Filipino fashion design student Erika Ng recognizes the fashion industry’s huge contribution to the planet’s waste and pollution problem. And she wants to do something about it.
For her showcase, dubbed Putik, as the lone Filipino representative in this year’s Global Design Graduate Show, Ng explores various handmade fabric manipulations such as beading and braiding using her very own BioPlastik made of natural raw materials such as water, glycerol, and gelatin.
“My end goal is to create a new plastic material for a sustainable future, thus, BioPlastik,” shares the Fashion Design and Merchandising student of De La Salle-College Saint Benilde.
“Unlike mass-produced plastics,” she adds, “bioplastics help reduce the use of fossil fuels, which promotes sustainability as well as feedstock diversification.”
Bioplastics are a renewable plastic material made from vegetable fats and oils, straw, woodchips, sawdust, recycled food waste, agricultural by-products, or other biological material.
“BioPlastik aims to meet the challenges of the local fashion industry by developing innovative solutions for materials, which meets commercial success while still promoting social, ecological, and cultural development,” says Ng.
The young fashion designer aims to use the platform to tackle the environmental problems behind the glamorous fashion industry.
“If we merely appreciate the surface without learning and understanding what goes on behind the scenes, I don’t think we can fully be grateful for the beauty of things in life.”
She continues, “The duality in nature is what inspired me to promote awareness not just on this industry but also on how we can work towards resolving its issues together.”
Ng also highlights the beauty of the Philippine landscapes and the agricultural problems that goes with it in her sustainable collection.
With Filipino identity, ingenuity and craftsmanship in mind, she incorporated traditional hand embroidery techniques to represent the aerial view of Philippine agriculture and rice paddies with innovative yarn embroidery and sewing practices.
“Agriculture is one of the essential industries in the Philippines. We have remarkable destinations and mind-blowing landscapes, and I wanted my collection to evoke the same amazement that people get when they see the beauty of our country.”
Ng likewise hopes that her graduation showcase will help people better recognize and appreciate the hardworking farmers as heroes.
The Global Design Graduate Show 2020 is an international competition that recognizes the journey of graduating art and design students from around the world.
Out of 4,482 submissions from different art disciplines, Putik is among the shortlisted entries in the Fashion, Accessories, and Textiles Category. This is in collaboration with luxury brand Gucci.
Vote for Ng’s collection at www.artsthread.com/events/gdgs2020/fashion-textile-accessories/#/project/putik. Voting is open until September 14.