Only last week we heard that Jeremy Scott was to leave Moschino, where he had been creative director for a decade. Now comes the news that he’s partnering with Hyundai on a sustainable fashion collection.
The company is in the fourth year of their Re:Style initiative which asks designers to up-cycle waste from car production. Hyundai opened an exhibition in Seoul last week, to showcase the collection and bring attention to a new electric vehicle they’re launching. The previous three years of Re:Style collections are also on display.
Up-cycling, is something that while honourable, has tended to create clothing that’s admired for it’s sustainable credentials and little else. Jeremy Scott’s collection is a couture take on the trend. A statement on Hyundai’s website says Scott, “breaks stereotypes of sustainable design”.
Some pieces in the collection look more like they’re made from old car parts than others. There’s a dress with a hubcap attached to the front it, one where old headlights are used as lapels and another made from hundreds of coloured wires.
While the initiative brings positive attention to sustainability, I can’t help but wonder what long-term purpose it serves. Hyundai will still produce waste that will be thrown away, as will every other car company.
Major fashion brand’s noticing negative reactions to their fast and disposable fashion, have launched ‘sustainable’ collections which have been criticised as greenwashing campaigns, e.g. H&M’s 2011 Conscious collection or Zara’s Join Life.
It’s great that a significant figure in the industry like Jeremy Scott is bringing attention to another way of doing things, even if he doesn’t have all the answers.
Words by Pippy Stephenson
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