Digital Eco-Fashion Show Spring 2024
by Milena Popov
In our glittering techno world, everything, including fashion, has moved online. Students in my Eco Art and Design course at John Jay College of Criminal Justice explore possibilities of how digital technology can contribute to sustainability. This Spring 2024 semester students either created eco videos to raise awareness of unsustainable fashion practices and to address solutions, like Sydney Kuhl (Overconsumption), Briana McEachern (Fast Fashion), and Nicole Miller (Conversations in Sustainable Fashion / Creative Environmental Repurposing), or created videos to showcase eco fashion designs they created during the course.
The type of eco fashion design students created is predominantly upcycled fashion. While Clariss Mancebo used a large trash bag to create her garment in the Fall 2023 semester, Yi Feng Huang, Briana McEachern, and Bryan Rodriguez used paper and found objects to create their accessories this Spring 2024 semester. On the other hand, Aaliyah Amos, Miranda John, and Sydney Kuhl opted for old garments to create or decorate their accessories and to spread an environmental message. Similarly, Laury Bertil, Taylor Dziuma, and Nunez Loreinny used old garments and found objects in their accessory designs.
In the videos, students employed diverse eco art strategies (such as dramatization, humor, and environmental action) they learned in class. For example, Yi Feng Huang, Briana McEachern, and Bryan Rodriguez added humor and comic book filters in their video. Similarly, in the prior semester, Clariss Mancebo added a dose of humor to keep the viewers engaged in her time-lapsed video, where a large black trash bag “metamorphoses” into a garment.
The video playlist below acts as the Eco Art and Design course digital fashion show.
Aailiyah Amos, Miranda John, and Sydney Kuhl: Eco Tote Bags
Laury Bertil, Taylor Dziuma, and Loreinny Nunez: Eco Accessories
Yi Feng Huang, Briana McEachern, Bryan Rodriguez: Eco Accessories