A Big Thanks to AGI Denim

A big thank you to collaborator AGI Denim (Artistic Garment Industries) who have helped Ian Berry on some of his latest installations and works.

AGI Denim is a leading vertical premium denim manufacturer in Pakistan with a long-standing history dating back to 1949.

The company is at the forefront of the industry, committed to minimizing its environmental impact while maximizing social and economic benefits. AGI Denim's innovative culture and commitment to sustainability and social responsibility are reflected in its best-in-class infrastructure, end-to-end LEED Gold certification, and B Corp certification.

AGI Denim helped Ian Berry with the canvas of the giant Levi’s fresco

AGI Denim supported Ian Berry with some of the latest Secret Garden installations

The company strongly emphasizes responsible fiber sourcing and traceability, ensuring that its products are produced ethically and sustainably. Water stewardship is also a key focus, with a high percentage of recycling and responsible use of this precious resource. AGI Denim's commitment to renewable energy is demonstrated through its use of modern plants and machinery that are energy-saving, efficient, and increasingly powered by solar energy.

Ian Berry would like to offer a personal thank you to Vice President of Product Development and Marketing, Henry Wong and his team in Pakistan that have worked so hard on working on his requests and desires under quite big time constraints.

Ian Berry meeting with Henry Wong in New York in 2017

Henry Wong added “Working with Ian Berry has been a personal and professional dream for over a decade. As a young product developer, I could not easily believe the hyper-realistic portraits and landscapes were composed of jeans. The denim was not bleached or tinted or altered in any way. I immediately knew he was a genius with an eye and hand that allowed for new ways to look at the indigo I was obsessed with.”

He continued “With AGI Denim, I can fulfill the dream of being Ian's fine arts material supplier. Picasso had Sennelier. Ian Berry has AGI Denim. The word Artistic is in our coporate name!”

AGI Denim is proud of its employee recognition and gender equality programs, such as Gap Inc.'s P.A.C.E program and Kontoor Brands' Her Essentials training, which empowers women in the workplace. The company is committed to strong corporate governance and CSR practices, which have earned it the patronage of some of the world's top retail and designer brands.

Ian Berry named a Top 100 influential person in the denim industry.

Ian Berry has been named on a list that honours the 100 most influential people in the denim industry by WeAr Magazine.

Together with an advisory panel, the editorial team of WeAr has researched and selected denim movers, shakers and influencers.

Along with a combination of outstanding denim brands, wash experts, fabric and yarn producers, as well as the best retailers, shows and showrooms. Ian joins the list alongside the likes of Giorgio Armani, Ellen MacArthur, Paige Adams, Levi’s Chip Bergh, and Berry’s friends Tommy Hilfiger and it’s CEO Martijn Hagman, Adriano Goldschmied and Diesel’s Renzo Rosso.

The magazine said, they were chosen based on their achievements and each one of them has made a significant contribution to improving the industry.

Ian Berry said about his inclusion.

‘It’s always nice to get an accolade and to be on the list with many iconic names that for sure deserve their place on the list, and in a great magazine too. Over the years I have got to know many people in denim and like the garments it’s filled with much duality. I never consider myself in the ‘denim industry’ yet have one foot in, and one out. Seeing the list with so many friends on it, it reminds me of the quality that is in denim and the good people. Not just their talents, but as people.’

The WeAr Top 100 List including Artist Ian Berry

After a spell of museum shows around Europe in the last couple of years Ian was chosen to work with Levi’s to help celebrate their 150th Anniversary of the 501. His giant fresco launched in Paris will now tour to Milan and Madrid.

Other friends and former collaborators on the list include the strong Italian showing of Alberto Candiani of Candiani Denim, Maurizio Donadi of Transnomadica, laundry legend Giovanni Petrin of Martelli Lavorazion, Flavio & Alice Tonello of Tonello, Officina +39’s Andrea Venier and Stefano Aldighieri.

There’s a British presence with Son of a Stag’s Rudy Budhdeo and fellow London store Rivet & Hide’s Junior Arraes & Danny Hodgson along with Rag & Bone’s Marcus Wainwright.

Steve Maggard, President of Cone Mills who have supplied Ian often with denim is also on the list alongside Kingpin’s Andrew Olah. Menno van Meurs of Tenue de Nîmes and Bert van Son of MUD Jeans also make Ian happy to see on the list.

Ian often called in the press’ a ‘Jeanious’, the ‘Master of Denim’ and ‘Material Boy’ has previously had accolades like Art Business News, 30 under 30, celebrating the world’s top Artists under 30 and in the Rivet 50 voted for by people in the denim industry.

LEVI’S X IAN BERRY at Design Week Milan

British Artist Ian Berry’s giant mural, made entirely of jeans for the 150th Anniversary of Levi’s 501®, rolls into Milan for this year’s Design Week. The iconic brand’s milestone is celebrated with this landmark piece by the famed London based artist, whose signature medium is recycled denim, it’s no surprise that Levi’s turned to him to make, in their words, “a work of art as iconic as the 501® Jean.”

The piece hanging in Paris in March

Earlier in the year, the Levi’s® brand introduced its Greatest Story Ever Worn global campaign celebrating the 150th anniversary of the 501® jean as an ever-expanding story, written and rewritten by everyone who wears them. In their own words Levi’s said, “As the excitement around the anniversary ramps up, Europe has taken the celebration to another level, partnering with the famous denim artist Ian Berry on a three-day art installation in the heart of Paris.” Ian Berry’s European tribute to the legendary American brand’s global campaign debuted last month in Paris’s Place de la République. You can see this extraordinary mural at its next exhibition in Milan for Design Week from April 17 to 23, and in Madrid’s Plaza del Callao from May 4 to 7.

