Proposal: Made by Hands
Made by Hands: Fast Fashion’s Killer Instinct is a gallery exhibition, educational opportunity, and sensory experience designed to educate and ultimately inspire behavior change. Both high and low fashion exploit the skill and labor of faceless garment workers while creating celebrity fashion designers and mega-brand loyalists. All clothing is made by hand. However, the assumption that cheap clothes are made by robots or machines is simply something we tell ourselves to cope with our overconsumption. This project is designed to tell the stories that the fashion industry does not want to talk about. It sheds light on garment industry labor practices, the role of women and immigrants in the fashion workforce, and the unethical treatment of the people vital to the fashion industry's capitalistic success. It is also designed to pose and answer questions related to the psychology of material desires and inspire creativity while shedding light on the process of sewing and garment manufacturing. This installation features the work of textile artists and designers as well as interactive multimedia. Lead artists include Sommer Roman, Minga Opazo, Andrea Zittel, and selections from Suay Sew Shop. The viewer will both look back on the history of the textile and fashion industries while envisioning a new sustainable future of what is possible and their role in achieving a more just system.
(JOAN – About).
Located in site specific Los Angeles, a national hub for fashion manufacturing, this installation will be presented at JOAN art space in the heart of the fashion district, 1206 Maple Avenue, Suite 715, Los Angeles, CA 90015. This installation features a collection of curated historical sewing objects, clothing, and textiles. The opening reception features a keynote lecture by Aditi Mayer, a self-described storyteller, speaker, and consultant weaving climate, craft, & culture.
The exhibit features additional displays in cooperation with: The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, LA City Historical Society, FIDM Museum and Galleries, National Park Service, State of Fashion, Suay Sew Shop, and Patagonia.
The installation layout of the exhibition is sectioned into three parts with the viewer moving through a logical beginning, middle, and end of the exhibit space. The beginning section labeled PAST LIVES is adjacent to the area where the viewer enters the space. This includes a display of historical objects of home sewing and garment manufacturing. Self-sufficiency is also highlighted in this section and references sewing skills and the great respect for clothing laboriously created by individuals one piece at a time. Display of historical garments on mannequins and hangers dating between 1870-1910 illustrates the handmade nature of clothing popular during this era. From an environmental perspective, this period was the last gasp of traditionally sustainable practices for apparel. Everything from cloth to buttons to shoes were made from sustainable materials, mainly because there were no factory-made alternatives that were readily affordable for the average person. From leather to cotton to wool, getting dressed in the Western United States was a natural business during the late 1800’s.
(Gonzalez)
Unfortunately, the majority of garment workers are still being underpaid, under-appreciated, and in many cases abused.
As the grip of industrialism took hold in California, the garment business began growing in Los Angeles. The business of textile agriculture played an important role during this era of early growth. “Access to inexpensive wool (and eventually cotton) from western fields and ranches helped Los Angeles textile mills gain a competitive foothold against the big Eastern mills.” (“LOS ANGELES CITYWIDE HISTORIC CONTEXT STATEMENT”) As is common for almost every story from the Industrial Revolution, people and their skilled labor were exploited. “Until 1933, factory owners effectively staved off unionization. Workers who attempted to organize for self- protection were immediately fired. Those who fought were blacklisted. Despite hostility to labor unions and an anti-picketing ordinance passed by the City of Los Angeles in 1911, growing unrest among dressmakers led to an organizing drive by the I.L.G.W.U. (The International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union) in the spring of 1933.” - (Five Views: An Ethnic Historic Site Survey for California (Mexican Americans))
The middle section of the exhibit titled PRESENT TENSE and highlights fashion history from 1950-current. The focus of this section is change and innovation. Both manufacturing and advertising experienced exponential growth during the 20th century. The celebratory consumerism of post World War II era was the foundation upon which fast fashion waslater be successfully introduced. Investment pieces such as wool winter coats, leather handbags, and business suits were beginning to become affordable by the middle class and factory-made clothing was in demand. Examples of such pieces ranging from men’s wear to children's clothes will be displayed. Due to technological innovations such as nylon, consumer products begin to change significantly during this time. "...December 15, 1939, DuPont began commercial production of nylon. Among the earliest successes of a fundamental research program novel in the American chemical industry, nylon was the first totally synthetic fiber to be fashioned into consumer products. Prepared wholly with materials readily derived from coal, air, and water, nylon has properties superior to its natural counterparts, such as silk. Nylon revolutionized the textile industry and led the way for a variety of synthetic materials that have had enormous social and economic impact on the fabric of everyday life worldwide." (American Chemical Society) This shift away from natural fibers began the environmental disaster of the fashion industry as we know it today. A multimedia timeline display illustrates the history included in this section.
