contemporary culture

The Paradox of Sustainability: Green Overproduction

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Is sustainable overproduction a valuable strategy?


Do you know the paradox of sustainability? The paradox is this: making far more garments labelled as green products. In other words, it means perpetrating the same old overproduction pattern and marketing it as sustainable.

If that’s how you make money, why should you change? Okay, but the planet is dying, and we are facing a climate emergency the fashion industry should care about. Well, the attention towards this topic is just a facade.

In fact, according to Edited, “In the past four years, the number of clothes described as ‘sustainable’ has quadrupled.”

Green overproduction: the paradox sustainability


Yes, we know we write about this topic a lot. But when the data we ran across confirms our impressions and perplexities, it is appropriate to address it over and over.
Is sustainable overproduction a valuable strategy? Specifically, is that how we plan to save the planet? Making four times the stuff we made before is our strategy?

If this is true, we are far from reducing our impact on the planet. Clearly, that is not sustainability. And it doesn’t take a genius to understand it. So, let’s call it by its name: this is marketing! This is greenwashing!

Sustainable fashion, like eco furniture, food, tourism or whatever, has become a profitable business. And more than an effective change of direction, it represented a change of marketing. Just call it green, and you’re going to sell it. Whatever object or service you are trying to launch on the market.

The solution the fashion industry ignores


Let’s be clear: sustainable fashion, rather than making new garments and new stuff in huge green quantities, is a matter of educating people towards conscious consumption. Indeed, the solution is producing far fewer garments. At the same time, we must reuse, resell, recycle and upcycle existing clothing.

But, instead of educating people, for the fashion industry, it is easier to make money by flooding the market with sustainable products. Which, in the end, aren’t sustainable at all.

And so, this is the paradox of sustainability: making four times more garments and naming them sustainable. Unfortunately for us and for the planet, it is not a joke!

Free download our sustainability checklist here!

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Visions And Glamour By Antonio Marras

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Reading Time: 3 minutes

Fashion as cultural contaminations


The evening event “Visions and Glamour of a mythical set on the cliffs of Capo Caccia” by Antonio Marras confirmed our sensation: cultural events connected to fashion are more fascinating than fashion shows. The things you learn, the cultural depth, are amazing. And there’s no circus.

On September 21, during Milano Fashion Week, we were invited to Cinema Mexico for the documentary screening: “The Summer of Joe, Liz and Richard.” The docufilm by Sergio Naitza debuted at the last Rome Film Festival and was awarded in London as best documentary at the Kingston International Film Festival. It investigates the reason for the flop of the movie “Boom!” – which director Joseph Losey filmed in the summer of 1968 in Capo Caccia, near Alghero, Sardinia, with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton.

Before the screening, there was an introduction by the filmmaker Sergio Naitza, Alessandra Sento (dir. of Società Umanitaria – Cineteca Sarda), the art critic Francesca Alfano Miglietti and Antonio Marras.

This cult movie inspired “Lights, camera, action!” – the Spring/ Summer 24 Marras fashion show featuring Marisa Berenson and sequences of the documentary, contaminating the presentation of the items from the collection.

Visions and Glamour by Antonio Marras

Antonio Marras: fashion & cinema


“I use fashion to tell stories and I learned it by going to the cinema, an inexhaustible source of stories, dreams, moods, characters, costumes, sets, life stories. Cinema for fashion is an indispensable life companion. And even more so for me. Not by chance, I named my debut collection from ’87 ‘Hush, hush sweet Charlotte’ after the ’64 film starring Bette Davis directed by Robert Aldrich. So, how not to give in to the provocation of a Hollywood film like “Boom!”
Thanks to Sergio Naitza’s masterful documentary I immersed myself in that hot summer, where the line between reality and fiction, between true and false, between reconstructed and existing, between acted and revealed, was only a faint breath of wind. As if by magic, Hollywood lands in the wildest and purest land, on the cliffs of Capocaccia, Alghero, Sardinia.“

As the director Naitza explained: “The documentary aims to be the reconstruction of a cold case in the history of cinema, one of the most sensational flops despite the presence of the major stars of the time and a huge budget.”

Visions and Glamour: icon of style


Also the critics rejected the film. But they later re-evaluated it as a true cult movie after the rehabilitation of great cinema voices of our time, such as the famous US director John Waters. The film is also an icon of style and a timeless reference for fashion and glamour, thanks to its costumes, atmospheres and landscapes. Astonishing details made the movie special: a young boy designed the clothes, and it turns out he was Karl Lagerfeld. And Bulgari made the jewels for Liz Taylor.

The “Visions and Glamour of a mythical set on the cliffs of Capo Caccia” event by Antonio Marras prompts that fashion is culture, revealing intriguing connections and contaminations between seemingly separate worlds. Indeed, it was a pleasure to learn from it.

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The Sofa Story

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Is circularity feasible in the era of overproduction?


The sofa story is a personal anecdote we share. As a matter of fact, overproduction is devastating our planet. Since a large part of communication is about repair and reuse, we try to understand if circularity is feasible in the era of overproduction.

A couple of months ago we ordered a new sofa. When it was ready to be delivered, we called the seller to inform them we wanted to restore the old one and bring it somewhere else. They said they would take the measurements and let us know the cost.

The sofa: understanding quality


When they came to deliver the new sofa, we noticed some differences. The new one was much lighter. The old one was heavy. While the new one had no structure, the old one had a stable, solid body. Furthermore, the old one had a soft hand 100% cotton cover. For new sofa coverings, you mainly find polyester because cotton would be too expensive, so they say. In fact, the old one was a great quality sofa, which lasted about 25 years. We are doubtful the new one will last so long.

