Slow Fashion

Melissa Eidson

School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Humanities and Media Studies

Slow Fashion is a feature length documentary in three parts: Part 1 follows women weavers from a remote village in southern Mexico and the appropriation of their ancient textile designs by Western fashion designers. Part 2 follows women weavers and an American designer in Laos and the question of appropriation vs. appreciation. Part 3 follows one fashion designer’s journey collaborating with block print artisans in villages near Jaipur, India. Issues of cultural appropriation, the commodifying of culture, and relationships between weavers/block printers and designers are examined, as well as solutions provided by new business practices.