Spinnova returns to New York Fashion Week – Featured in Infinity Vessel production at Flying Solo show
The Infinity Vessel production is a multidisciplinary collaborative project by Finnish glass artists Sini Majuri and Marja Hepo-aho, showcased at the Flying Solo show during New York Fashion Week. The collection features eight wearable glass sculptures blending old handicraft traditions with modern technology and innovations, including the SPINNOVA® fibre and 3D printable wood.
Photographer: Riccardo Piazza
The sustainable textile material company Spinnova returned to New York Fashion Week, held in February. The SPINNOVA® fibre was featured in the Infinity Vessel production, a multidisciplinary collaborative project presented by Finnish glass artists Sini Majuri and Marja Hepo-aho, showcased at the cutting-edge Flying Solo show. Infinity Vessel exhibits an eight-piece collection of wearable glass sculptures reflecting modern female archetypes, created by combining new technologies with ancient craftsmanship.
Two of the pieces, The Mother and The Matriarch, were inspired by the maternal experience and what the future woman looks like. The Mother and The Matriarch wear a dress and a bag crafted from fabrics made with SPINNOVA® fibre. Both the materials and production process make use of modern technologies: the dress fabric features a laser-engraved pattern, created by combining AI with traditional handicraft.
"Our Infinity Vessel project merges tradition and innovation, ancient craftsmanship techniques, and innovations into wearable glass sculptures. We aim to take the rare glass tradition, listed as UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage, into entirely new territories, such as the catwalks of New York Fashion Week. It has been a great joy to involve Spinnova, representing Finnish innovation and sustainability, which are areas of the future", Majuri and Hepo-aho say.
Cross-collaboration, the intersection of art and design, and material sustainability are all central themes to the Infinity Vessel project. Sourcing was extremely important to the designers, who made use of materials such as glass, gold, and UPM's EcoAce wood composite, in addition to Spinnova's materials in the collection.
"The Infinity Vessel is a celebration of traditional craftsmanship, innovative material and technology use, as well as strong artistic vision, representing future fashion at its best. We’re thrilled that Spinnova could be a part of the collection and help amplify the designers’ message about the need for more cross-collaboration, experimentation and accountability in fashion", says Spinnova’s Chief Sales officer Allan Andersen.
The SPINNOVA® pieces in the collection use fabric made from a blend of SPINNOVA® fibre and cotton. The SPINNOVA® fibre for the pieces is made from wood and it is produced without using harmful chemicals in the fibre spinning process. When SPINNOVA® fibre is produced from certified eucalyptus pulp, it has various environmental benefits such as 99% less water consumption and 74% fewer CO2 emissions compared to conventional cotton*.
Spinnova has previously partnered with leading clothing and apparel brands including adidas and Bestseller. Spinnova made its New York Fashion Week debut in fall 2021, when London-based designer duo KA WA KEY used SPINNOVA® materials in its gender-fluid capsule collection.
*CO2e emission comparison is based on a projected product carbon footprint conducted by a third-party expert following the ISO 14067:2018 standard. Ecoinvent database has been used as the source for global average CO2e emissions of conventional cotton. Water consumption comparison is based on a projected, screening Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) conducted by a third-party expert. Both comparisons include raw material supply, transportation of raw materials, and manufacturing of the product (cradle-to-gate).