As progress began to define American life, fashion kept up with trends that included synthetic fibers, fluorescent colors, as well as wrinkle free and stain resistant textiles. Quickness, convenience, and affordability dominated American consumer behavior. As women broke free of their domestic roles and entered the workforce, the demand for goods, inexpensive clothing, and recreation boomed. By the mid 1970’s, tension was building between factory workers, environmentalists, and economic forces. A display of mannequins dressed in vintage synthetic clothing popular during this era is displayed along with media and information relating to Southern California workers’ rights and environmental protection laws passed in 1976.
Calvillo, (March)
A San Diego Reader newspaper photograph is be displayed along with this quote, “Whether or not Calvillo’s group succeeds in getting better treatment for American Fashion workers, the problems they describe are endemic in the garment industry. Clothing manufacturing is an intensely competitive, low-technology business whose several discrete operations — cutting, sewing, and finishing — can be divided easily among different regions, countries, and continents, wherever labor is cheapest. Many garment workers in the United States are immigrant women and, in the Third World, teenage girls, both easily exploited groups. Although a few multinational firms dominate the industry, manufacturing is often farmed out to subcontractors that must compete with non-union, illegal sweatshop operations, and Third World laborers. All these factors serve to keep wages low, and worker demands in check; the threat of companies closing or moving is ever-present,” (March) [from a 1993 article about worker efforts to fight for fair labor practices at American Fashion then located in Chula Vista, California and now out of business.]
As the capitalist machine of fashion seized opportunities to decrease wages and increase production by moving manufacturing out of the United States and into countries with looser regulations and cheaper wages, American consumers were eager to take advantage. Even high fashion wasn’t immune to this trend. The new influx of fortune allowed fashion designers to become celebrities, and consumer status began to be defined by the brand they could afford. As a society our connection to sewing, manufacturing, and the people behind the process started to become invisible. This was the origin story of fast fashion and its unrelenting killer instinct to squeeze every last drop out of resources and humans without question or remorse. This is illustrated with both the film The True Cost playing on a monitor and photos of pollution generated by textile manufacturing plants. Photographs are hung side by side on the walls depicting the terrible working conditions of overseas sweatshops and Los Angeles factories, juxtaposed with American malls and shoppers of the 1980’s and 1990s.
The era of shopping as a pastime is cemented with mainstream movies like Clueless, the rise of Victoria’s Secret and Forever 21, the development of twelve fashion seasons per year instead of the traditional four, overflowing clearance racks, and year-round discount competition. Protests from garment workers in Los Angeles began again in the early 2000’s. “The workers filed suit in 2001, saying they were denied lawful wages and exposed to dangerous work conditions. They claimed they sewed, ironed or packed Forever 21 clothing six days a week, sometimes 12 hours a day, for far less than minimum wage.” (Gwc) Meanwhile, “8% of global climate pollution is linked to fashion from sourcing to disposal.” (California). A digital display plays a TedTalk by keynote speaker Aditi Mayer. A parallel display of 20 photographic portraits features the people constructing garments behind the big brand names with display text that says, “Hi, my name is . I make the clothes you buy from ”. Both high fashion and consumer brands will be featured. Linking real people to the making of clothes can inspire empathy from the viewer, and this is where behavior change may begin.
