The project is neither haute couture nor prêt-à-porter; instead, it places the individual – their personality and attitude – on the catwalk. Real Central European men are walking it. In certain social groups, stereotypical perceptions of fashion are shaped by conservatism, so-called ‘good’ or ‘classic’ taste, and simply a fear of change or of attracting attention.

We propose an inverse situation, attempting to show you what you look like. If you are not wearing a trendy wine-red jumper this season, does that mean you are hopelessly failing at fashion, or that your style is resistant to fashion’s whims? Supply and demand. Daily life versus fashion. Is it possible to draw a line between ‘fashionable’ and ‘unfashionable’?

Life itself has made fashion more tolerant. It is no longer firmly dictated; instead, we have something more democratic: trends. They allow one to go with or against the flow, or even jump in and out of different streams, demonstrating excellent fashion knowledge, a complete disregard for it, or perhaps showing that one’s interests lie elsewhere. In such cases, one’s understanding of fashion might be closer to the ‘dress like everyone else’ approach, where ‘everyone else’ means specifically people of the same background or those one looks up to.

Men’s fashion remains very conservative, especially in casual wear unrelated to performative self-representation. Therefore, fashion itself is not as important as the speed with which it affects our lives and how much of it actually ends up in our wardrobes.

– Project statement

‘The press struggled with what exactly it should cover: the styles of the upcoming season, the people themselves, or their personal stories.’

– Rima Povilionytė, ‘Mados infekcija’, 7 meno dienos, 16 November 2001