Milan Design Week’s showing of Berry’s mural is part of Interni Fuorisalone 2023’s Design Re-Evolution Exhibition at the University of Milan’s historic Ca' Granda central courtyard, in Via Festa del Perdono, one of the city's most symbolic buildings. Given that Ian Berry pioneered the use of jeans as his artistic medium nearly two decades ago, his reuse of denim makes Interni’s exquisitely curated FuoriSalone 2023 a perfect forum to exhibit the work.

Berry is no stranger to Italy and has been featured in numerous Italian publications in the country where ‘blue jeans’ were not only first popularised, but also where denim has played an important role throughout many cultural evolutions, both ancient and modern. “I’ve worked with the city of Genoa which is of course where the name ‘jeans’ originated, and unveiled a portrait of Garibaldi at Museo del Risorgimento with ‘the unifier of Italy’ depicted wearing the progenitor of modern jeans. In the 15th century port city of Genoa, a strong cross-weave cotton from the French city of Nimes was used for sails and protecting goods, resulting in the name ‘denim’ from Serge de Nim. Similar textiles were later dyed with indigo, fashioned into work clothes and exported with the French name ‘bleu de Genes’ – ‘blue jeans.’ Berry notes, “It was there I saw the beautiful indigo tapestries.”

Garibaldi by Ian Berry at Museo del Risorgimento (click to see more)

Armani and Lapo Elkann in denim both hang in Italy

More recently, during the 80’s heyday of jeans, many famous Italian brands innovated the jeans concept, and many designers would say the 501® is the both foundation and pinnacle of denim fashion. This embrace of denim has led to frequent visits from Berry to the northern region of Italy - the home of European denim - which hosts many great brands as well as high-quality denim suppliers and textile innovators. 

Ian Berry is well-known for his detailed interior and exterior scenes as well as his emotive portraits, many of them of key figures connected to denim. “At one point many of my portraits were simultaneously in Italy, with both Armani and Lapo Elkann having one, my Debbie Harry hanging at Luxottica, and the Ayrton Senna portrait showing in Turin at APLOG, Alessandro Del Piero’s museum. When I was growing up in the 90’s I really felt that denim, while seen as American, had truly been embraced and elevated by Italian fashion. I think the country has a great connection to the material,” Berry said.

Ian Berry’s portraits for LEVI’S Chile in 2022

Berry’s all-denim photorealist art has shown around the world in galleries, museums and art fairs. As part of Milan Design Week, his piece for Levi’s is being taken to the people, shown outside in one of La Statale Ca' Granda’s magnificent courtyards, for all to see. This current piece for Levi’s 501® is the largest ever made entirely of denim, standing at 13 feet tall and 33 feet long, or four by ten metres, and is made solely from pre-worn denim. Conceived and crafted by Ian Berry in his East London atelier, the impressive mural was carefully assembled on site in Paris out of hundreds of bits of cut denim jeans.

By collaging the pieces of recycled 501® so well that to most it looks like a blue-toned painting, the artist pays tribute to some of the communities and movements that have contributed to the iconic design's legacy. Seven figures representing key cultural archetypes, from the cowboys of the 1880s to the punks and queer communities of the 70, bikers, rebels and one that represents the workers via a Rosie the Riveter type character, appear in a striking composition revealing how Ian Berry and Levi's® pay tribute to those who have made the 501® a timeless fashion item that crosses styles and generations. A banner reading “Legends Never Die” flies symbolically along with the incredible cast of dynamic figures that make up this beautiful piece.

Ian Berry installing in Paris

For the artist, whose signature medium is recycled denim, this project holds a very particular significance. “There is no history of blue jeans without Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis, and the 501® is the pinnacle of jeans, so this 150th anniversary definitely feels like a big thing to me,” Ian Berry said. “The history is so rich; it was pretty easy to draw inspiration from all the people who did great things in their denim. The result is the largest piece that I have ever attempted. Countless hours went into this work, but I’m immensely proud to finally see the result together.”

Ian’s name has been linked to Levi’s for some time. In fact, LS&Co. historian Tracey Panek is a long-time admirer. “I am a fan of Ian Berry’s work and craftsmanship,” she said. “He’s such a talented artist with a gift for using denim. I keep one of his books in my home!” Recalling her exchanges with the artist around denim legends, Tracey commented, “This project looks amazing. Ian’s interpretation of the 501® jeans recurring presence in counterculture and progressive movements is on point. I’m excited to see it myself.”  

Commenting on the activation, Mathilde Vaucheret, brand marketing director, South Europe, said, “I’m proud that our Levi’s brand could associate its name with this great artist on such a milestone year and that we could share his stunning work of art on this busy and diverse square at the heart of Paris. This year’s Greatest Story Ever Worn campaign is all about celebrating the 501® jean with our fans and thanking them for being a part of this inspiring story.” 

Map of the courtyard showing the location to the piece (top corner)

Location

Interni Fuorisalone 2023 - Interni Design Re-Evolution 

University of Milan, via Festa del Perdono 7

17 - 23  April 2023

Ian Berry commissioned to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Levi 501

This last week saw Ian Berry take over Paris’s iconic Place de la République with a massive mural made entirely of denim to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Levi’s iconic 501® Jeans after teaming up with the famed American brand.

The piece, which Levi’s bills as “a work of art as iconic as the 501® Jean,” is the largest ever made entirely of denim, standing at 13 feet tall and 33 feet long, or four by ten meters, and is made from pre-worn denim. Conceived and crafted by Ian Berry in his East London atelier, the imposing mural was carefully assembled on site in Paris out of hundreds of bits of cut denim jeans.

