Trashion Week: 'Rage is Collectively Felt’

Post-Grad Community Ambassador Abigail Rigby reports back on attending Trashion Week by Bleaq. 

It’s refreshing to hear an honest account of the industry, and to see how designers like Shannen are shaping their instincts around survival. Compared to many fashion spaces, the creativity of a designer doesn’t feel beaten down by trend ideals here - a freedom naturally reflected in the energy of the attendees. In a world where more and more of us are feeling the pull of commercial ties as a means to put food on the table, it feels hopeful to see design untamed.

Though their feature film, RAGE, which screened on Friday, was as angry as its title suggests, I left feeling positive. A collaboration between Bleaq and filmmaking collective Somewhere Films, the surrealist portrayal of fierce femme rage felt akin to Chytilová’s Daisies: chaotic, unnerving.

Directed by duo Anna Dobos and Susannah Limbu, the film showcases designs by Shannen, Munisa and sssilk while providing a space for their raw perspectives. It’s a snippet of the vibrant Bleaq community, delivered through comedic jests and juicy tones. In the discussion afterwards, the group mentioned the cathartic feeling of harnessing collective rage in a creative project.

As Shannen said: “Rage is collectively felt.”

Esyllt and the Ivy

I spoke with Rosie after the show:

What’s the significance for you of finding fabrics in place? Do you feel it tells a story of heritage and honouring the spaces you live(ed) in?

“I initially started collecting found fabrics because of where I lived, there were very few fabric shops and so I started looking through charity shops and on ebay for fabrics. Now it feels like second nature, and a more organic way of designing as I have to be very conscious of how much material there is. Finding pieces, in shops or even off the street, from the spaces I live in does make me feel more connected to these places, like lifting out some of the textural history to share.”

Your work brings histories of Welsh folklore and history into modern fashion spaces - a rare layered narrative seen over our (beloved but linear) Gavin and Stacey references.

“Being Welsh, it feels like culturally we're left behind compared to Ireland or Scotland, despite there being a huge legacy of artists and creatives from the country, especially in fashion. I wanted to look at the textile history of the country. In my degree collection I went to St. Fagans, the living history museum, and looked through the archives of union banners, patchwork quilts and embroidered samplers. And chose to look into the social history,  rather than the more obvious references like Gavin and Stacey, Tom jones or Cwtch. As well as appealing to Welsh people, globally I've received a lot of interest in the folk narratives and style I use. I think it comes from a move away from constantly shifting standards of what's trending.”

Do you feel it’s time for rural spaces and stories to be more celebrated when the industry classically centres the fashion capitals? 

"Definitely. I do feel like post-lockdown the big cities lost their social cultural advantage, and that was the only real draw to them. Smaller cities and towns provide such a better lifestyle in terms of finance and work balance. Especially as people are more inspired by pastoral and folk art, how many big name brands have done shoots in rural settings in the last few years? I think with how uncertain the world is people want to retreat into the idea of safety and home, and for so many creatives that isn't a big city.”