CGD

The designer's long-time efforts are based on promoting a sustainable approach in the fashion industry. Even the title and logo of her brand, with her initials L&V, paraphrase a famous fashion conglomerate. Vacková's project Fast or Last does not in fact represent a collection of clothing; it represents the philosophy she works with, and this time it is in the form of a happening. In protest against trends, sweatshops and fast fashion, Lenka had herself tattooed with her own blood. The tattoo looks like a T-shirt composed of logos of supranational companies which embody the culture of consumerism. Blood tattoos, however, vanish over time, just as the ever topical trends do. "We tend to spend a lot of money on things of zero value and minimum lifespan in mere pursuit of the most up-to-date trends. Someone else, however, pays a lot by making these things. And it is sometimes with their own blood," the author explains. For the StainSoulSteel project – the fashion collection by Liběna Rochová – the designer created 26 pairs of shoes and 26 items of headwear, both based on her bachelor thesis. She and Liběna continuously consult each other about their respective ideas regarding the results and each of them always adds something innate. The material used here is silicon, which Vacková hued with colored pigments. In the case of shoes, silicon is cast directly onto nylon stockings and is joined with the heel and a light filling for the sake of preserving the desired shape. The final form looks as if it is wet and flowing down.

Radka Machalická