Trash fashion’s annual fashion show took place on Saturday (March 1st) at the magnificent Studio Theatre at the Waterfront Hall.
A capacity crowd witnessed groups from all over Belfast participating, from after school projects, interface areas, seniors groups and for the first time groups travelling up from Omagh.
From the Argyle ladies “fashion through the ages” theme, the traditional inspiration of the Omagh Ethnic Minority Support Group, the imaginative work from Woodvale Community Centre and the Ardoyne Youth Centre, the “rock couture” of Eyespeak’s Grainne Cummins and on top of the fashion extravaganza, Emma Horan’s excellent vocal performance meant that the day not only showcased the volume of work and the imaginative efforts from the participating groups, Morton Afterschools Project and Suffolk Community Centre After schools programme, the Ledley Hall and Doyle cross community project with their Spaced theme, the show was highly entertaining as well.
The fashion show was the culmination of this year’s Trash fashion project, Trash Fashion is an eco-aware clothing design project which uses recycled clothes and materials as the basis for re-branding and re-making items in whatever creative style the participants wish.
This innovative project encourages participants to slash, shred, stencil, embroider, embellish, print and dye, deconstruct and metamorphose second hand clothing, to create a unique look. Workshops educate participants about recycling, sourcing eco-friendly materials, the historical connection to textile production in Belfast, and provide them with the freedom of creative expression. Workshops also give them the opportunity to showcase their original outfits and celebrate their achievements in a professionally staged fashion show.
Of course the show, and the project, could not have taken place without generous funding from The Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the Belfast City Council, and this funding allows the Community Arts Partnership to build on the organisation’s vision and mission, taking the lead in the promotion, development and delivery of community arts practice in Northern Ireland, advocating for community arts and offering the widest possible range of assistance and opportunity to get creative and engage in community-based arts activity.
Heather Douglas the project coordinator said,
“It was a wonderful project to be involved with and to see people from so many areas in Belfast, from different walks of life, from interface areas, people with different abilities, ages, cultures, some from an ethnic minority background, showed once again that the artistic process has the capacity to allow people to come together sharing their passions and their abilities to create something new and exciting.”
