COLLECTION "RE-" BY LUCRECIJA ZIGMANTAITĖ

The "Re-" collection brings forth the ideas of freedom and individuality that are actually encoded in the denim fabric. Hippie motifs and pacifist lyrics are enjoying a revival in today's context. At all times, denim has been reflecting current trends, that is why in this exhibition it declares and reminds us of humanity's greatest values, the importance of freedom, self-expression and, of course, sustainability which is so much important nowadays. Apart from being an integral part of our daily wardrobe, the denim fibre and clothing perform a much more significant, global function – it is a representation of our history, culture and its (r)evolution.

The exhibition presents a collection of jeans waistbands and pockets, focussing on such a common and everyday object - a pocket. They are reconstructed, enlarged and personalised with vintage floral fabrics ("flower power"), printed with hippie-style dyeing techniques such as batik and the lyrics of the Beatles' "Imagine“. The song "Imagine“ is like an anthem of freedom and peace, it is also interpreted in another object of the exhibition – a strip of jeans pockets. The words of this song "Imagine all the people sharing all the world" had inspired to connect the pockets into one continuous strip.

Another part of the exhibition, the “Miss“ series, takes an ironic look at the age-old beauty (Barbie's fabric is woven from many tiny scraps of denim and tulle). The classic "Miss“ title is being revived with the help of an embroidered jeans band combining it with another symbol of femininity and beauty – flowers. Flower motifs, typical of Lithuanian ethnographic national bands, are brought to life through the computerised embroidery, thus uniting and emphasising the national identity, and the importance of its roots in contemporary global culture.

A theme of a strip motif is continued with another exhibit - a drapery on a mannequin, where the constructions of denim jackets are disassembled and joined into one continuous strip, later they are wrapped around a body. In this way, the product adapts to a body and takes on the wearer's individual role.

A major focus is attached on the 3D “Re“-collection, which is based on the Clo3D modelling software. In this part, a sustainability is developed fully on a different scale, abandoning the materiality and using modern technologies. Today, like never before, we live in a very fast-paced world, with a huge increase of consumption, and many of us no longer have time to visit physical stores, so we buy most of our stuff online, which is where we spend a good part of our day, anyway. So the questions are: "Is there always a need for a physical product?", "Is there still a need to present a contemporary fashion collection live?"

The "Re-" collection consists of 6 different models, 4 of which are showcased by walking avatars on the catwalk and in a digital lookbook photo shoot. There are also two physically realisable models "Little Noisy Dress" and "Game Over", which allow to see and experience first-hand the recycling techniques used in the collection, based on the principles of hand work, slow and 0 waste fashion.

The "Re-" collection intertwines different eras, technologies, themes, but all the objects in the exposition are united by the same ideas of freedom, youth and individuality. In all of them, denim is reborn for the second time and acquires a new purpose – this time to spread the message of sustainability and the importance of conscious consumption.

Lukrecija Zigmantaitė is a fashion and textiles designer. While studying fashion design as an undergraduate she felt that, for her, clothes and textiles are not just a material that we wear in order to create a distinctive style, which is not a frequent case, but also a visual means of communication that a designer can use to broadcast values, emotions, experiences and reflections.  During Master's studies, she had the opportunity to go on an Erasmus exchange trip to Milan, where she studied a programme  “Sustainable Fashion & Textile Design, Nuova Accademia di Belle Art” for one semester. Here she was also introduced to another area of sustainability - 3D modelling and its application in both creative and wearable fashion collections in order to use as few physical resources as possible. For final Master's thesis collection, she has combined these two distinct strands of sustainable fashion - innovative technology and traditional handmade recycling.