Not Just a Label (NJAL) has stepped into the fast lane.
The London-based global sales network teamed up with Alcantara, an Italian manufacturer of automotive materials for the likes of Ferrari and Aston Martin, for a special fashion exhibition.
Ten U.K.-based designers from the NJAL platform were handpicked to harness the versatility of Alcantara—a faux suede material made by combining advanced textile, chemical and mechanical processes—to create “eye-opening artworks that will serve as a physical manifestation of material innovation.”
The exhibition, dubbed “Made in Italy, Designed in Britain,” is on view at Protein Studios in London’s Shoreditch neighborhood until July 20. It includes the work of emerging designers Ali Abdul-Rahim of Mai Gidah, Kay Kwok, Cat Potter, Qi Zhang, Jule Waibel, Martine Jarlgaard, Per Hansson, Sadie Clayton, Fannie Schiavoni and Liam Hopkins of Lazerian.
“The remarkable journey of Alcantara started with Miyoshi Okamoto, a Japanese research scientist who invented and patented the Alcantara material in 1972,” NJAL said in a press release. “The event will be a celebration of the pioneering design talent on display and a demonstration of the prodigious potential for this high-tech luxury material in avant-garde design.”
NJAL recently made its presence felt in New York City, selecting 100 local brands to take part in a pop-up shop at the Waldorf Astoria last December.