Sarah Manssen

The 2022 Nepenthes Collection shows the structural, technical, cooperative design of architecture within the context of fashion in an imagined future setting.

The method of ‘re-purposing' involved collecting the 'old' materials and garments to create new features and finishing’s within this body of work, allowing for a newfound appreciation for re-used and re-purposed materials.

As designers of this time, the now, we have the consciousness to change how clothing is produced. This collection has been designed within an ethical and sustainable ethos in response to declining ecosystems and climate change from the impacts of the current fashion industry practices. Garments are purposely designed to reminisce those worn in the industrial era of the 20^th Century– a time when ‘revolutionary’ advancements were made, a leading cause in man fast-tracking ecological destruction.

This work is inspired by a fictional story of a people who use their technology and sciences to grow and nurture the world rather than corrupt and destroy it, they create genetically altered plants and life to make up for the imbalance caused by previously inhabitants of the planet.

This collection was used as an informative, investigatory study into digital design practices in relation to my work; expanding knowledge and execution of previous practices used within the digital realm.