Photo - Kristy Sparow

By collaging the pieces of recycled 501® so well that to most it looks like a blue-toned painting, the artist pays tribute to some of the communities and movements that have contributed to the iconic design's legacy. Seven figures representing key cultural archetypes of people, from the cowboys of the 1880s to the punks and queer communities of the 70, bikers, rebels and one that represents the workers via a Rosie the Riveter type character, appear in a striking composition revealing how Ian Berry and Levi's® pay tribute to those who have made the 501® a timeless fashion item that crosses styles and generations. A banner reading “Legends Never Die” flies symbolically along with the incredible cast of dynamic figures that make up this striking composition.

Ian’s sensitivity and artistic vision reinforces the strong symbolism of the fresco. The way the characters are depicted in movement, heading in the same direction and resolutely looking forward, is an ode to freedom and the power of diversity that drives change — values the Levi’s® brand has long supported. 

Ian Berry in his East London Studio

Earlier in the year, the Levi’s® brand introduced its Greatest Story Ever Worn global campaign celebrating the 150th anniversary of the 501® jean as an ever-expanding story, written and rewritten by everyone who wears them. In their own words Levi’s said, “As the excitement around the anniversary ramps up, Europe has taken the celebration to another level, partnering with the famous denim artist Ian Berry on a three-day art installation in the heart of Paris.”

photo Kristy Sparow

Earlier in the year, the Levi’s® brand introduced its Greatest Story Ever Worn global campaign celebrating the 150th anniversary of the 501® jean as an ever-expanding story, written and rewritten by everyone who wears them. In their own words Levi’s said, “As the excitement around the anniversary ramps up, Europe has taken the celebration to another level, partnering with the famous denim artist Ian Berry on a three-day art installation in the heart of Paris.”

For the artist whose signature medium is recycled denim, this project holds a very particular significance. “There is no history of blue jeans without Levi Strauss and Jacob Davis, and the 501® is the pinnacle of jeans, so this 150th anniversary definitely feels like a big thing to me,” Ian Berry said. “The history is so rich; it was pretty easy to draw inspiration from all the people who did great things in their denim. The result is the largest piece that I have ever attempted. Countless hours went into this work, but I’m immensely proud to finally see the result together.”

Dr Tanja Roppelt, Johan Kalb, Michael Karmann and Ian Berry with the Levi Strauss portrait in Buttenheim.

Ian’s name has been linked to Levi’s for some time. In fact, LS&Co. historian Tracey Panek is a long-time admirer. “I am a fan of Ian Berry’s work and craftsmanship,” she said. “He’s such a talented artist with a gift for using denim. I keep one of his books in my home!” Recalling her exchanges with the artist around denim legends, Tracey commented, “This project looks amazing. Ian’s interpretation of the 501® jeans recurring presence in counterculture and progressive movements is on point. I’m excited to see it myself.”  

In 2022, Ian Berry unveiled a portrait made especially for the Levi Strauss Museum, the ‘jeans inventor’s birthplace in Buttenheim, Germany, ready to commemorate this years milestone, and he also created three portraits of Chilean musicians to exhibit at Lollapalooza with Levi’s Chile which now hang in the Plaza Egaña Metro station in Santiago where hundreds of thousands of people pass by.

Ian Berry with Tracey Panek, Levi’s Historian at the Archives at Levi’s, San Francisco

The latest exhibition in Paris, which was shown for three days at the iconic location, included a complete takeover of a local café with a display of different models of 501® jeans, including the Circular 501® and their most recent launches, the 501® 54’ and 501® 81’. Levi’s not only showcased its history, but also walked through the process of creation, showing cotton plants and other raw materials that go into their textiles in the ephemeral exhibition to showcase the original jeans brand’s history inside the square’s Fluctuât Nec Mergitur café.

Commenting on the local activation, Mathilde Vaucheret, brand marketing director, South Europe, said, “I’m proud that our Levi’s brand could associate its name with this great artist on such a milestone year and that we could share his stunning work of art on this busy and diverse square at the heart of Paris. This year’s Greatest Story Ever Worn campaign is all about celebrating the 501® jean with our fans and thanking them for being a part of this inspiring story.” 

---

Next locations

April 17th - 26th Università degli Studi di Milano, la Statale  MILAN 

May 4th - 7th Plaza del Callao  MADRID

You can catch the fresco at its next stop in Milan for Design Week at Università Statale from April 17 to 25, and in Madrid at Plaza del Callao from May 4 to 7.

Ian Berry Denim Portraits unveiled on Metro Santiago, Chile

Works made in only denim by British artist Ian Berry of Anita Tijoux and Roberto Márquez surprise passengers at the Plaza Egaña station in Santiago, Chile.

Two works by the British artist Ian Berry were donated to honor both Chilean musicians, within the framework of Chilean Music and Musicians Day.

Fans and press with Roberto Marquez at the unveil on Metro Santiago - MetroArte

On Wednesday 5th October 2022, two portraits of the artistic Ian Berry were revealed, highlighting the Chilean national musicians Anita Tijoux and Roberto Márquez of the Illapu group. At the inauguration that took place at the Metro station, Plaza Egaña, the President of Metro, Guillermo Muñoz and the mayor of Ñuñoa, Emilia Ríos joined the prominent Chilean musician Roberto Márquez de Illapu.

The works measure 2.74 meters high by 2 meters wide, are made from recycled denim scraps over many weeks and were donated to the Metro Arte Cultural Corporation. They had been originally made to be shown at the Lollapalooza festival in 2022. The works will be able to be seen by the 119,000 passengers who on average spend a week at this point, a combination of Line 3 and Line 4.

Roberto Marquez with the artwork made in denim by Ian Berry in the Metro in Santiago

Guillermo Muñoz, President of Metro, was present at the activity to give way to one of the most significant artistic interventions around a legacy that will transcend time. “With this beautiful work, the MetroArte catalog reaches 73 works in more than 11,000 square meters of permanent art on the network. These numbers show how important it is for the company to bring art closer to our male and female passengers, as a way to also generate more friendly and attractive urban spaces,” he commented.

The mayor of Ñuñoa, Emilia Ríos, highlighted the importance of giving added value to public spaces. “Art is a tool to enrich public spaces, it creates identity and an attachment to our neighborhoods and all the places we visit daily, and in this sense the Metro plays a fundamental role because it not only unites the city, it is essential to make a city , therefore it is important that everyone's spaces have art samples and I think they will gradually become visual icons of our city, so I am very happy to be here today, "he said.

Roberto Marquez with Ana Tijoux on Metro Santiago - MetroArte

"I think it is important to the extent that popular singing is being honored, hopefully this is the beginning of a great gallery that shows our popular artists, I am happy about that," said Roberto Márquez, Illapu's vocalist.

Both portraits will be permanently exhibited to the public at Plaza Egaña station in the area of ​​stairs that lead to the platforms of Line 3 and are part of the campaign that seeks to be a real contribution to the culture of national music in the most used means of transport in the Metropolitan Region.

Ian Berry unveils a Portrait of Levi Strauss in the 'Jeans Inventors' Hometown.

On the 25th of September 2022, which commemorates the 120th anniversary of Levi Strauss' passing, Ian Berry unveiled a portrait made especially for the Levi Strauss Museum in the presence of a full house of intrigued visitors in the entrance of ​​his birthplace.

He was born in the German town of Buttenheim on the 26th February 1829 and now stands a museum in the home the Bavarian immigrant to the USA, spent his first 18 years It now is home to the artefacts and history of the life of the man born Leob Strauss and celebrates his legacy.  The museum commissioned Ian Berry, to create a portrait of Levi Strauss to proudly hang in the museum. 

Buttenheim's Mayor Michael Karmann was very pleased to have the artist’s work of international renown permanently exhibited in the museum as well as hosting Ian Berry once again in Buttenheim, Germany. In 2020 his extremely successful exhibition "Art in Denim" was shown at the Levi Strauss Museum.

Tanja Roppelt, Johan Kalb, Michael Karmann and Ian Berry with the Levi Strauss portrait.

In attendance were many of the people that help realise this opportunity to commission the portrait, as well as many of the masterminds of the Museum, including Christoph Gatz, the chairman of the association for the development of the Levi Strauss Museum birthplace, District Administrator Johan Kalb (CSU) as well as Tanja Roppelt, the museum director and curator.

Christoph Gatz praised the fact that the artist uses worn jeans for his works and thus makes an important contribution to the topic of sustainability and waste avoidance. The museums current temporary exhibition is “Sustainability?! Dealing with clothing yesterday and today” which also includes a section on Fast Fashion’s Graveyard, Ian Berry’s film about the clothes waste in the Atacama Desert.

Ian Berry with visitors.

Journalist Andrea Spoerlein said.

‘As with Ian Berry's other artworks, looking at the portrait is reminiscent of an oil painting or photograph. Dominated by the basic shade of jeans blue, due to the raw material, the artist has created an extraordinary portrait of the company founder through cutting, trimming and the extremely artistic assembly of individual jeans fabrics. Of course, he is not wearing jeans, but is depicted as a wealthy businessman of his era. The work is protected by a suitable frame with a special glass, theft and insect-proof.

The completely unpretentious artist allowed himself to be photographed with visitors and was happy to be back in Buttenheim.’

Ian Berry has been working over the last two decades with this medium and is known for his art made of only varying shades of denim jeans throughout the world. During the pandemic Ian Berry was one of the busiest artists on the planet with several museum shows going one around Europe. The first was launch in the fall of 2020 and was at the Levi Strauss Museum in Germany. 

photo of Levi Strauss Museum by Peter Weigelt

Tanja Roppelt, curator of the museum said. 

‘‘In 2020, we hosted the extremely successful exhibition "Art in Denim" with Ian Berry, which attracted people from all over Germany to Buttenheim despite the pandemic. We’re very excited to have him back with us and to unveil this piece of the ‘jeans inventor’”

Sculpture of Levis Strauss by Berlin artist Rainer Kurka. Photo by Peter Weigelt

hidden is a golden rivet in his hand behind his back. Photo by Peter Weigelt

 The Levi Strauss Museum Jeans & Kult founded in 2000 after much renovation of the small half-timbered house. Modern and interactive presentations will inform you about the person and his product - Levis in the 136 sq. m. exhibition space. An audio guide in different languages takes you through the house and tells the stories on Levi Strauss and his invention. Ian Berry helped the museum celebrate the 20th anniversary in 2020 with his exhibition. They also introduced a sculpture of Levi Strauss by the German Artist Rainer Kurka. 

photo of Levi Strauss Museum by Peter Weigelt

Next year sees the 150th anniversary of the most famous jean. The 501 created by Jacob Davis and Levi Strauss and marks the date of the patent that protected the new way of making the pants strengthened by rivets. On May 20, 1873, together they applied for the US Patent No. 139,121 for "Improvements in fastening pocket openings" This trademark feature became Registered U.S. Trade Mark No. 1,139,254. This created the brand not only synonymous with denim jeans but one of the most iconic names on the planet. 

