G-Star Raw found an out-of-the-box way to highlight the possibilities of denim waste at Milan Design Week.
The brand teamed with Dutch artist and designer Maarten Baas for “More or Less,” an exhibition that showcases a triptych of cabinets in the shape of jeans and a 15-meter-long private jet, all made using recycled G-Star Raw jeans.
The jeans were collected from G-Star stores across Europe through its “Return your Denim” takeback program which allows customers to return their old jeans for recycling.
Described by the brand as “playful and functional,” the three denim-shaped cabinets are made of textile board material created from recycled jeans, specially developed by Danish textile innovators Really/Kvadrat.
Baas came up with the second concept—a jet built using denim waste—while designing the cabinets. “Not only for its massive scale, but for the bold statement it makes about the duality of sustainability issues,” the brand said about the plane.
Gwenda van Vliet, G-Star Raw CMO, said the collaboration with Baas “symbolizes the balancing act of being both a responsible and a successful brand at the same time.” As a company, G-Star realizes that it encourages consumption, she said, but it’s also working to improve its environmental and social impact.
“At G-Star we believe that there is no limit to what denim can do. In this case we’re spotlighting what our denim waste can become, and how we can change waste material into something meaningful that stands out—and that makes you wonder and think. Because we all want more, but our planet needs less,” she said.
The exhibition is located at the 17th-century San Paolo Convers church. Visitors can bring their worn garments to screenprint with the message “More or Less.” The exhibition ends on April 23.
G-Star is known for pushing denim into the art sphere. It introduced The Art of Raw program in 2022 asking artists to reimagine denim as unconventional objects.