Pioneers of the cyber fashion space Trashy Muse put together the first digitally imagined fashion show for SS20. The show featured hyper-sexual feminine avatars and some pleasingly contradictory nostalgic 00s designs. Following leaps and bounds in digital wearables, like the 9,500 dollar digital dress sold by The Fabricant, this presentation at EP7 gallery in Paris was the logical progression. Whilst warped online representations of the feminine form push body ideals and online sexuality into new problematic places, Trashy muse retains a light-hearted aproach. Cofounders Carina Bucspun and Ann-Britt Dittmar speak to Coeval.

Based in Berlin, but with work in Paris and online, you’ve written you’d like to take it international. Is there a particular market or subculture in fashion you’d like to target?
Well, we come from a marketing background mainly - so of course we know that, from a marketing perspective, we need to target a certain group and we know our market, but actually our goal is to connect more than anything else. We want to simultaeously entertain and educate people! We want to show the possibilities of new technologies in a visually appealing way and remove the fear of progress. We want to deconstruct borders and trash the conventions between life and technology; fashion is a beautiful and creative way to explore this theme and integrate tech playfully into our daytoday life.

What does AR mean to you?
A tool to bridge the gap between online and offline as well as augment our existing reality.

How do you see AR changing the fashion industry?
AR is changing the fashion industry on all sides of the market: from consumer, production to retail. We see this in Asia like nowhere else- but Westerners are finally starting to adapt.
Brands like Sephora, Converse and Topshop have already started integrating AR into their customer experience, enabling customers to try their product on in AR before buying it. This way they close the gap between buying online and offline: AR visualizes the product on you, for you. But now brands are struggling to drive people into their stores and everyone is talking about the looming retail apocalypse. Yet AR can help retail by enhancing the in-store experience too - like Zara did with image recognition to present virtual models wearing the new collection in store.
For the garments themselves, we will see more brands using AR to bring a new dimension into their clothing - with image recognition technology and an AR kit, like Marks & Spencer did for a kids clothing collection. On the production side, we can also see AR already being used by designers who use Microsoft Hololens to visualise their fashion designs.

So, where do you see AR and fashion going next?
Visualision. AR in marketing will increase. We’ve all seen that Black Mirror episode (Episode 1, season 2) where a woman looks at a new house and the real estate agent helps her envision herself in that lifestyle with Augmented Reality and Holograms. AR is an amazing marketing tool - if not the ultimate tool for marketing and sales because advertising aims to envision you in the lifestyle the brand sells and Augmented Reality is a great way to do that.

Your 3D garments are very realistic - could this technology also help in terms of fashion sustainability?
Definitely. It is no secret that the fashion industry is a big contributor to global CO2 emissions. It currently sits on the 5th spot right after agriculture, tourism and oil and gas production (Global Fashion Agenda, 2018). Everyone needs to help fight pollution and reduce the amount of emissions we produce. The fashion apparel industry has grown to a $1.3 trillion giant (WhichPLM, 2017). It is estimated that $6-8 billion is spent on physical samples in the fashion industry every year (Optitex, 2019). Imagine reducing the amount of physical samples by 65% by using 3D and how much that would reduce our CO2 footprint. The industry would save so much money on logistics, production, time and fabric. 3D implementation in fashion and retail is a match made in heaven.

Is AR and Virtual Avatars a good method for increasing diversity within the fashion industry, especially when it comes to runways?
Definitely! And not only diversity – inclusivity too! All virtual models showcased on our runway were different: glossy humanoids from other planets, models from every ethnicity and very feminine bodies with jiggeling boobs. Furthermore the full show was displayed on a huge wall of 12 LED screens owned by EP7 Paris- everyone on the street could see the exhibition. Hassle-free, no queue, no RSVP, nor front row dominated by the same fashion influencers. We like to trash conventions...

There was quite a logocentric presence in your first ever AR & Virtual Avatar show. What is the social commentary behind such a decision?
Logomania is part of our concept – collectives brand with us. It’s a cultural symbol for cooperation and kids love it. We’ve seen Logo-mania making a big return since its major last circle in the ‘90s. Celebrities like Rihanna and high fashion brands like Gucci and Fendi are already ‘stamping the look’ and hot newcomer brands like FREAKCITYLA are translating it to their own style. Especially in AR we can see this trend: brand your face, brand your background, brand your fashion & more. It’s a cool and most effective marketing tool!

Your style and creative direction is eclectic - Calvin Klein inspired silhouettes to Versace colour palettes. Was this intentional, if so, what was the meaning behind it?
Well, we do not believe in borders of any kind – so in general we get inspired by everything we see and like. Our project exists thanks to lots of collaborators. When we curate these works it’s essential for us to put them in the right context, with that artist in mind. So we have an eclectic style from working with a lot of people.

What was the inspiration for the show?
Definitely the people we worked with! All these talented artists, muses and creative studios like: @thedholes @n.replyanski @teamrealms @andypicci @ndaparis & @shudu.gram