Ian Berry Talks at Fashinnovation.nyc in New York

FASHION IS TRANSFORMING JEANS INTO A STORYTELLING ART

Ian Berry joins Fashinnovation in New York for the 8th Edition of the World Wide Talks where he will talk about his upcoming documentary Fast Fashion’s Graveyard - showing a three-minute trailer and then talking about it live with Christopher Blomquist of Rivet Magazine and lecturer at Parsons School of Design.

11:55 AM EST live from New York

To Register click here

WORLDWIDE TALKS 2022

THE BIGGEST FASHION AND INNOVATION EVENT IN THE WORLD

Since 2018, Fashinnovation have hosted over 500 of fashion’s leading innovators to audiences representing 120 countries. Respected voices like Diane Von Furstenberg, Susan Rockefeller, Kenneth Cole, Julie Gilhart, Fern Mallis, Steve Aoki, Steve Madden, Rachel Zoe, Donna Karan, Tonne Goodman, Coco Rocha, Oskar Metsavaht, Mara Hoffman, Miroslava Duma, and many more have shared knowledge through our platform.

Institutions like the United Nations, Parsons, LIM College, and FIT; brands including Louis Vuitton, Levi’s, Nasa, IBM, Google, and UPS; and media channels such as Business of Fashion, WWD, Forbes, Fast Company, Refinery29, and VOGUE, have all supported their vision.

Through these global conversations, we inspire and ignite revolutionary actions and change across our industry. Fashinnovation crosses boundaries and amplifies topics including sustainable development goals, social impact, diversity and inclusion, entrepreneurship, connectivity, and new technologies all seen through the lens of innovation.

Fast Fashion’s Graveyard by Ian will-pre launch at Fassinovation in New York with an interview with Ian Berry in person and online by Christopher Blomquist

About Fashinnovation

Fashinnovation’s mission is to be the global thought leader for the fashion industry in fostering innovation. Entrepreneurial minds are protagonists in the urgent transformations of the fashion world. Promoting connections that inspire change is the key that paves the way for real innovations.

Fashion & Innovation are two strong words that can never walk apart.

The new word that was created to show that real transformation takes place through connections and forward thoughts. Fashinnovation global platform connects voices from the fashion & innovation ecosystems, inspiring an entrepreneurial mindset, combining creative minds, and encouraging a more sustainable & inclusive industry.

The Fashion Industry inspires. Technology Facilitates. Entrepreneurship Makes It Happen. Together, they multiply their effect. When these universes join, the impossible becomes possible. If you want to be avant-garde, you need to join other restless minds to achieve a stronger impact. The place where all changemakers & entrepreneurs come together to rewrite the future of fashion is here.

For more information and to Register

https://fashinnovation.nyc/events/worldwide-talks-2022-7th-edition/

FASHION IS TRANSFORMING JEANS INTO A STORYTELLING ART

11:55 AM EST

FAST FASHION'S GRAVEYARD | Ian Berry in the Atacama Desert Chile

Fast Fashion’s Graveyard

A documentary film by Ian Berry - COMING SOON

-        Artist Ian Berry makes a documentary about the clothes waste in the Atacama Desert in Chile named Fast Fashion’s Graveyard

-        A three-minute trailer will preview in New York with Fashinnovation on 7th Sept – where Ian Berry will be interviewed by Christopher Blomquist, Rivet Journalist and Professor of Fashion Journalism at Parsons School of Design

Ian Berry in the Atacama Desert in Chile

British Artist Ian Berry, 38, has often been linked with sustainability over the years but it’s a word he has never tried to use with his art made from recycled jeans ‘It was a side show of my work, but not the concept’. That seems to have changed after he witnessed the direct impact of overproduction of garments and the clothes mountains discarded in Chile.

‘Sustainability is an overused and abused marketing word which has as much worth as the word ‘nice’. I felt a fraud to use it, besides, I’m not making a big difference, nor had it been the concept or point of my work. I have been doing my work for longer than it became such a buzz word. Perhaps I’m just jaded by knowing too many people abusing it’

Earlier in the year however he found himself in the country’s capital, Santiago, having created the portraits of three of Chile’s most popular musicians which were then presented at Lollapalooza. In between some events he had some free time and he was offered a trip away. He’d seen the clothes dump in the Atacama Desert outside Iquique in Alto Hospicio that had just gone viral and was seen on the likes of BBC and DW. Snubbing much more obvious travel destinations he opted to visit the northern coastal city, known as the driest on the planet.

Seeing the piles of jeans in his East London studio it’s hard to not see the comparison with what he saw in the barren desert.

‘While I may not talk about sustainably much, leaving it to those who either know better, or can profit from it, it doesn’t mean I don’t care about the core issues. Few know that I nearly went back to university in 2006 to study climate change after watching An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore, but while I was recycling denim, I will be honest, I never even connected that I was doing anything linked at the time.’

Piles of clothes in the Atacama Desert in Chile. Photo Ian Berry

He has now returned to the South American Country twice more, both linked to ongoing projects as well as trying to find out more about what is going on and why many of our old clothes ended up in Chile, unwanted and left to rot. While he will soon preview his documentary ‘Fast Fashion’s Graveyard’ he will openly admit he is not a documentary maker and on the first trip it happened quite naturally. ‘I was taken aback by being there and just started to make little videos with my iPhone. I hadn’t intended to make a documentary and it’s been quite a learning curve.’

