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Models wearing recycled, vegan designs hit DDP runway for climate
Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, wearing clothes made with recycled materials and reproduced wastes, walks down the runway during a fashion show featuring outfits made in eco-friendly ways at Dongdaemun Design Plaza, Thursday. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government
By Ko Dong-hwan
Seoul mayor featured as model; 14 companies provide recycled materials for outfits
By Ko Dong-hwan
Fashion created by innovative technologies and is good for the environment has drawn attention at a special fashion show hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Thursday evening.
T-shirts and shoes made with discarded PET plastic bottles, bags woven out of cactus skin to avoid the use of animals and hats borne from slivers of fabric scraps were part of show's aim: to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and waste from the earth and slow down the impact of climate change.
Fourteen companies and a subway station in the city provided the recycled materials used in the clothing. Lotte Chemical, fabric manufacturer Hyosung TNC, sustainable fashion brand Graenn and sportswear brand Black Yak were among eight companies that provided newly developed clothes made with recycled materials. Vegan fashion designer MAKE:D, design firm Art Impact and upcycling brand Fakonion offered vegan clothes made only with plant-based materials, while a subway station in the Seoul's Jongno District and three recycled products sellers, including Goodwill Store and Beautiful Store, provided recycled clothes.
Baby product manufacturer Yuhan Kimberly sponsored the show with recycled tote bags, shoes and eco-friendly cosmetics that were given to the show's selective guests through raffles. An instructor and students from the aesthetic and cosmetic program in Jeonghwa Arts College in the city took charge of hair and makeup for the models. Seoul Energy Fund, a philanthropic firm run by the Seoul Council on Social Welfare, and toy repairing and recycling firm Elephant Factory, ran a separate booth outside the runway to collect PET waste during the event.
Models for the show held at Dongdaemun Design Plaza wore clothes designed for sweltering summer heat. The vintage wedding dresses made of recycled clothes and materials were the show's highlight, according to Environmental Policy Division under the city government's Climate and Environment Headquarters, which organized the event.
Mayor Oh joined the fashion show on Thursday with 50 other models including civilians selected in an audition. Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government
Models included Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon as well as 50 others, including professional senior models, university and college students in fashion programs, as well as 30 civilians selected in an audition held in June.
“I have been interested in promoting the ongoing trends of resources circulation and purchasing recycled products,” said Jung Min-hyung, 26, one of the models who walked down the runway on Thursday evening. “I feel elated that I took part in this fashion show to save the earth.”
Yuhan Kimberly CEO Jin Jae-seung, 59, who joined the show, said the development of eco-friendly materials is especially necessary for companies in the fashion industry. The grand prize-winner of the city-sponsored environment award earlier this year poised as one of the show's models, wearing a shirt and a pair of pants made with cotton and Chinese yam.
Yoo Yeon-sik, the chief of the Climate and Environment Headquarters, thanked the companies and people who are leading the country's new fashion trends with recycling and veganism to mitigate global warming. “The city will keep coming up with ideas for members of the public to fight the climate crisis in their daily lives,” said Yoo.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government and the city's Green Seoul Civic Committee, a group of 94 civilians with environmental expertise, and six senior officials of the city government, including the mayor, co-hosted Thursday's show.
The two began hosting a fashion show for summer looks in 2012 to raise awareness of dressing lightly to depend less on air conditioning and thus reduce energy consumption. The campaigns have been promoting wearing shorts and no ties in workplaces. In 2018, the organizers started hiring Seoul residents as models for the annual show.