ReFan: Reshaping the Fashion Narrative

Goal

ReFan is an initiative of the Amsterdam Fashion Institute (AMFI) and CHANGENCY, led by José Teunissen, lecturer in Fashion Design & Identity at Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences.

The project starts from a fundamental question: How do we create a new cultural narrative about the value of clothing and textiles – a story that encourages sustainable behaviour and increases social and ecological responsibility?

The core of this issue lies in the paradox of fashion itself. ‘The problem with fashion lies in the word “fashion”.’ The constant drive for innovation – to always be ‘in fashion’ – leads to overproduction, exploitation and waste. ReFan wants to break this cycle by exploring not only technological, but above all cultural and social innovations. The ambition is to develop a new collective fashion narrative in which clothing is no longer a disposable item, but a carrier of identity, care and connectedness.

Approach

ReFan brought together 45 pioneers from the fashion and textile chain: designers, repairers, producers, students, researchers and influencers. In a carefully designed co-creation day, they explored the values and beliefs needed for a future-proof fashion sector.

The participants got to work with creative working methods such as Ode aan je kleding (De Naaierij, The Hague) and Fashion Fictions (Amy Twigger Holroyd). Under the guidance of table hosts, they formulated scenarios around three questions:

What do we want to leave behind?
What does a desirable fashion world look like?
What does fashion mean when we detach it from trends?

The programme was enriched by inspiring contributions from Dagan Cohen (CHANGENCY), Sophie Buchel (DRIFT), Ellen Mensink (Brightfiber), Merijn van Ham (Zeeman), Anne Boermans (Zeefier), Hussein Suleiman (Daily Paper) and Stijntje Jaspers (Fibershed NL), among others.

Results

The day resulted in eight future scenarios: radical reinterpretations of what fashion can be. These scenarios show how clothing can become meaningful rather than fashionable – as a means of expression, community and care.

Key outcomes:
Eight “Fashion Futures”: visions of the future that reveal new values and roles for fashion.
New connections between creators, thinkers and doers within the chain.
A shared motivation to continue building a different fashion narrative together.

A practical outcome of this is De Klerenpartij (The Clothing Party). With De Klerepartij, young people are demonstrating that they demand change in the way we treat clothing – with an emphasis on fairness, craftsmanship and care. Their manifesto, “From fashion-conscious to conscious fashion”, asks what clothing really means in an era of overproduction and exploitation. De Klerenpartij gives a voice to everyone who believes that fashion can be fairer, more humane and more sustainable. What began as a future scenario during a workshop grew into a social call to action: make fashion a political and cultural issue. By linking awareness to action, De Klerenpartij shows that change begins with re-evaluating something everyday – the clothes we wear.

Research groups and study programmes

• Fashion Research & Technology
• Circular Design & Entrepreneurship
• Amsterdam Fashion Institute (AMFI)

Partners

• CHANGENCY Amsterdam
• Centre of Expertise Creative Innovation (CoECI)
• Research community NewTexEco
• De Naaierij (The Hague)
• Zeefier®
• Brightfiber
• Zeeman
• Patagonia
• Fibershed NL
• Daily Paper
• Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences