Zak Parmley

BFA Fashion Design Collections

Title: RE(F)USE

Updated: August 9th

The idea of fashion is inherently nonsensical and absurd. The modern fashion industry revolves around the destructive cycle of trashing a garment after one or two wears and fetishizes the amount of possessions; to show the wearer's wealth and ability to stay on trend. In response, this collection is embracing the concept of the nonsensical and counterbalancing it with a restriction of supply. This process of bricolage is aspirational couture: re-fusing scraps into luxury designs.

RE(F)USE communicates frustration and fear for the future, by working through the lens of my childhood appreciation for discarded scraps. This collection takes inspiration from an early 1900’s overflowing landfill in Brooklyn; embracing melancholy hues with saturated pops imitating the static plastic and glass littered shoreline. This grotesque environment is the byproduct of production; thus my designs entertain this dichotomy of excessively glamorous silhouettes being constructed from piles of discard.

RE(F)USE is more than a collection, it is a mentality that challenges the perspective of “waste” in this excessive system.

​Growing up in Portland Oregon, Zak Parmley was surrounded by free thinking ideals and conscious values that tie into art. He was always interested in fashion as an escape, yet designing at Parsons he began to realize the amount of waste that is produced with raw materials. His ethics weren't aligning with his design aesthetics; so this collection emphasizes the importance of being mindful when designing with a nonbinary approach. This ideal is instilled into each garment’s DNA adding value into the craft of abandoned materials. Moving forward, Zak will continue to find innovative ways of keeping fibers in circulation.