“Fashioning the Future” is an experiential journey through contemporary Argentine fashion that merges science, technology, and creativity. As part of the 2018 Inter-American Development Bank and the Inter-American Investment Corporation Board of Governors Annual Meeting, this forward-looking exhibition celebrates the richness of Argentina’s creative and scientific contributions as well as the country’s role in innovative thinking in the region. As the world becomes ever more inter-connected and digital, the interwoven relationship between science and creativity is strengthening and is becoming more vital as drivers of innovation and growth.

The world is now entering the Fourth Industrial Revolution, described as a range of new technologies and products that are a synthesis of the physical, digital, and biological spheres. Through the lens of fashion, we can see a radical transformation with the lines blurring between those areas. The garments presented in this exhibition reveal a more intuitive and more interconnected future, and open our minds to alternative perspectives and possibilities.

“Fashioning the Future” showcases the work of different institutions and collectives. Our partner, the Cultural Center for Science (C3) of Argentina’s Ministry of Science, Technology, and Productive Innovation, created a unique project that merges science, technology, and creativity. By grouping fashion designers and scientists together in the creative process, these garments are infused with notions of various science fields, from biology to astrophysics. On the other hand, Argentine design group 12na incorporates into their creations concepts like the circular economy – a reaction to our current “make, use, dispose” culture.  In their works, circular fashion is a response to our “fast fashion” lifestyle as well as its effect in climate change. 12na responds to the needs of the future through “upcycling” and sustainability. Their project, Nakama, produces proactive garments supporting water conservation and waste reduction, a major environmental hurdle in the industry.  As activists, they propose new solutions such as “slow fashion” and open source fashion designs.

We are witnessing an immense economic and social change – both globally and in fashion. The fashion industry employs 5.7 million worldwide and may very well be at the forefront of this new era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Transforming the industry in this way may lead to an estimated $500 billion in economic opportunity worldwide. By viewing these potential combinations of the industrial, digital, and biological worlds through contemporary Argentine fashion, we can imagine how creativity and science can work in unison to positively transform our lives in the future.

In addition to the fashion, this immersive exhibition features both a site-specific installation as well as a digital/physical app experience. The expansive art installation alludes to our potential future landscape, transitioning from the macroscopic to the microscopic. It also distorts our perceptions of place – both physically and in time. The app experience confuses the boundaries between physical and digital experience. This technology will supplement - and react to - the fashion on display both through on-screen content as well as sound art. Through this multisensorial experience, visitors’ movements become as much a part of the exhibit as the objects and installations on display – thereby questioning the boundaries between the physical and digital worlds we exist in.

Partner: Cultural Center for Science (C3) of Argentina’s Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation

Designers: Catalina Arevalo, Emiliano Blanco, Mariano Breccia, Carla Cando, Martín Churba, Cecilia Gadea, Cristian Girardi, Mechi Martínez, Fernando Martumanian, Camila Milessi, María Monsalvo, Jessica Pullo, and Nadine Zlotogora.

Scientists: Andrea Buccino, Noelia Carmona, Luis Cappozzo, Omar Coso, Silvana Sede, and Diego Fernández Slezak

Artists: Joaquín Fargas and Karina Maddonni

Site-specific Art Installation: Jessica Angel

Sound Artist: Louis Weeks