The last section of the exhibit is called FUTURE THINKING and which features the work of textile artists and designers who are repurposing materials or driving conceptual practices that illustrate sustainable solutions to fashion's culture of excess.
Andrea Zittel’s handmade uniform garments illustrate both sustainability and self-sufficiency. Select pieces from the A-Z Personal Uniforms collection will be on display. “A-Z Personal Uniforms is one of Zittel’s longest standing experiments. She began the project in 1991 to liberate herself from the need to make choices about what to wear by voluntarily adhering to a set of constraints. Each uniform is worn exclusively throughout the season for which it is made. Zittel observes that while these garments are both beautiful and functional, (“they also question our associations of freedom or personal liberation with the market demand for constant variety. The uniform project proposes that liberation may in fact be possible through the creation of a set of personal restrictions or limitations.”)” (Zittel)
Selections from Minga Opazo’s collection Let’s Talk About Denim come next on view. Opazo’s work focuses on living organisms interacting with denim textiles and illustrates her exploration of the relationship “between climate change, contemporary textile production, and Chilean textile history and design.” (Minga Opazo) Three-dimensional sculptural textile work is displayed throughout this section with selections from Sommer Roman who, “Transforms post- consumer textile discards to pull us inward to examine the more immaterial aspects of our lives.” (“Sommer Roman”)
(SUAY)
A capsule collection of apparel and home goods from Suay Sew Shop are featured in a faux bedroom installation. On the wall behind this displays a shocking statistic: “Californians throw away 1.2 million tons of textiles a year (3% of what we landfill).” (California) This helps the viewer understand that textiles of all kinds can have a unique and beautiful purpose, long after they have been discarded.
The last display before the exit is a summary of the State of Fashion Biennial initiatives with QR codes to learn more about their organization displayed with their about statement: “State of Fashion is a platform for showcasing alternatives to the current fashion system. We connect fashion, explicitly and honestly, with the societal questions and challenges of our time, such as inclusivity and fair practice, the impact of globalization, and the climate crisis. Our leading question is how fashion and textile can contribute to a better world?” (State of Fashion) Patagonia’s business model and Yvonne Chinards’ ethos will be displayed along with The Shitthropocene documentary playing on a monitor. The closing display located close to the exit of the exhibit features information related to the Los Angeles Sanitation and Environment Department’s pilot textile waste recovery program and an explanation of the new California law, SB 707 Responsible Textile Recovery Act of 2024, which “would require manufacturers to join a PRO and the PRO (Producer Responsibility Organization) to submit to the department, for approval or disapproval, a complete plan for the collection, transportation, repair, sorting, and recycling, and the safe and proper management, of apparel and textile articles in the state.” (Bill Text - SB-707 Responsible Textile Recovery Act of 2024.)
The marketing concept for this exhibit is different than the typical big museum promotion. In keeping with the do-it-yourself feeling of this show and the focus on sustainability there will be no merchandise for sale. Instead, viewers can leave with a one-pager on sustainable fashion practices, linked resources for learning more, and a sticker from Patagonia that says, “If it’s broken, fix it.” The advertising for the show includes murals commissioned by local artists painted on fashion district buildings in downtown Los Angeles with the question: “What are you wearing?” in addition to media and print collateral offering the same message with a “learn more” call to action that links to the exhibit information and ticketing.
