After reading Fashionopolis by Dana Thomas I was motivated to learn more about the high cost of low cost clothing. I found out that the fast fashion industry has had a devastating effect on humans and our environment. The impact is felt most egregiously in Bangladesh, China and India, centers for the manufacturing of blue jeans but also extends to our overflowing landfills as we blithely discard yesterday’s fashions. Unsafe conditions for low-paid workers, toxic chemicals dumped into rivers combined with ungodly amounts of water used in the process are adding up to an ecological catastrophe.
Stone Washed speaks to these forces as I reckon with the real cost of my own closet full of “cheap” jeans. Inspired by the format of vintage children’s cloth books. I am using the bespoke denim material to draw attention to the grim realities of fast fashion.
I am pleased to share that Stone Washed was acquired by the Herman B. Wells Library at the University of Indiana, Bloomington.