‘I’d researched it a lot before I first went but when there I had so many questions, many that people couldn’t answer. I also realised that there were very few people, if anyone, from outside South America that had ever gone there and when it had gone viral it was all from one person’s footage (who had himself done great work), but then the reporters had never been. While I don’t think  it was on purpose, the reporting led to a misrepresented story of what was going on and who was responsible, mainly letting the viewer believe the brands were directly dumping their clothes there. It’s much more complex, and I had to return to find out more.’

Ian Berry in the Atacama Desert witnessing himself the clothes waste piled up

Agence France-Presse,’s research found that about 59,000 tons of clothing that wasn’t sold in Europe or the USA end up at the Freeport of Iquique every year, but what’s surprising is a whopping percentage of that, at least 39,000 tons are moved into landfills in the desert typified by the one Ian Berry visited in Alto Hospicio the country’s poorest area.

‘Like everything in contemporary times we debate on headlines and there’s little nuance. I wanted to look into the story to find the truth, but also I’d seen it talked about many places yet with few solutions or positive messages of what people are doing, or what people can do.’

Ian Berry showed an installation on the beach in Iquique with Studio of…

On Berry’s second visit he worked with Estudio of.. in Iquique. A collective of creatives and artisans who have been working with recycled textiles and most proudly sporting second hand clothes. They grouped together to help Ian Berry make flowers for a recreation of his Secret Garden installation that was then displayed on the beach in the city during the Festival Desierto Sonoro with thousands of people passing through.

Ian Berry with some of Studio of…

Ian Berry with Desierto Vestido

One member of the collective that worked with Berry was Angela Astudillo, who is also a part of Desierto Vestido who have been investigating this for a while now. She lives close by the dump and has visited many times and she went with Ian Berry when he returned and helped him with many of the facts. She has documented much of what has been going on. While he started with an iPhone, on the second trip Berry had a more professional kit supported by Audiovisual Iquique who, with drones, were able to capture the scale.

Astudillo was also able to introduce the artist to the people that live on the site which enabled him to ask direct questions of what is going on and why.

Ian Berry with Rosario Hevia of Ecocitex in Santiago, Chile looking at her recycled yarn

Frank Zepeda of Ecofibre Chile in Iquique with Ian Berry

For Berry it was important to find positive stories and to share them. Highlights were meeting with Franklin Zepeda of Eco Fibra who transforms the textile waste into insulation panels for low cost housing and as a native of Alto Hospicio could tell Berry much of what had been happening. Gonzalo Muñoz who was nominated by the Chilean presidency and the United Nations as the High-Level Climate Champion for the twenty-fifth Conference of the Parties (COP25) to the United Nations Climate Change Convention (UNFCCC). Prior to this role, he co-founded and ran TriCiclos, one of the most recognized Latin American companies in the circular economy and recycling. The company was also the first certified B corporation established outside North America.

Ian Berry met with Rosario Hevia twice, in Santiago who passionately spoke about the issues as well as showing Ian around her factory where her brand Ecocitex is a social enterprise that sells 100% recycled textile products through more than 250 women-led businesses across Chile.

The documentary shows Berry visiting the Freeport locations and Zofri, the area where the clothes are brought in in bundles and sold, under much secrecy. While the imports had been portrayed as a bad thing, he also visited resellers in Santiago as well as second hand stores that sell good second-hand clothes making them affordable for many Chileans and of course making the clothes life span longer.

In his research Ian Berry also found he had jumped the gun a little, ‘The name already can give a misconception’, although one part became true. Fast Fashion Graveyard. ‘Soon after I left the third time it set on fire and then it was buried, so it went from an open grave to being concealed.’ However, he questions whether it is fair it is named fast fashion as in his research he found that while many big name brands could be found, they are not the ones that he thinks fall in the fast fashion bracket.

‘I think most people watching the first wave of publicity brought on the dump blamed fast fashion and big-name brands, I went around and found that all the items were unique, as in there wasn’t batches of the same clothes. While many had labels on they were often the likes of TJ Maxx and also Goodwill. Yes, we can talk of overproduction and also our throwaway society and trends, fair is fair, but  it is not the brands who are directly responsible. That said, it is their name on the labels and our clothes dumped there – often after thinking we have done a good thing in donating to a charity shop.’

A three-minute trailer will debut at Fasinnovation in New York on Sept 7 in partnership with Spring Studios - with an interview filmed live at 11.55 EST with Christopher Blomquist, Rivet Journalist and Professor of Fashion Journalism at Parsons School of Design.

Founder Jordana Guimaraes who invited Ian Berry said, ‘Ian is just extremely talented and inspiring, and I feel SO lucky to have him with us next week sharing this project and opening people’s eyes in so many ways.’

For more Information and to register

https://fashinnovation.nyc/events/worldwide-talks-2022-7th-edition/

Ian Berry X Canary Wharf for Earth Day

Swap Station: Canary Wharf Shoppers’ Second-Hand Clothes to be Transformed into Art for Earth Day – 20.04.22

• New clothes donation bank will sit in Jubilee Place mall from 20-27 April, where shoppers can donate old clothes in return for shopping vouchers

• The Swap Station was designed by artist Ian Berry, who will create an exclusive new art piece with the second-hand garments

• Remaining clothes to be donated to Love Not Landfill

Canary Wharf has announced the launch of its new Swap Station for Earth Day – a clothes donation bank that lets shoppers swap their old clothes for shopping vouchers from a range of retailers in the malls.

The striking installation will sit in Jubilee Place mall and has been designed by the artist famed for his work with denim jeans, Ian Berry. Berry will transform the donated denim jeans, jackets and accessories into a piece of exclusive new art that will hang in the mall, with the new artwork unveiled in June to coincide with World Environment Day.

