The fashion industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world. Only 20 percent of the 62 million tons of clothing that is used worldwide each year is reused or recycled.

The exhibition project  "Sustainable fashion: Future of textiles" focuses on how manufacturers and consumers can minimize the undesirable environmental impacts of the fashion industry by remanufacturing, reuse and recycling of garments and their components.

The initiative also reflects reflections on Swedish and Azerbaijani fashion, environmental art and textile production, traditional and environmentally friendly women's crafts.

The project  will be presented at the Khirdalan Cultural House on March 11.

The project is co-organized by the Absheron Executive Power region and Khirdalan municipality in partnership with the Swedish Embassy in Azerbaijan and Sumgayit Regional Cultural Department.

The exhibition has been prepared by the Swedish Institute in cooperation with fashion researchers and experts.

It focuses on key issues in the fashion industry and showcases Swedish solutions and initiatives for a more sustainable future. The curator of the exhibition project is Konul Rafiyeva.

Gurama, a kind of handicraft, where a single piece is sewn from pieces of fabric according to the principle of a mosaic, will be also showcased as part of the exhibition.

It should be noted that samples of gurama for the exhibition were made from unused textile fabrics collected by the Khirdalan residents, which is a product of the community's collaboration.

It reflects a personal artistic vision of the future of sustainable textiles in Azerbaijan and is an example of a completely different approach, combining traditional craftsmanship and collective environmental experience.

The exhibition will also feature works by invited artists Ludmila Khristeseva (Sweden) and Gunel Ravilova (Azerbaijan). Through a multimedia dialogue, the artists offer two different perspectives on fashion, textiles and ecology and try to define the role of textiles in shaping women's identity.

The exhibition "Sustainable Fashion: Future of Textiles" will run until  April 11, 2022. Entrance is free.