Fashion and sustainability

Dasha Nicoue, Aboubakar Fofana, Aissa Dione and Bill Ruterana visited the Arnhem Mode Biennale and the symposium A Fashion Odyssey, where speakers discussed the latest advances in organic textiles, materials reuse, and technological innovation. Also on the itinerary were the Helmond headquarters of the fabric manufacturer Vlisco, the Audax Textielmuseum Tilburg, the atelier of the fashion designer Marga Weimans and the Muesum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, and the Forbo Flooring offices in Krommenie.

Guests
Dasha Nicoue is a fashion designer and the founder of Bio'top, an annual event promoting eco-friendly fashion in Dakar, Senegal.
Aboubakar Fofana uses old African weaving and dyeing techniques, organic fibres and natural colours. He is devoted to preserving and revitalising all-but-forgotten traditional Malian dyeing techniques. He lives and works in Bamako, Mali.
Aissa Dione, a textile designer and artist, applies the technical knowledge gained in her study of the fine arts to traditional Manjack weaving. She lives and works in Dakar, Senegal, where she has a factory and collaborates with local craftspeople. Her fabrics are used by companies including Hermès and Fendi Casa and designers including Jacques Grange, Christian Liaigre and Peter Marino.
Bill Ruterana, from the Democratic Republic of Congo, lives and works in Paris and Kigali, Rwanda. The self-taught designer, artist and stylist says he entered the fashion world through the fine arts, replacing his brushes with scissors.