Beyond the Wardrobe.

What if clothing could be more than something we buy, wear, and eventually discard?

How might we relate differently to the clothes we own, the materials they are made from, and the resources they require? What possibilities emerge when garments are designed to remain open, adaptable, repairable, and unfinished?

To explore these questions, Carleton University researcher and Associate Professor Chiara Del Gaudio, together with research assistant Raven Lafleur-Scharf, invites you to Beyond the Wardrobe, a community exhibition and public engagement event presenting the outcomes of an ongoing research project on sustainable fashion, transgressive design, and alternative ways of relating to clothing.

The exhibition features a collection of experimental garments and textile interventions developed through research-through-design and participatory design processes. The pieces explore repair, adaptation, reconfiguration, and incompleteness as ways of questioning common assumptions about clothing, consumption, care, and sustainability.

Visitors are invited not only to view the work, but also to participate in a series of interactive activities designed to spark reflection, conversation, and imagination.

Whether or not you choose to participate in these activities, you are warmly invited to explore the exhibition, interact with the artifacts, enjoy the space, and join the conversation.

Hosted at A5, this event creates space for community members to gather, reflect, imagine, and share their perspectives on clothing, care, repair, and the many ways things could be otherwise.

What is going to happen?

6:30–8:30 pm

• Explore the exhibition and experimental garment artifacts
• Learn about the research project and design process
• Participate in optional interactive activities
• Contribute ideas, reflections, and alternative possibilities
• Try on selected artifacts
• Meet the researchers and learn more about the project
• Enjoy informal conversation and community

Research participation

Some of the interactive activities presented during the event are part of an ongoing research study.

Participation in these activities is entirely voluntary. Visitors interested in participating will be provided with information about the study and asked to complete a consent form before contributing responses.

You are welcome to attend and enjoy the exhibition without participating in the research activities.

Join us!

Whether you are interested in fashion, sustainability, design, creativity, repair, community, or simply curious about alternative possibilities, we would love to welcome you.

Free admission. All are welcome.