By connecting the viewer to the geography of the Los Angeles fashion district, the plight of the people who live and work there, as well as our individual contributions to the existing environmental issues California faces, this project impacts consumer behavior while influencing hearts and minds. Made by Hands answers the question of “How did we get here?” and proposes answers to questions like, “Where do we go from here?” A socially and environmentally just future needs each of us to understand and care about the impact of our individual actions and to take responsibility for them. Art bridges the gap between education, inspiration, science, and history. Art pulls in the curious, the connoisseurs, and the critics. This kind of attention is desperately needed in order to improve our relationship with clothing, consumption, and competition. By offering the perspectives of female-identifying artists, experts, and activists, Made by Hands seeks to turn the tide of influence in this corrupt and often male-dominated business by spotlighting the voices that are otherwise underpowered. As a fashion designer and creative director, I am excited by the prospect of curating an exhibition that ties the glossy facade of apparel with the gritty underbelly of manufacturing to reveal the true nature of fast fashion’s killer instinct.
Citations
American Chemical Society. “The First Nylon Plant.” acs.org, 1995.
Bill Text - SB-707 Responsible Textile Recovery Act of 2024.
leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202320240SB707.
California, State Of. “Textiles - CalRecycle Home Page.” CalRecycle Home Page, calrecycle.ca.gov/epr/textiles/#:~:text=8%25%20of%20global%20climate%20pollution,
%25%20of%20what%20we%20landfill).
Five Views: An Ethnic Historic Site Survey for California (Mexican Americans). www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/5views/5views5h5.htm.
Gonzalez, Greg. “Garment Workers Strike of 1933 — L.A. Meekly: A Los Angeles History Podcast.” L.A. Meekly: A Los Angeles History Podcast, 1 Sept. 2021, www.lameeklypodcast.com/episodesegments/garment-strike.
Gwc. “Forever 21 Settles Dispute With Garment Workers.” The Garment Worker Center, 30 May 2013, garmentworkercenter.org/forever-21-settles-dispute-with-garment-workers.
JOAN – About. joanlosangeles.org/about.
“LOS ANGELES CITYWIDE HISTORIC CONTEXT STATEMENT.” SurveyLA Citywide
Historic Context Statement, report, Sept. 2011, p. 1. www.HistoricPlacesLA.org.
March. “The Dark Side of Chula Vista’s American Fashion.” San Diego Reader, www.sandiegoreader.com/news/1993/mar/25/cover-dark-side-chula-vista-american- fashion.
“Minga Opazo.” Minga Opazo, mingaopazo.com/#/lets-talk-about-denim.
“Sculpture — Sommer Roman.” Sommer Roman, www.sommerroman.com/sculpture.
State of Fashion. “Home - State of Fashion.” State of Fashion, 11 Dec. 2024, stateoffashion.org/en/?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaZ- Jamq_IM_SfVe0jNCVcOiTwpRazbtTDmho3W9Yos3dk8Mjg4G1J4vJCc_aem_DCuxi7 7lmQG4A-edKf563Q.
SUAY. “Remade in L.A.” SUAY, suayla.com.
Zittel, Andrea. AZ | A-Z Uniform Project, Second Decade. www.zittel.org/projects/a-z-uniform- project-second-decade.
References
https://www.outerknown.com/pages/about
https://www.wastetodaymagazine.com/news/los-angeles-textile-recovery-pilot-diverts-1000- pounds-of-waste/
https://a-otc.com/what-is-environmental-remediation/ https://www.ted.com/talks/aditi_mayer_sustainability_must_mean_decolonization?utm_campaig n=tedspread&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=tedcomshare https://www.patagonia.com/stories/the-shitthropocene/video-150905.html https://truecostmovie.com/
https://www.epa.gov/rcra/history-resource-conservation-and-recovery-act-rcra https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2015-01/documents/k02028.pdf https://jacobin.com/2022/11/garment-industry-la-sweatshops-fashion/ https://www.lacityhistory.org/historical-societies
https://nhm.org/stories/la-reimagined https://asufidmmuseum.asu.edu/exhibitions https://downtownla.com/go/fidm-museum-galleries
https://www.npr.org/2023/05/19/1177180975/las-housing-crisis-raises-concerns-that-the- fashion-district-will-get-squeezed
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nr1ABz65hXI
https://art21.org/watch/art-in-the-twenty-first-century/s1/andrea-zittel-in-consumption-segment/
