The room known as the costume shop is usually reserved for Mason Gross classes, where students design and construct many of the garments worn in Rutgers Theater Company productions. But on Tuesday afternoons, the space is transformed for a class open to all university students that seeks to make a difference by delving into the modern textile industry.
For two years now, Costume Director Denise Wagner has taught students majoring in everything from dance to marine biology sustainable tips and tricks in “Upcycling: An Artistic Response to the Environmental Effects of Fast Fashion.”
“There’s a big problem with fast fashion,” Wagner says, referring to the rapid speed at which many clothing brands produce and advertise their merchandise. “I wanted to delve deeper into that and start putting solutions out there, making change.”
With 92 million tons of textile waste being produced every year, Wagner says the goal of the class is for students to gain a broader understanding of where their clothes come from, what they’re made of, and who does the work of creating them.
Excerpted from an article by Emily Soper. Read more about “Upcycling: An Artistic Response to the Environmental Effects of Fast Fashion” on Rutgers Today.