Trashion Show

In a tribute to their past, South End neighbors and supporters come together for a recycled fashion Trashion Show to benefit urban cleanup and instill neighborhood pride.

Dismembered Dolls comprise this Trashion show entry — One model took on dismembered dolls for a recycled outfit at the 2017 Twisp, WA Trashion Show

Young people eagerly design and model outfits at Trashion Shows — This girl made her own bubble-wrap creation for a Zero-Waste inspired Trashion Show on Bainbridge Island, WA

Found materials inspire outfits — In this Trashion example, reclaimed packaging and building materials are layered and modeled on the runway

What is it?

An annual runway showcase of outfits fabricated by community members from found, recycled, or discarded materials. The possibilities for materials are endless, and anyone can be a designer. Cash prizes are awarded to the most riveting designs by a community vote. The Trashion Show challenges those involved to use creativity to approach unique solutions, interact with their neighbors of all ages, and bring to life the history of their town.

Who is involved?

South End neighborhood groups and Waterville art and history organizations organize the event. They plan residencies of artists and local historians in Waterville schools and manage event logistics.

Community members, young and old, form teams to create outfits and share their perceptions of place. A strong group would be a patient quilter who has lived in the neighborhood for decades, an observant young collector, and a fashion-inspired teenager.

What issues does it address?

To some, the South End appears disorderly and neglected. Numerous residents are unable to pay for trash disposal, so garbage accumulates in yards or is dumped illegally. This leads to aversion and stigmatization of the neighborhood.

The South End neighborhood was once a thriving French-speaking working-class enclave, but when the mills closed, social networks largely dissolved, leaving fragmented community and history behind.

South End Clean Up — Dumpsters quickly filled with garbage at this South End clean-up, in October of 2017.

The annual National Night Out in Green Street Park is an existing community celebration in the South End. — The Green Street Park is an central South End place for community celebration.

Goals

Celebrate the manufacturing history of the South End
Develop art through neighborly, collective interaction
Empower South Enders to enact creative solutions
Improve South End livability: revive appearances and pride
Recalibrate the energy generated by investing in community action projects

Trashion Show Runway — Community members gather in Twisp, Washington, to attend the 2017 edition of their community Trashion Show

How is this event paid for?

Ticket sales pay for rental costs and generate profit, to benefit a local arts or youth organization, such as the South End Teen Center, or an action project, like a neighborhood clean-up or mural. Community partners share enthusiasm for the goals and direction of this project, and invest accordingly. Organizers of the event work with schools to apply for district enrichment funds and grants so that artist and historian residencies can occur in classrooms.

Inspiration Projects

\”Secrets from The Street\” by Jo Hanson
Twisp, Washington Trashion Show
Mid-Coast Maine Altered Couture Contest
Bainbridge Island Trashion Show: A Zero-Waste Initiative

Where will the Trashion Show be?

What is the history of garment making in the South End?

Mills alongside the Kennebec were in full production at the tail end of the 19th century.

This 1898 map from the City of Waterville shows the neighborhood developing near the Lockwood company mills, which includes rows of company duplexes along Kennebec Street.

Women Packing Plates c. 1909 (now Huhtamaki)

A line of women pack plates for the Keyes Fibre Company, another factory that provided work for Waterville residents in the early 1900s.

City of Waterville, 1936 Water Street Map

In this 1936 Water Street Map, the dense layout of the South End is apparent.

For early Franco-Americans, the family unit perpetrated culture and maintained community even as it was strained by economic hardships.

Water Street, which runs through the South End, once bustled with various stores that were owned and patronized by French-Canadian immigrant families.

As a growing French-Canadian population migrated to Waterville in the latter half of the 18th century, they settled within walking distance of the factories where they worked. Narrow streets and dense housing were characteristic of the area between the Kennebec River and the Messalonskee stream—The South End. Businesses were abundant and this area became an independent, French-speaking, working class community. The Lockwood Mill complex housed, during various years, the Lockwood Cotton mill and the Hathaway shirt factory. Women played a large role, as weavers and spinners at the Lockwood and as stitchers at the Hathaway, though more prestigious positions were filled by men. Early on, it was not uncommon for even young children to work in the mills.