Ian Berry at the Swap Station in Canary Wharf

The Swap Station opens to the public for a week from Wednesday 20th April. In return for their old clothes, shoppers will be rewarded with a voucher redeemable at selected stores across Canary Wharf.

Any clothes not used for the new artwork will be donated to Love Not Landfill, a non-profit campaign to encourage fast fashion fans to buy second-hand, swap, recycle and give to charity.

More than 300,000 tonnes of clothing end up in landfill each year in the UK[1] , many items of which could be re-worn or recycled. The Swap Station will give a new lease of life to the clothes donated and forms part of Canary Wharf’s ongoing investment in public art and sustainability. Berry’s final piece will join over 110 permanent works by over 50 international artists currently around the Estate, making Canary Wharf a rich tapestry of diverse artwork.

Poplar-based artist Berry is world renowned for his work turning old denim into striking visualisations, notably creating celebrity portraits including Debbie Harry and Georgio Armani. He is known for intricate works depicting real life in collections including Behind Closed Doors and My Beautiful Launderette in 2016 and Hotel California in 2019.

Artist Ian Berry said: “It’s brilliant to be working on a project so close to home which combines art, sustainability and the local community at Canary Wharf. Recycling denim is a fantastic medium for seeing the world and creating a piece from the donated Swap Station clothes to be displayed in Canary Wharf is extremely exciting. I strongly encourage the public to donate any unwanted clothing and watch their items be transformed into art.”

Canary Wharf is the UK’s leading sustainable developer and the Swap Station campaign forms part of Canary Wharf’s wider Conscious Consumer initiative, which encourages visitors to live, eat and shop locally through sustainable retail choices, refillable water stations, transport links, extensive green spaces and plastic-free lunch spots.

Home to an extensive art collection and with sustainability at its core, Canary Wharf is a 24/7 city where people can work, live and thrive and enjoy all the benefits; great transport links, access to green spaces and waterside living; and a huge range of activities and amenities.

For further information, please contact:

Press Office
Canary Wharf Group plc
T: 020 7404 5959
E: pressoffice@canarywharf.com

Artist Profile | ROBERTO MARQUEZ

ROBERTO MÁRQUEZ

(1951, ANTOFAGASTA - CHILE)

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Roberto Marquez Is a Chilean musician, composer, charanguista, vocalist and musical director of the group Illapu since it was formed 1971.

Since its beginnings, Illapu has developed a unique, innovative, experimental and beautifully conceived sound that over the years became a musical and poetic proposal that synthesizes with sensitivity the dreams and aspirations of various generations.

In the summer of 1971, in Antofagasta, along with his brothers; Jaime, Andrés and José Miguel Márquez, along with Osvaldo Torres, they started the group influenced by the New Chilean Song and the Andean and Latin American ancestral culture that is very present in the region.

In 1972 they recorded their first album, "Illapu: Música andina", which launched the group on the national scene. It is then presented for the first time at the Viña del Mar International Song Festival (1973) the most important music festival on the continent.

Illapu's musical genealogy goes back to the ancestral roots of the Andean world. From that inexhaustible source his harmonic and sonorous constructions are born. Time and contact with the contemporary world have opened new musical horizons and aesthetic conceptions for Illapu. This is how illapu reveals today a wide range of sounds, textures, rhythms, melodies, atonalities and harmonic polyphonies that achieve a unique and characteristic amalgam that is impossible to separate.

In 1978 they made their first tour of Europe, and they were invited to play at L'Olympia in Paris, at the Sorbonne Auditorium.

However in 1981, when they were returning from their second tour of Europe, they were prevented from entering the country by the Pinochet regime and exiled in France. This is certainly something that peaked Ian Berry’s interest in Roberto and the band as they had spoke out against the regime.

In the early spring of 1988, Illapu finally returned home after 7 years in exile. They were received by more than 100,000 people in their first concert in Parque La Bandera in Santiago. Even in their absence, the popularity had increased.

In ‘91, the album “Vuelvo amor... Vuelvo vida” obtained its first gold record. Since then, Illapu has received countless awards, gold discs and platinum awards.

They perform on the biggest stages in Europe, the United States, Canada, Hong Kong, North Africa, and Australia, where in 1987 they received the "Media Peace Award" from the S.B.S. TV.

After settling in Mexico in 1986, they travel through much of Latin America and the Caribbean prior to returning to Chile.

Ian Berry in his London studio with the Roberto Marquez portrait

In the early spring of Illapu is still performing today fusing its Latin Andean roots with elements of jazz, with harmonic constructions of classical music, with the syncopation of Afro-Caribbean, combined with the unbreakable force of rock.

Illapu sings of life, love, justice, the preservation of the cultural sources of America, the contradictions between man and nature, and the tensions created by the processes of modernity. Most of its compositions are written by its members and are also nourished by the lyrics of great poets such as Pablo Neruda, Mario Benedetti, Roque Dalton.

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They use a wide variety of musical instruments from different origins. The ancient aerophones: zampoñas, quenas, quenachos, tarkas, sicuras, moceños, trutrucas, pifilca. In addition to traverse flute and saxophones. From Latin American strings they perform bandurria, Venezuelan cuatro, Bolivian charango, Colombian tiple, together with electroacoustic guitars, electric bass and keyboards. They also play various percussion instruments such as bombo legüero, Peruvian cajon, congas, bongo, kultrún, djembe, Latin percussion and drums.

