HUMAN TOUCH - Visualising the Craft of Garment Makers
By Ellie Dumigan | 29 January 2024
Human Touch Clothing, an exhibition and upcoming online store by Paid Vacation brings the labour of garment makers into focus. Founded by Juliet Seger, a tailor, clothing engineer, sustainability designer, and artist, in collaboration with Christina Albrecht, a fashion designer, pattern maker, stylist, and art director, Human Touch aims to visually represent the essential human touch in garment manufacturing. The project currently operates as a live art performance with the future goal of establishing itself as a standalone fashion brand committed to sustainability practices and fair wages.
A big component of our approach is to use fashion as something positive and inviting - presenting an interesting design through which to invite people to engage with the difficult dynamics of clothing production. We chose to employ an alternative, more uplifting approach.
The essence of Human Touch lies in illustrating the human labour involved in creating every piece of clothing worldwide that requires sewing. The unique aspect of this project is the technique used during the manufacturing process, where tailors, garment workers, and machinists have paint-covered fingers. This visually demonstrates the invisible fingerprints that cover every garment we wear. All pieces are made-to-order in Berlin, with the patterns evolving throughout the sewing process. The paint used is a textile paint that withstands regular wear and care while also making a commentary on the unsustainability of fast fashion.
If this blog has inspired you to be more sustainable in your clothing practices come along to the edge and utilise the sewing machines (although no paint please!) after completing a sewing induction! Or come along to threads to get some sewing advice and hang out with other like-minded makers.
For further resources on sustainable living, explore the offerings at the State Library of Queensland here.
To learn more about Human Touch, visit their website and follow them on Instagram.
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