We like to feature designers who place ethical and sustainable models of development at the centre of what they do as visionaries, as artists and as business people.
We kick off this month with Orsola de Castro who founded the award-winning sustainable fashion label From Somewhere with Filippo Ricci in 1997.
Orsola and Filippo are also founders and curators of Estethica, the ethical fashion exhibition at London Fashion Week.
VNT: The Ethical Fashion Forum is now in its sixth year. In what ways do you believe the forum has impacted on the fashion sector?
OdC: The EFF has made significant contribution in raising awareness to ethical fashion, especially in the early stages. I feel that their main contribution has been that of putting together young designers with communities in Africa and their role at the backstage of the industry has been in instrumental in creating new connections initiatives such as the fashion competition innovation, introducing new talents in to the mainstream fashion industry and the collaboration with Estethica has certainly been both successful and inspiring for young designers internationally.
VNT: What is your biggest challenge as a designer who places sustainable fashion at the centre of your creativity?
OdC: Limits. All ethically minded brands work within limits, be that the skills available in their chosen communities or the fabrics available in case they are recycling or upcycling. At From Somewhere, we constantly face limitations and design upheavals, but it keeps us fresh. It is a privilge to able to introduce experimentation as part of a new intelligent design approach. However, from limitations come creativity and I feel more brands, now more accepted and understood both by the public and mainstream industry, are beginning to showcase their best, find their signature styles and develop more and more creative designs.
VNT: Can you tell us a bit about what has inspired your upcoming season?
OdC: I am always inspired first by what I find, then by how I see it take shape. This collection is an ode to a trans-generational look that can take you from day to evening; I wanted a look of vintage sportswear, 30′s tennis suits, vintage swimwear.
