For the first Global Fashioning Assembly (GFA22), an international 3-day live-on-zoom event on 21-23 October 2022 that followed the sun around the world for which the hosting was passed from community to community with a multi-stakeholder programme, the RCDF was very excited to present The Linen Project (TLP) on Saturday 22 October 2022.
Initiated in 2018, The Linen Project investigates and works towards reactivating the economic viability of small-scale local flax cultivation and linen production in the Netherlands. It seeks to reinstate the economy as a social, ecological and cultural domain and to strengthen socio-economic patterns and behaviours rooted in a commoning approach.
The inherent connections between (cultural) heritage, education, agriculture, design, crafts, and the economy are activated as well as the exchange of diverse values, knowledge, skills and competencies. The Linen Project’s current activities include the cultivation and production of organic flax and linen in the Gelderland region, the Shared Stewardship initiative, the development of a consortium for a small-scale flax spinning facility, and the facilitation of open-source knowledge exchange to create a community-supported basis for a local linen economy.
The programme included inspiring presentations and testimonies by Joan den Exter (Linen Project Coordinator), Karin Wijnen (independent researcher), Hans Hutting (steward and designer), Carolien Evers (steward and knitwork designer) and Henrike Gootjes (steward and designer). It was moderated by Sandra Niessen (textile anthropologist).
All the recordings of the three days are now available on the GFA Youtube channel, as well as the GFA22 aftermovie.
Research Collective for Decoloniality & Fashion 