The current state of fashion mirrors the world we live in — a world of broken relationships. We have become increasingly disconnected from each other, from what we wear, from the workers and from the earth that grows the fibres we encounter every day when we dress. This is present in every piece of clothing we ______________.

This separation that we experience is part of the heritage of the industrial fashion system, built on the single aim of producing more to grow profits. As with other industries rooted in colonial practices, fashion fails to be responsible for the oppression of people and the theft of land from nature and native communities. To keep this malfunctioning system alive, people, animals, plants and____________ are exploited, poisoned by pesticides in the cotton fields and toxic chemicals in the dyeing and processing of our clothes. Why is the industry still failing to____________?

By privileging one perspective over many, the dominant fashion culture undermines different points of view and ways of relating to clothes. It follows a system of institutionalized racism, inherent in the remaining colonial power. There are so many ways of doing, experiencing, narrating, knowing, imagining, dressing and _______________ that are still not recognized. Why are so many narratives still missing? How can we make space for different _______________ to co-exist?

For the State of Fashion Biennale 2022, we want to stop assuming, and start listening. We want to ask, reflect, celebrate, __________ and embrace different ways of expressing, making and unmaking fashion. If we reconnect the missing threads of our relationships, aesthetics, __________ and sensibilities, new ways of caring for our clothes, each other and nature can flourish. We wish to recognize the people, _____________, our environment, and the stories that haven't been given space to be heard.

As co-curators, we feel the urgency and responsibility to open spaces, starting from this very text. We want to make room for uncertainties, mistakes, curiosities, open endings, changes and ___________.

For the Biennale, we begin by asking what has been left out, removed and ___________. Only by accepting and recognizing what is missing, and by addressing the damages of these omissions, can we move forward.

We encourage individual and collective acts of repairs and reparations, from mending our clothes to fixing our dysfunctional systems.

We invite you to exercise coexistence with us, valuing the multiple differences and relationships that we encounter every day when dressing. We will encounter each other, celebrate our differences, work together, ______________, accept responsibilities, embracing what separates and unites us. This may sound difficult, but we know it is doable.

Are you ready to ___________

Andrea Chehade Barroux, Tamsin Blanchard,
Mari Cortez, Marina Sasseron de Oliveira Cabral,
Orsola de Castro, Filippo Ricci and Niamh Tuft
Co-curators of State of Fashion Biennale 2022 | Ways of Caring