New research project Fashion Professorship: (Un)seen Labour

Much of the labour in the fashion and textile industry remains unseen. Think of the makers, the craftsmanship and the care involved in producing, repairing and maintaining clothing. This very invisibility stands in the way of a fair and circular future.

bodies that make, bodies that consume, Santiago Útima, Siviwe James, Widi Asari & Riyadhus Shalihin, State of Fashion 2022 Ways of Caring, photo: Eva Broekema

Circulariteit gaat niet alleen over materialen en technologie, maar ook over de mensen, waarden en relaties die ermee verbonden zijn”

Daniëlle Bruggeman, projectleider (On)zichtbare Arbeid en lector Mode, ArtEZ University of the Arts

(Un)seen Labour is a research project of the Fashion Professorship at ArtEZ University of the Arts, in collaboration with State of Fashion and partners Avans University of Applied Sciences and Crafts Council Nederland.
From ArtEZ, Femke de Vries and Studio Tjeerd Veenhoven are conducting research in collaboration with Professor of Fashion Daniëlle Bruggeman. From Avans (Centre of Expertise Broad Prosperity and New Entrepreneurship), Joline d’Arnaud van Boeckholtz is participating. Designers Tess van Zalinge, Zyanya Keizer & Eleftheria Lavdaki, and Amy Suo Wu take part through State of Fashion: a fashion platform where alternatives to the current fashion system are given a stage. Together, they explore how hidden forms of labour, from repair and craft to care and collaboration, can take a central place in the fashion of the future.

The project (Un)seen Labour runs until 2027 and is part of the Call for Artistic and Design Research by the Taskforce for Applied Research SIA and the Creative Industries Fund NL. The first outcomes will be presented at the State of Fashion Biennale 2026 in Arnhem, in the form of an exhibition and a symposium.