UNIC LIGHTNING BITES Soft gestures: Exploring non institutional and de-fashioning strategies in the work of CIMO

“We need to further expand the space outside the mainstream perception of fashion and raise awareness of approaches and practices that are not only focused on seductive fashion images, but also reflect the conditions of production, circulation and consumption of fashion products” - Lea Vene, Independent Curator & Cultural Anthropologist, Lecturer at Die Angewandte (Vienna) and University of Zagreb

Virtual Place

Date

Start: 29.10.2025
End: 29.10.2025

Partners

Koç University , University of Zagreb , Koc University , University College Cork , Malmö University

In this session, Lea Vene introduced the work of CIMO – the Centre for Research of Fashion and Clothing, a Zagreb-based nonprofit organization dedicated to exploring the creative, theoretical, and social dimensions of fashion and clothing. Founded in 2013, CIMO investigates how local practices connect to global fashion systems and academic discourse.

Through curatorial, educational, and research initiatives, CIMO examines topics such as the rise and fall of the Croatian textile industry, working-class clothing practices, post-socialist fashion histories, and the revival of traditional crafts. The presentation also highlighted CIMO’s socially engaged textile projects and experimental educational programs that bring together young designers, artists, and researchers.

Vene’s talk offered an inspiring look into how fashion can serve as a lens to understand broader cultural transformations and as a tool for creative collaboration and critical reflection.

Photo by Gorka Nalda

38 participants

Tags

UNIC CityLabs | Lightning Bites | TL7 - Arts Culture and Creativity

Themes

Culture | art

Type of Case

event | Talk

Languages

English

Organizing unic universities

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