Maria Testino who is a model, designer and also an environmental activist has tried to make us think and answer the question of how can we consume while still caring about the environmental impact? After graduating from fashion marketing major at Parsons School of Art and Design, New York, she tried to create a brand that combines her love of art and fashion. The result is Point of View, which has a collection of capsules, each of which is uniquely designed by different artists.
About two years ago she started campaigns such as #OneDressToImpress, #CarryOnSummer, and #YellowLikeALemon to protest the exploitation of nature, but also offered creative but simple solutions about how to change our relationship with the fashion world. With her current project, #WeSeaThrough, she makes us aware of an invisible threat to the world’s oceans, microplastic.
According to Testino, fashion is a way of artistic and social expression. The creative fashion industry can disrupt, inspire and influence depending on how to apply it. In terms of production, fashion especially “mass, fast and cheap” produces an alarming amount of waste. When we begin to explore this, we will realize that small changes in consumer choices can be far-reaching in their impact on the environment. But make no mistake, we don’t need to get rid of trends, good materials or luxury products, we only need to change the way they are produced. In other words, rethink consumerism and production practices in the fashion industry and make the industry circular. It’s a long journey, but there is no planet B so we have to start now said Testino.
Two Unique Projects from Maria Testino
#YellowLikeALemon and #OneDressToImpress are two of the initiatives regarding consumerism that started as personal challenges.
#OneDressToImpress is the result of Testino’s conversation with her friend Danilo, she complained about the need to change clothes during Fashion Week and Danilo challenged her to wear the red suit she was wearing that night for a week. Testino then decided to do it for two consecutive months. This made her realize that we do not need a lot of clothes, we just need to be quite creative. She wants to show people that it’s okay to repeat wearing clothes, and in the end, no one cares.
#YellowLikeALemon also started as a challenge to show that sustainable fashion is not “boring, plain, or simple” and shows that it can be fun, colorful and luxurious. This challenge began during Paris Fashion Week, so Testino not only made a fashion statement but was also about sustainable. Testino shows the industry how she can find all the yellow clothes that are sustainable for a whole week and can adapt to every clothing code. If we all make a little effort, we can all be part of this extraordinary industry and make more sustainable choices.
Maria Testino and her new #WeSeaThrough Project
#WeSeaThrough is a non-commercial awareness campaign that investigates the hidden causes and effects of microplastics in the ocean, but most importantly, is the search for solutions. In every synthetic clothing, plastic is released every time someone uses, and this microfiber ends up in our ocean. This is very dangerous considering that 60% of all clothing in the world is made with synthetic fibers. This microfiber is very dangerous because it cannot be collected, coupled with the administration and absorption of a number of unhealthy chemicals.
Testino wants to convey to consumers to be conscious consumers, use items that you really like and durable. Don’t do it for pictures, do for the planet. During #YellowLikeALemon she had created 4S about sustainable fashion.
- Simplify
- Share (or Rent)
- Secondary Market
- Sourced sustainably
These four pillars can make your wardrobe more sustainable, but at the same time you have the possibility to wear whatever you want and change as much as you want, said Maria Testino.
