Designer Karen Jessen: Even green fashion has to look good
Each year, Hong Kong-based non-governmental organization Redress awards the EcoChic Design Award. Young designers from Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Singapore, England, France, Belgium and Germany thus have the opportunity to deepen their knowledge of sustainably produced fashion and present their own green fashion collection. Just like the Berlin designer Karen Jessen, who won the first prize with her haute couture collection made from recycled jeans. This summer she will design the "Recycled Collection" for Esprit.
ChroniquesDuVasteMonde: First of all, congratulations! Now for your collection made from recycled denim and T-shirt remnants? why did you choose these materials?
Karen Jessen: Jeans is a great fabric, I've always liked to work with it. Jeans and T-shirts are also among the most produced and purchased textiles - and end up on the trash just as often. Getting the material was not a problem. In addition, jeans gain in value the more they are worn.
Where did you get the old jeans? Karen Jessen: In the meantime, I have built up a small fan base that provides me with clothing that is no longer worn. I also work with scraps from the garment industry.
Models present the collection of Karen Jessen at the finale of the "The EcoChic Design Award"
© Victor Fraile / Studio EastHow did your collection come about? Karen Jessen: It was created according to the principle of the "Reconstruction Design Technique", so I completely align myself with my material, take it apart and put it together again. In doing so, I orient myself by the existing seams, seams, cuffs and washes.
When did you decide to produce sustainably? Karen Jessen: That has always been my goal. My parents run a youth hostel in Nordfriesland, so I grew up very close to nature and already knew during my studies that I wanted to produce green fashion. Two years ago I founded the label Benu Berlin with a friend. We work fundamentally on a sustainable basis, but do not put this aspect in our communication in the center, because in the design of the aesthetics plays the main role.
Unfortunately, sustainable fashion is still decried as a boring eco-fashion. Karen Jessen: There is definitely a lot of development potential for designers who have opted for sustainable fashion. The scene definitely has to change to get rid of this bland connotation. The manufacturing process is important, but aesthetics should not be affected. That's what designers have to look for.
What does the future of sustainable fashion look like? Karen Jessen: For me, it is the trend-setting design direction. It must be clear to everyone that the raw materials are becoming ever scarcer and that things can not go on like this. It is the job of designers to think about new ways of production and distribution.
Nevertheless, fashion is a fast-paced business ... Karen Jessen: ... and consumers are used to being constantly confronted with new trends - that's not easy to change. Large labels have developed the approach to produce even more textiles in less time and at the lowest possible cost. This vicious circle of overproduction causes millions of people in the textile industry to suffer. That's the big challenge for all designers.
