates a beautiful display of perspectives— from thought leaders such as Aja Barber to zero-waste fashion designers like Nathalia JMag— and I’m excited to share my own thoughts on the state of the industry as we approach a critical cultural juncture where accountability is on the rise, alongside an awareness of how exploitation exists in fashion.

THE PROJECT IS A REFRESHING REMINDER ON HOW BRANDS CAN BE EXTENDING THEIR ROLE IN THE FASHION LANDSCAPE— NOT ONLY AS PUSHERS OF PRODUCT, BUT AS CHAMPIONS OF LARGER CONVERSATIONS— ABOUT CULTURE, IDENTITY, AND REIMAGINING FASHION’S FUTURE.

Alongside this video is an editorial featuring pieces from IKIGAI’s shop. I’m sporting linen trousers from Filanda 18, a brand that is an ode to the antique hunters, the slow-travelers, and the enthusiasts of hand-crafted treasures, and Buki Akomolafe, a Berlin-based clothing label self-named after its founder’s German/Nigerian heritage that weds a background of tradition, handcraft, design experience, and aesthetic vision.

 

Filanda18 a fashion design lab exploring heritage textiles and interpreting them into ready-to-wear collections. Each collection tells a story through the use of textile techniques that have originated across different geographies and time – from Uzbeki ikat to Venetian lace, from Bengali Kantha to Japanese boro.

IKIGAI LABELS – FABRIC FOR THE MIND
14 VOICES CALL FOR CHANGE

BUKI AKOMOLAFE is an homage to the gentlewoman of today. A refined balance between clean European classical tailoring and traditional craftsmanship, and techniques of West-Africa. Her creations are placed within a new and globally accessible context. The label uses only high quality, eco-organic materials like certified cotton, organic hemp-silk, and individual African wax prints.

 

This post was brought to you by IKIGAI Labels.

Special thanks to the partners that make ADIMAY possible.