Unleashing impact: Splendour 2023’s ‘Fast Fashion Graveyard’ transforms small budget into massive change.
We didn’t expect to make a hauntingly epic appearance at Splendour in the Grass 2023, until ABC’s TV series War on Waste came calling. Their challenge to us? Educating and engaging young festival goers on the amount of discarded clothing that ends up in landfill. Needless to say, we needed a killer idea, and so the War on Waste Fast Fashion Graveyard was born.
The statistics are shocking: We throw out ten kilos of fashion per person each year. Over 60% of our clothes are made from plastic derived from fossil fuels. It takes nearly 9,000 litres of water to make just one pair of jeans, and it takes up to 200 years for synthetic textiles to decompose.
This kind of brief was right in the Because wheelhouse. We’re not only big fans of the War on Waste TV series, we’re also passionate about fighting the fast fashion epidemic. Finding a creative solution to a societal problem was a challenge we were very much up for.
“We couldn’t be prouder to promote ABC’s new ‘War on Waste’ series. The ‘Fast Fashion Graveyard’ prompted behaviour change at Splendour in a unique, creative way. The message is close to mine and the team’s hearts”- Meredith Cranmer- Co-Founder & Managing Director, ANZ.
To resonate with festival attendees busy dancing their socks off, we needed to create an immersive experience through powerful visual storytelling, so we transformed a seemingly ordinary space into a haunting representation of fashion waste.
Among big live acts like Flume, Mumford & Sons and Hilltop Hoods, were fast fashion items such as jeans, dresses and T-shirts laid to rest in coffins. The tombstones humorously honoured items that were purchased (likely for the festival) and binned after just one wear, but can take up to hundreds of years to decompose.
Working closely with ABC and the War on Waste team allowed us to tap into the expertise and resources of the initiative, ensuring that the installation effectively conveyed the urgency of the issue.
One of the key objectives of the fast fashion graveyard installation was to open up a dialogue with festival-goers. Visitors were invited to reflect on their own consumption habits and consider the environmental impact of fast fashion. By creating a space for conversation and self-reflection, we successfully fostered a sense of responsibility and empowerment among the festival attendees.
Beyond the immediate impact at the Splendour in the Grass festival, we recognised the importance of spreading the message to a wider audience. The activation leveraged social media platforms, traditional media outlets, and collaborations with influencers to amplify the reach and impact of the installation. By sharing compelling visuals, thought-provoking content, and personal stories ensuring the conversation around fashion waste continued long after the festival ended.
Our work here serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of conscious consumption and the role that creative activations can play in driving positive change.