LOADS Collection
With more than 20 years of award-winning work dedicated to the restorative ecology and timeless beauty of wool, artist-activist Claudy Jongstra is returning to the fashion world with a radical, net-positive approach to garment creation—LOADS Collection.
More than a collection of garments, LOADS Collection is a collaboration among outstanding makers, any one of whose work on its own could be considered transformative. Bringing this work together, LOADS Collection forms a new, truly revolutionary system that values craftsmanship and supports the cultivation of high-quality, ecological materials with revitalizing impacts on the very landscape that produces them.
Each LOADS Collection garment is composed of the highest quality biodynamic, natural fibres — Drenthe Heath wool from Claudy Jongstra’s own herd of indigenous Drenthe Heath sheep, Spanish Merino heritage wool raised by Maria Pia Sanchez on her family’s ranch Dehesa de la Rinconada, and Demeter-certified Egyptian cotton grown by Egyptian sustainable development initiative SEKEM.
Relying solely on plant-based dyes, each colour in the collection can be traced back to its botanical source on small-scale, biodynamic farms in the Netherlands and Spain. Harvested by hand and artfully distilled into baths of clean, brilliant colour, these plants are then returned to the earth as nutrient-rich compost.
LOADS Collection comes directly out of the collaborative, ecological and traceable way of working that Claudy Jongstra has carefully cultivated in her artistic practice. Her atelier and biodynamic farm in the northern countryside of the Netherlands, developed together with her partner Claudia Busson, has grown into a creative hub for a diverse range of creatives. LOADS Collection brings together the extraordinary work of collaborating makers, architects, farmers, designers, manufacturers and social enterprises.
Championing ecologically-raised Drenthe Heath wool as her primary artistic material, Claudy Jongstra restores the value of a material facing a sharp decline due to the industrialization of textile production and the introduction of synthetic fibers. Over 50% of the global supply of wool is discarded annually. In the Netherlands alone, 1.5 million kilos of wool are burned each year.
The ever-increasing speed of the textile industry—driven by fast fashion—accelerates and intensifies pollution, waste and emissions. Every second, a truckload of textile waste is dumped in a landfill or incinerated. Because clothes are chemically dyed and treated, they account for 22% of hazardous waste globally. These chemical dyes are also responsible for one-fifth of global water pollution, impacting our drinking water, our rivers and seas, and the diverse ecosystems they support. Meanwhile, the production of new textiles generates 8% of global carbon emissions, exceeding the polluting impact of maritime shipping and international flights combined. LOADS Collection is the antidote to fashion’s destructive impact.
Logo by Irma Boom
Photo's by Marcel van der Vlugt
Instagram : @loadscollection
Are you interested in seeing LOADS collection and customized pieces in our new, circular renovated LOADS building, by appointment on each friday 12:00-17:00.
Contact : info@loadscollection.com