Second Skin is a multidisciplinary participation project around fashion in which the shaping and expression of the identity and personal stories of young people from Tilburg Noord are central.
Fashion (in the broadest sense of the word) is used as a means of creating encounters and connections that can contribute to empowerment and personal development. In particular, there is a focus on exploration and expression of identity, well-being, made-to-measure tailoring, material processing, sustainability and various skills linked to fashion design.
We all wear clothes and thus have to do with fashion in one way or the other. Fashion is like a second skin; it protects and conveys who you are. Consciously or unconsciously, it also determines how people see each other and which first impression is obtained from this. What someone wears and how someone expresses themselves is closely related to the factors body, identity, well-being and environment. With Second Skin, the individual stories of young people about these factors are portrayed through interviews, conversations, photography, social media and other audio-visual forms, converted into textiles, clothing or other expressions of identity and presented in collaboration with various disciplines.
Second Skin connects fashion with residents of the city, educational institutions, social organizations, art and cultural institutions and the general public. Second Skin shows a diversity of identities, portraits and personal stories of young people from Tilburg North by means of fashion. Outcomes are translated into a collection of identities that together form a narrative of residents who all make the city in their own way and give the city character. The goal is to create a platform for exploring and expressing identities and contributing to the development and showcase of talent. In addition, the project functions as a conversation piece between various parties and residents in Tilburg Noord.
The project will be carried out in phases in collaboration with residents, especially young people, from Tilburg North and (cultural) partners in the period 2020 - 2023. The results of the creative process will be presented in the period via online channels and during various public activities. Second Skin is developed and coordinated by FASHIONCLASH and in collaboration with various partners and organizations in Tilburg such as ROC Tilburg, R-Newt, Corpo Máquina, Omroep Tilburg and other partners within ForwArt.
ForwArt is a three-year project (July 2020 to June 2023) that is supported by, among others, a European UIA subsidy and the commitment of many stakeholders in Tilburg Noord is realized. Eleven cultural and social partners work with the young people in North on sustainable change and improvement. Art, culture, talent development and building new cultural facilities are central. ForwArt is in line with the major area developments in Tilburg (PACT).
Expressing and shaping identities through fashion
We all deal with fashion on a daily basis. Fashion is at the top of Maslow's pyramid as one of the basic physiological needs for staying alive. In addition to the basic necessities of nutrition, oxygen and heat, the physiological needs also include things like shelter and clothing. By wearing clothing, we also consciously or unconsciously express our identity. Fashion is inextricably linked to the body and man, and thus the discipline par excellence to develop a narrative that establishes the relationship between fashion and various audiences.
So, fashion is about people. By examining fashion, we can learn to understand the psychology of human behaviour. Fashion is the extension of identity and tells something about a view of people and society of both the designer and the wearer. Fashion is the most intimate art form, after all, dressing literally happens 'on' the body. Fashion connects art with the human body. The body is therefore not only a given as an external appearance, but something that we can shape or dress, with which we can propagate our identity. Fashion tells you how you want to relate to the other and how you communicate with each other.
Current challenges of the fashion industry affect everyone and give a common goal: to redefine the values and standards of the fashion sector and to redesign this sector with a view to a sustainable, equitable and inclusive future. Our society approaches fashion as a purely visual phenomenon and doesn’t always see the nature of the interaction with the body (of the wearer), despite the fact that fashion is the most intimate form of art, as it is literally worn “on the body”. As a second skin, clothing also enables us to express ourselves and helps us make sense of the world. How can we use fashion to truly connect with our body instead of being just a simple aesthetic of symbolic phenomenon? How can we (re)connect with ou
“Moving forward with the power of art: from a place to hide to a place of pride.”
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