If you want to mend the world,start mending socks

The Embassy of the Latvia in Azerbaijan is presenting The Exhibition “START MENDING for Sustainable Living” — Textile Project by Art Academy of Latvia in cooperation with craftsmen of Sigulda region.

QGallery and PlatformArt company are the are the partners of the Exhibition. In the framework of the Exhibition there will be held master classes with the students from the Republican Art Gymnasium and “Aygun” company.

The Exhibition opening on Friday, 18 November at 18:00–20:30 at the Stone Chronicle Museum (address: National Flag Square).

“Mending” the world is now more relevant than it ever was.

The world is falling apart at the seams and breaking up into pieces. Boundaries are violated, many political and economical formations are unravelling. Resources have been overused by mass production, and not much is left for the future generations.

Researching the habits of our senior generation who have seen war, deportations, scarcity, we conclude that using things for a long time and fixing them could be one of the most rational solutions in the current climate change situation.

Socks were chosen as a metaphor for any product of the 21st century that supports everyday consumption. Socks are one of the simplest and most indispensable garments in contemporary and ancient ethnography. They are also a benchmark of value in various contexts.

Latvia has a centuries-old tradition of giving socks to newborn babies, to the sick, to soldiers heading into battlefield. Socks are one of the first garments in a person’s life, a companion in the happiest and the most complicated moments in life, and they are donned even on the last journey.

The life cycle and identity of a sock is depicted in consecutive stages — as it is knit, worn,
worn out and mended. The golden thread is an allegorical message on how valuable a sock is — in terms of resources, time, and skills put into it, in an economic and emotional sense, and why it is worth mending.

The socks are copies made from originals kept at the National History Museum of Latvia, they are dated the second half of the 18th century and come from different regions in Latvia. The cuff is knit with naturally dyed wool yarn in geometric patterns. There are no two socks alike in the museum collection, the cuff is the identity and the distinguishing code of each sock.

When you’re mending a sock you’re mending the world. Every one of us can do it!

Start consuming less, fixing your things and noticing the outsized ecological footprints left by your insatiable desire to consume! ®