We’re buying too much clothing. 400% more than 20 years ago to be exact. Why is that a problem? Well, the production of that clothing is a product of fast fashion: high speed clothing production from the catwalk to the store in a matter of weeks — consumers don’t realize the consequence, and big brands continue to put profit before people and the planet. This industry of mass-production is being made through cheap labor and cheaper materials feeding into the lack of transparency.
Tag! You’re It encourages fashion consumers to be critical shoppers, asking who makes our clothes, and how the material and processes affect our planet. While the global fashion industry continues to exploit garment worker’s rights, and damage our environment. It’s up to us to practice conscious consumer behavior and encourage ethical, sustainable, and minimalist solutions. The interactive campaign takes to the streets with guerrilla art that encourages consumers to turn the truth inside out. Literally. Visit tagyoureitcampaign.org to learn more or get involved.
Tag! You’re It encourages fashion consumers to be critical shoppers, asking who makes our clothes, and how the material and processes affect our planet. While the global fashion industry continues to exploit garment worker’s rights, and damage our environment. It’s up to us to practice conscious consumer behavior and encourage ethical, sustainable, and minimalist solutions. The interactive campaign takes to the streets with guerrilla art that encourages consumers to turn the truth inside out. Literally. Visit tagyoureitcampaign.org to learn more or get involved.
In order to spread awareness and lure my audience to the campaign website I needed to reach them in the act of buying clothes. I started to collect old, donated clothes from friends with the intentions of screen-printing "This Is Not For Sale" and the tagline "Turn The Truth Inside Out" on them directly. The shirt was accompanied by a tag (made of 100% recycled paper) that encourages my audience to explore the website and participate in the social media initiative. I designed three tags each with a different statistic relating to overconsumption, workers rights, and the environmental damages hiding behind the global fashion industry. It instructs them to take a photo of the shirt they found, post it to Instagram, tag the store where they found it, tag a friend, and use the hash-tags #tagyoureit #turnthetruthinsideout. The idea is to expose the idea of transparency to the stores where the shirts were left, and spread awareness by encouraging the viewer to take responsibility.
Documentation of upcycled, screen-printed shirts and transparent posters that were dispersed through local fashion retailers in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. This guerrilla art protest took place on Earth Day and the anniversary of the Rana Plaza collapse in Bangladesh.
This video contains 41 people picked at random around the world stating where one item of clothing they're wearing was made. The background features broadcasts of the global garment industry.
During the Senior Design Exhibition at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth the Tag! You're It campaign was on display in hopes of involving my audience. Passer-by's were encouraged to take a tag and pin it on a shirt in any fashion retailer. The transparent posters also instructed people to take a mirror selfie, post it to Instagram, and tag a friend.
