Meet Carina Roca Portella, Redress Design Award 2019 Runner-up Prize winner

Activism and the sense of community it inspires provides the kickstart for Carina Roca Portella’s bold, graphic collection named ‘Caution Line’. “I was inspired by the strength and feeling you get when you join together with others for the same cause,” she says. “I wanted this energy in my collection.” Rallying statements, aimed largely at fast fashion, are printed across garments cut from up-cycled end-of-rolls as well as cut-and-sew waste. Another source of raw materials came from El Celler de Can Roca, twice named the best restaurant in the world, in Carina’s hometown of Girona. “The Roca brothers provided me with table cloths and napkins for the projects,” says Carina, who is studying for her second MA in Styling, Image and Communication at ESDI, Barcelona.

“El Celler de Can Roca wants to be the first truly zero-waste restaurant in the world. I’m pleased to have played a part in their project by giving life to something previously considered obsolete.” Carina engages directly with the wearer of her clothes - through lively care instructions and the inclusion of patterns to turn the item into something new. Reminders of the fabrics’ origins are screen printed on linings and labels. “I want to have a voice in the sustainable fashion world and to challenge the fast fashion industry,” says Carina. “I’ve worked in jobs that didn’t care about the planet or society. They left me unfulfilled and unmotivated. That’s why I want to make a statement that is complex and beautiful. I aim to empower others to become conscious consumers and to change the way they perceive sustainability. As fashion designers, we need to raise awareness of what is going on right now and encourage citizens to use their power as consumers.”

Featured