Illapu is a group that experiments and fuses its Latin Andean roots with elements of jazz, with the harmonic constructions and counterpoints of classical music, with the syncopation of Afro-Caribbean music, combining all this with the unbreakable telluric force of rock.

Ian Berry with Roberto Marquez

Ian Berry was honoured with meeting Roberto with and was able to talk for a long time with him about the band and his music and was keen to hear his reaction to the portrait, his wives favourite picture.

Artist Profile | ANA TIJOUX

ANA TIJOUX

(1977, LILLE - FRANCE)

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Anamaría Tijoux Merino, better known as Ana Tijoux or Anita Tijoux (French pronunciation: [ti'ʒu]), is a Chilean-French singer, musician, rapper, lyricist and composer. She gained recognition in Latin America as the female MC of the hip-hop group Makiza during the late 1990s, spreading her success following her second solo album, “1977”. Her music speaks to the tune of hip hop, fused.

Feminist and activist. In her lyrics, she denounces social and cultural shortcomings and positions herself in favor of women's rights and against gender violence. In 2014, the song "Antipatriarca" stood out on his album “Vengo”. He has worked in various countries in Latin America, Europe and the United States. She has been cataloged by various media as the "best and best known rapper in Spanish." She has been nominated on several occasions for the Grammy Awards. She lives in Chile and France.

She was born on June 12, 1977 in the French city of Lille, the daughter of sociologist María Emilia Tijoux and Roberto Merino Jorquera, two Chileans exiled from the military dictatorship after the coup d'etat of September 11, 1973 in that country. In 1982 her family moved to Paris for work issues, living in the neighborhoods of Belleville and Saint Maurice. 7 It would not be until 1983 when she knew Chile on a trip that she and her family made to visit her grandparents.

In 1988 she began to delve into hip hop, initially as a dancer. After the return to democracy in Chile, she returned to that country to settle there permanently in 1993.

In 1997 he began to form part of the Chilean rap band Makiza, known for spreading socially committed lyrics and praised for the dynamics of its production. The following year the band released its first album, “Vida Salvaje”, with great success. In 1999 they would launch “Aerolíneas Makiza”. An album that talks about taboo subjects such as life in exile, being a mother at an early age, etc.

ANA TIJOUX by Ian Berry

In 2004 Makiza met again, they remastered their first work "Vida Salvaje" and in 2005 they would release heir third and last album “Casino Royale”. He would also contribute with his voice to "Nea", vocalist of the animated series Pulentos broadcast by Channel 13. In 2006 she definitively distanced herself from Makiza and began his solo career, due to personal differences between the members of the band.

Her first solo album, entitled “Kaos”, produced by Nicolás Carrasco (Foex) of the Potoco Discos label, would be released in 2007, with his first single "Despabílate!". In this album he fuses funk, soul and other black rhythms, giving himself the freedom to compose sad, happy, dynamic and melodic songs with the desire to show a whole range of emotions. In June 2009, Anita made her first tour of Mexico, performing at the "Vive Latino" Festival on the 28th of that month, and then making several presentations in the Aztec capital.

With her album “1977” (2009), Ana Tijoux showed her skills through sophisticated rhythms and lyrics, wrapped in a voice with a touch of jazz. The album, named for his year of birth, paints a picture of his childhood in France and pays homage to the Chilean hip hop that inspired him in the early '90s. That same year the leader of Radiohead, Thom Yorke, recommended that his followers listen to the artist's song "1977", which increased the popularity of Tijoux in Europe. In addition, that song set the music for a scene from the fifth chapter of the fourth season of the popular “Breaking Bad” series and in the EA Sports FIFA 11 game.

In 2010 she toured the United States, and was also nominated for a Grammy. During 2011, MTV Iggy Pop highlighted her among the 12 best MCs worldwide, occupying the first place in this ranking, highlighting her latest album 1977. With “La bala” (2011), released under the Oveja Negra label, she undertook a march that pushes the limits with a style that alters and reorganizes the references of hip hop to convey a state of mind full of strength and that stands out for a sound full of contrasts in the brilliant triad of the songs «La bala», «Shock» and "Desclasificado", going through the humor and the programming of "Las cosas por su nombre", to the soul of "Mi medio y Volver". That same year, together with MC Lagarto, they played in various gigs in schools within the framework of the student mobilization in Chile in 2011.

Both in her record work Ana Tijoux and in her public statements, Tijoux has committed herself to defending women's rights and has denounced gender violence and inequality. Also the inequality faced by artists in the world of cinema, or singers.

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Considered one of the main MCs in Latin America, Ana Tijoux has been nominated for the MTV Video Music Awards Latin America as "Best New Artist" and "Best Urban Artist", and became the second Chilean artist to be nominated for the Grammy Awards. from the United States reaching four nominations, becoming the Chilean with the most nominations for these awards: in 2011, she was nominated for the Grammy Awards with “1977” in the category “Best Latin/Urban/Alternative Rock Album”, which would be repeated in 2013 for “La Bala” and in 2015 with “Vengo” in the “Best Latin/Urban/Alternative Rock Album” category. Likewise, at the Latin Grammy Awards, she has been nominated with “La Bala” for “Best Urban Music Album” (2012) and with “Sacar la voz” (2013).

In 2014, she won a Latin Grammy Award with "Universos Paralelos" together with the uruguayan artist Jorge Drexler in the "Song of the Year" category and, in 2014, she was nominated with "Vengo" in the "Best Urban Song" category. In 2015, with his album "Vengo", he won four awards at the Pulsar Chilean Music Awards: Album of the Year, Song of the Year for "Vengo", Artist of the Year and Best Urban Music Artist.