Assembly: Available to Promise – Hidden Systems and Unseen Labour

On Friday 29 May 2026, State of Fashion, together with ArtEZ University of the Arts, in collaboration with NewTexEco, is organising the ‘Assembly Available to Promise: Hidden Systems and Unseen Labour’. The Assembly brings together artists, designers, students, researchers, companies, industry representatives and policymakers, offering a wide range of perspectives on hidden systems and unseen labour in the fashion industry.

• What are the hidden systems within the fashion industry?
• Which forms of labour remain unseen, and what are the consequences?
• How can we make invisible labour visible, especially the labour that urgently needs recognition?
• What constructive strategies are possible?
  

Through interactive tours, presentations, workshops, creative interventions, activations, exhibitions and panel discussions, participants are invited to collectively explore how revealing hidden structures can lead to new and transformative fashion practices.

The programme includes contributions from, among others, Sandra Niessen, Chinouk Filique de Miranda, Gedragen Verhalen and makers involved in the research project (Un)seen Labour, including Tess van Zalinge, Zyanya Keizer, Eleftheria Lavdaki and Amy Suo Wu.

The Assembly is part of the State of Fashion Biennale Available to Promise: Hidden Systems, Shared Futures, which shifts the focus from clothing itself to the hidden infrastructures behind the global fashion industry.

Part of the Assembly programme has been developed in collaboration with our research and knowledge network NewTexEco, featuring contributions from industry experts and reflections on ongoing transformations within the sector.

The programme includes a panel discussion on the Digital Product Passport with Kate Fletcher, Payal Arora and Anton Luiken, moderated by Adil Bouglala.

Researcher Tjeerd Veenhoven will host a Textile Surgery, focusing specifically on invisible labour.

De Klerenpartij is a (fictional) political party campaigning against disposable fashion. During the Assembly, they will stage a city council meeting in which they present several motions aimed at reducing the negative impact of fast fashion.

For this, they need your input.

Thirty places will be reserved exclusively for NewTexEco partners until Sunday, 24 May. Please register before this date and mention that you are a partner of NewTexEco. After 24 May, any remaining spots will be opened to the public.
View the full programme here and register as a partner via the button below.

Photo in news header: installation bodies that make, bodies that consume by Santiago Útima, Siviwe James, Widi Asari & Riyadhus Shalihin