By Hania Mahmoud

In recent years, fashion activism has been a medium for many to voice their opinions on social and political topics that interest and concern them. Now more than ever, we are witness to the intertwining of fashion and activism and more so, the importance of it. This new mode of expression allows everyone to voice their opinion by quite literally wearing it on their sleeve.

This ranges from sporting clothes from body positive brands, supporting local, small business, taking a clear stance on a socio-political issue, or generally leaning into more sustainable options.

Here are the brands that we would proudly wear on our sleeve:

Pangaia:

https://thepangaia.com/

A brand with a large collective of scientists, engineers, artists, designers, and thinkers at its forefront, Pangaia positions itself like no other. Having the primary goal of presenting new innovative approaches to fashion and sustainability, Pangaia has mastered the technologies as well as the aesthetic and appearance of this goal. Their popular oversized, colorful loungewear consists of recycled cotton, vegetable dyes, and even mint oil, in order to reduce the frequency of excessive washing. This is on par with their down jacket which replaces a goose down fill with flower petals ensuring the same warmth and insulation. With ambitious ideas and a large collective, Pangaia is a brand to keep in mind when searching for sustainable alternatives.

Solenne Tadros for Fonoon:

https://fonoon.co/collections/solenne-tadros

Jordanian multi-media artist and designer, Solenne Tadros, collaborated with Fonoon, a global platform for artists with the goal of showcasing the influence of Middle Eastern creative culture, for their Beirut Campaign. This was a fundraising campaign in partnership with Lebanon’s Disaster Relief Fund following the horrific explosion that devasted the city. Tadros designed both a shirt and a hoodie with black and white color options, with the front of the design featuring the date, location and coordinates of the event and the back of the item displaying the phrase “The clock stopped and the hands united” in Arabic as well as multiple QR codes with the Lebanese cedar symbol at the center of it. Tadros explains that each individual QR code can be scanned and leads to news articles, fundraisers, and personal stories regarding the event. With this approach, people will not forget about this tragedy and will always be aware of ways to donate and support those affected by the explosion.

Cielo Studio:

https://www.cielostudio.co.uk/

Based in London, Cielo Studio is a brand focused on reinventing the ‘classic suit’ for women. What makes this project more special is their slow-fashion approach and process. From having to pre-order the suit in order to ensure that no excessive materials are accumulated to making small production runs to directly respond to customers’ demands, Cielo Studio is paving a new way of structing a business and doing so fashionably.

Moreover, there a many, many more brands with similar objectives and messages creating clothes and more than likely, these aims resonate with some of our own personal beliefs and aspirations, therefore I encourage everyone to dig a little deeper and find brands you connect with.

ST.ART Magazine does not own the rights to any images used in this article.