However, having the chance to check the internal structure quality, we confirmed the boy to bring it to their workshop and let us know the repair/restoration cost.

Repairing vs buying a new one


Here comes the fun! When they tried to carry the old sofa downstairs to the ground floor, they realised it was too heavy. So they started disassembling it, but the boy in charge, all of a sudden, destroyed the sofa underneath his feet. “Yes, it was good quality but you better buy another new one. The repair cost would be too high.”

Obviously, he exclaimed that for two reasons:
First, he preferred to avoid the effort of carrying the heavy weight downstairs.
Second, he couldn’t understand, for real, the quality of what he had destroyed.

So, “buy a new one” is the easy solution in a consumerist society. But when sellers tell you there’s no difference in terms of quality from one item to the other, it’s not true.

It’s like you show us an archive Saint Laurent garment or a couture dress from your wardrobe, and we tell you to get rid of that and buy a new item. “You know, it’s cheaper than repairing the old one!”

That is a complete lack of understanding. Indeed, the sofa story represents the contemporary way of handling commerce and fostering a consumerist lifestyle. Also, whatever the category – fashion, furniture, technology, automobile – the trick doesn’t change. Industries do not stop their overproduction patterns, so repairing won’t work on a large scale, which we need in order to reduce our impact on the planet.

In the end, if those who sell products cannot distinguish quality, materials, and finishings, how can they even mention the option of repairing?

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The Real Slow Living

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Where can we experience it?


The concept of slow living has become quite popular lately. There’s an inspiring book on the subject: In praise of slow, by Carl Honoré. Though pushed aside from contemporary society, there was a time when it was part of Italian culture.

Indeed, our holiday in Basilicata (Southern Italy) reminded us of the values connected to slowness. Moving at a slower pace. Connected to nature and in sync with its timing. Savouring a quiet environment. Having a mindful approach to life, nature and things we need. We enjoyed it and found it beneficial for the mind and the soul.

Slow living in Basilicata


Do you really want to understand slow living? Then, go to Basilicata, and you will find out how it is integrated into their daily lives. People do not hurry. Running errands is not hectic. For instance, they wait for their turn at the baker. Even if there is a queue, nobody complains. No honking if someone stops the car in the middle of the road to ask for information. And if anyone honks, it is just to say hello! Because there, they salute everyone. Also, they sit ‘al fresco’ to enjoy some fresh air late afternoon or evening.

With production plants based in northern areas, people had to move to those places to find a job, leaving the south to abandonment. And it’s been easy in big towns to get sucked by what was supposed to be the right thing to do, becoming cogs of a relentless money-driven society that wants us to be productive day and night.

Slow: the South way


However, a comment made us reflect. During our holiday we met a woman coming from Northern Britain. We asked why she had chosen Marina di Pisticci for her holiday and if she had relatives there or what. And she said: “I was looking for a place that had no influence from the northern side. So we came here, to find the real Italy. It’s a quiet place and we fell in love with it.”

So, the more you go south, the more you can experience slow living. No influence from the north is the case for Basilicata. Indeed, the region tends to be disconnected from the rest of Italy. Viability from town to town is not well developed. A sense of isolation prevails, which makes it fascinating.

Slow living & big towns


Indeed, this woman truly offered a good insight. Northern areas are not the place for a slow lifestyle. Whatever your vision is, Milano, Paris, or London aren’t the place for slowness. So, for people like us living in big towns, it’s about reconsidering our values, priorities and lifestyle.

To make changes in your life, start getting rid of the sense of urgency typical of big towns. Remind yourself there is nothing to chase after. Take deep breaths, appreciate slowness and savour every moment.

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Pasolini On Modern Lifestyle

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Inspiration #formodernhumans


In an open letter to the President of the Italian Republic on “Il Corriere della Sera” – Thursday 4, September 1975 – Pier Paolo Pasolini had written a critique on modern lifestyle. Specifically, it’s about Italian politics, but the picture he traced of mass society is clear.

It touches on the topic of summer holidays to show the reality of Italy around the 70s. This cross-section highlights the change Italy faced, making you feel the craziness of what was happening. So, Pasolini explains a vision of the world that fascinated us. Which we have welcomed, accepted, and, therefore, contributed to prosper.

Although it is about Italy, we can find commonalities in many other countries. Indeed, it is worth reading to understand modern lifestyle and how to change it for the better.

Pasolini’s words on modern lifestyle


Here is an excerpt:

“I saw them, I saw them in crowds on August 15th. They were images of the most insolent frenzy, and they put such a commitment to having fun at all costs that they seemed in a state of ‘raptus’: it was difficult not to consider them contemptible or, in any case, consciously unconscious.
They have been deceived, mocked. A sudden and violent reversal (as regards Italy) of the method of production destroyed all their ‘particular’ and ‘real’ previous works, changing their form and their behaviour: and the new existential, purely pragmatic, values of the ‘welfare’ have taken away all dignity from them. But that was not enough: after being made monstrous (puppets guided by a ‘new’ hand, and therefore almost gone wild), well-being, the cause of their monstrosity, ceases to exist, while the puppet dance continues.”
(source)

So, Pasolini offered a bitter insight into the modern lifestyle and mass society. Call it welfare or progress. An illusion of richness and well-being, which is fake. In fact, the cost of this illusory prosperity and what it leaves behind is out of control. How many people cannot afford to satisfy basic needs? And what about the environmental devastation? Is it real progress?

Yet, we let it happen. This is our modern lifestyle. And to use Pasolini’s words, we are consciously unconscious. Now, isn’t it time to become fully conscious?

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