2023
Volume 3 of Material Liberation, the People's Fashion Show, asked "What are your freedom dreams?" By exploring what freedom looks like, feels like, and takes to get through clothes and poetry, the event highlighted how liberation is a political strategy that requires building in reality from our fantasies.
In the weeks leading up to the show, Material Liberation held three political education classes. The first event on September 21 was a screening of "Made in Bangladesh" (2020). The film tells the story of Shimu, a young garment worker who struggles to establish a trade union at her workplace. This film was specifically selected as 2023 marks the tenth anniversary of the most horrific industrial ‘disaster’ (some would say massacre) in the history of the global garment industry — the collapse of the Rana Plaza building in Savar, Bangladesh.
The second event on September 27 was the first part of a 2-class series. The class (livestream here) focused on the "Political Economy of the Fashion Industry". The class series culminated at the third event on October 4. This class (livestream here) focused on "Activism and Aesthetics".
The fashion show itself was held on Oct 14th, and featured a clothing drive, poets Andrea Albayeros and Nathalie E. Amazan, and the work of five designers:
Kotami is a community project that is building a sustainable fashion ecosystem for 2050. This collection uses ancestral motifs and symbols that have migrated amongst Japan, Brazil, Bangladesh, and the United States and is inspired by the power of the human will.
Mel is a Brooklyn-based, Boricua fashion designer and CFDA Scholar whose approach centers on processes of collaboration, care, and transformation. In 2023, Mel founded ITA the Label, which focuses on building alternatives to the fashion industrial complex.
VaithaVerse is an artist/activist-first universe dedicated to creating unconditional joy through the power of creativity and authenticity.
Kerbie Joseph is a first-generation Haitian woman from Brooklyn, NY. She is an organizer with the ANSWER Coalition and fights against police brutality, mass incarceration and other injustices.
Shaped by her Swiss-Malagasy background, Fabiola Soavelo creates intricate designs inspired by science fiction. She utilizes discarded leather, ancestral weaving, embroidery techniques, and raffia materials.
Video by Amira Williams (@amira.k.w)