parsons school of design and aalto university present textile exhibit during new york textile month

New York, November 1, 2022 - Parsons School of Design today announced DIALOGUES, a transatlantic showcase of creative design work, material solutions and design pedagogy offering a platform for cross-sectoral dialogue on textile futures across borders. The exhibition and seminar take place in New York City from November 2nd to 6th as part of the New York Textile Month 2022.

The exhibition presents an interplay between the contemporary textile and fashion design practices by master’s students of Fashion and Textile Design at Aalto University, School of Arts, Design and Architecture in Finland and the MFA Textiles program at Parsons in the United States. The seminar connects creatives, educators, innovators, and leaders from Finland and the US to reimagine the landscape of tomorrow’s textiles and fashion, driving a shared dialogue spanning over continents and into the future.

“The MFA Textiles program in the School of Fashion at Parsons is a multicultural and cross-disciplinary community of makers based in New York, devoted to promoting authenticity, originality, innovation, hybridity and unique creativity in the field of textiles," explains Preeti Gopinath, Director, MFA Textiles and Associate Professor at Parsons. "We are excited to connect and be in dialogue with our fellow textile makers from Aalto University, Finland, to share our work, exchange ideas across borders and explore the boundaries of creativity through the medium of textiles. The textiles in this show are handcrafted by recent MFA Textiles graduates who integrate 21st century technology into their textiles to create innovations that range from sustainable bioluminescent biomaterials to transformed textile waste and natural dye narratives, couture quality yarn, fabric and lace made from garbage bags, lighting and interactive snacks as nostalgic Pop Art, hybridized basketry and embellishment, and addressing issues of immigration, displacement, environment, gender, activism, social justice, wellbeing, sustainability and beauty.”

As the textile and fashion industries are undergoing significant turmoil, the urgent need for solutions to critical challenges, from overproduction, irresponsible waste, and supply chain management to the exhaustive use of natural resources, grows greater. The new generation of textile and fashion designers is crucial to unlocking these challenges, together with the introduction of groundbreaking novel processes and material innovations that offer smart, circular alternatives for the materials in use today.

The projects from Aalto University include a research-driven project on compression textiles used in healthcare, a study on natural dyes that originate from food waste, and the dialogue between light-emitting technology and textiles, combining material science and traditional weaving.

“Aalto University with its six schools forms a multidisciplinary environment, which sets the scene for the student’s studies," says Maarit Salolainen, Head of the Master's in Fashion, Clothing, and Textile Design at Aalto University. "The focus of the curation is on practice-led research and creative future solutions. Textile thinking and studio pedagogy, highlighted by the newly published book "Interwoven - Exploring Materials and Structures", stand at the forefront of this exhibition, as they are the base for textile design studies at Aalto. We are delighted to share our textile stories with the MFA Textiles program at Parsons in this New York Textile Month event. New innovations for textile futures come from shared passion, creative dialogues and interaction."

DIALOGUES is presented by Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture, Parsons School of Design, The Consulate General of Finland in New York, The Finnish Cultural Institute in New York, Business Finland, and Juni Communication, in collaboration with New York Textile Month.

DIALOGUES – Creating New Textile Futures
Exhibition:
November 2-6, 11:00-6:00 PM
Opening reception, November 2, 6:00-9:00 PM
80 W. Broadway, New York, NY 10007

Seminar:
November 2, 3:00-5:00 PM
Starr Foundation
UL 102, University Center, Parsons School of Design
63 Fifth Avenue, New York, New York 10011