Above image: Backstage, Craig Green SS20

Based in Arnhem, Netherlands, State of Fashion is an international platform connecting pioneers within the industry to help shape it for the better. As it prepares for its annual biennial next year, the platform are on the look out for fresh thinkers, specifically those, “With an outspoken view on the challenges the world faces, the necessity for fundamental change, and the role that fashion plays in this transition.”

If that sounds like you, or even you and your friends, then be sure to get in touch with your application – group applications will also be accepted. You don’t need prior curatorial experience or training either, multidisciplinary approaches to tackling fashion’s biggest problems are very much at the core of State of Fashion, and the invite is open to creative practitioners across all forms. This includes (but is by means limited to) designers, artists, researchers, writers, makers and performers. To put yourself up for contention, your submitted proposal should not exceed three A4 PDF pages and must cover the following topics:

• A curatorial vision for the State of Fashion biennial 2022
• A concept, illustrated with at least 4 examples of possible participants/projects
• A description of potential educational and public activities that will enhance and enrich the biennial
• A description of your proposed working method. In case of a duo/team: a description and organisational structure of the proposing team.

For those unfamiliar with State of Fashion and their biennial’s, we strongly recommend checking out their inaugural 2018 edition, Searching for the New Luxury, curated by José Teunissen, Professor in Fashion Theory and Dean of School of Design and Technology London College of Fashion (UAL). It’s impossible to summarise the sheer range of projects included (there were more than 50), but from the latest innovations in sustainable materials to forward-thinking solutions from major fashion brands, it served as a festival of ideas for future-proofing the industry.

This year in particular, the challenges facing the fashion industry have been exposed like never before. From the increasing proliferation of online shopping to the drop in consumer demand due to Covid-enforced lockdown and the murder of George Floyd, State of Fashion helps lead a critical and rigorous view of how fashion can better accommodate a world undergoing rapid change.

The deadline for application has been extended until 1st Feb. Find all application details and more information on the 2022 biennial here.