THE NOT SO WEEKLY EDIT: From supporting Ukrainian designerS, smart fitness, digital beauty to an NFT fragrance and Metaverse Fashion Week

Sink into our latest research edit, highlighting some of the most innovative trends we have come across, from smart fitness, digital beauty to NFT fragrance and Metaverse Fashion Week.

WORLD | Ukrainian Conceptual Brand DZHUS, whose founder I interviewed, is selling their evacuated stock to support the Ukrainian army and animals. On February 24th, the DZHUS team experienced explosions all over the horizon in Ukraine, as Russia began its attack. After an extremely difficult journey, they were able to find refuge in Warsaw Poland, along with their 3 cats. It was only possible to bring as many outfits as would fit in one luggage piece, so the hard choice was made immediately - and a small SS22 drop was given a chance. Until the team finds a way to resume their production processes, they have focused on selling this limited stock and donating 30-50% of proceeds. As an ethical and cruelty-free brand, DZHUS will be donating part of their profits to animal shelters and support of the Ukrainian army.

The brand gained recognition due its experimental and multipurpose garments, that are transformable. DZHUS embodies avant-garde yet functional design concepts through sustainable practices. During this difficult time in Ukraine, it is critical that the international community can unify and help save the authentic heritage of this peaceful and independent country.

To buy DZHUS products, go to https://www.irinadzhus.com/shop . For more information about the brand, visit here. You are also welcome to donate any amount to Ukrainian army here.

FASHION | Ukrainian upcycle designers you can support. Alterist marketplace created a guide to support a community of upcycled fashion designers, to help spread awareness and support these sustainable Ukrainian brands. The guide showcases talented designers including, Slow.ly, Upcycling, RCR Khomenko, Upcycling Freaks and Grey,dr to name a few.

VISUAL | Is what you see really what you get? A recent article published by Data Detox Kit, explores how visual misinformation can be very simple to create. Technology makes it possible to distort photos and videos, using advanced software programs. The negative consequences of misinformation resulted in mass confusion during the pandemic and influencing the results of an election. So how can we verify what we see? The article delves into the three typical types of cheap fakes that are most commonly used to spread visual misinformation across many platforms including Tik Tok, Meta, Instagram & Whatsapp.

NFT | Look Labs formulated the world’s first digital fragrance as an NFT. Using near-infrared spectroscopy, Berlin-based, Look Labs, has developed a digital fragrance which has been encoded as an NFT. The lab recorded the molecular wavelength and extracted a digital reflection of a physical scent of a perfume named Cyber Eau de Parfum, in order to make the NFT. "Look Labs translates the scent of Cyber Eau de Parfum into an NFT artwork making it the world's first digital fragrance," explained the studio.

SMART FITNESS | A new advancement in the fitness industry has changed how we look at fitness. Due to lack of movement and long office hours, especially during the pandemic, many people have developed back or neck pain due to bad posture and lack of physical stimulation and stretching on a regular basis. An article featured in Design Wanted, explores an innovative ‘smart fitness’ mat designed by a Korean designer By Minjco. The Solelp mat turns stretching into an interactive game, using LIDAR sensors and integrated LEDs to track motion. This is bringing a ‘Gamification experience’ into exercise, to make working out more pleasurable and immersive, by tracking workouts, rep-counts and rewarding users for reaching goals. “In order to motivate stretching, there must be an added sense of achievement and entertainment that people can feel right away,” says By Minjco.

MATERIALS | The State of Resin 3D printing. Jason Rolland from Materials at Carbon, offers insights into the world of 3D printing and materials. In a recent interview for the 3D printing Industry, Rolland discusses the development of resin-based 3D printing. Huge innovative advancements such as the Adidas Futurecraft 4D and 4DFWD have been made with the Digital Light Synthesis, putting 3D printing into the performance running category. In Rolland’s words “This has made the advancement in dual-care resin technology much more exciting”.

METAVERSE | The first ever Metaverse Fashion Week happened this past week. Fashion houses such as Paco Rabanna and Roberto Cavalli, alongside 50 other brands made an appearance on Decentraland from March 24th- March 27th, to debut their virtual SS22 collection. ‘Decentraland is a 3D virtual world and browser-based platform with software running on the Ethereum blockchain’. An Ethereum wallet was required to purchase anything that was wearable. Designers such as Mowalola, Mimi Wade and Collina Strada have attempted to stage their runway shows on IMVU, in order to replicate the feel of a real-life fashion week. The Metaverse Fashion Week showcased entertainment such as fashion films by Chanel and Lanvin, engaging panel discussions with industry-leaders like Alexandre de Betak. The event also featured a headline performance by Grimes as part of the AUROBOROS experience.

FOOD | Can Artificial Food Put an End to Famine? The Medical Futurist published an insightful article on the future of the food system. The pandemic has deepened the crisis of global hunger and malnutrition, according to UN “we are now at a critical moment in time that requires new food systems approaches and urgent actions at scale to get back on track”. The State of Food Security and Nutrition report offered disheartening statistics regarding the famine and obesity crisis worldwide. It has been suggested that between 720 and 811 million in the world face hunger. As the population continues to grow, and we face an incoming food crisis due the war in Ukraine (they produce a 3rd of the world’s wheat), artificial food could be the future, by providing the population with the appropriate nutrition on a smaller scale, with a market of $2.7 trillion for “cell-based meat” as an alternative.

SPACE, AI, BIOTECH & THE HUMAN CONDITION | With NASA’s exoplanets announcement, the debut of “no-code” software development and the first early success in CRISPR-based therapy trials, perhaps now is the time to ask: what will the most unsettling technologies mean for human identity and the human condition? That’s the subject of What Will Life Become?, an in-person conversational gathering hosted by USC and the Berggruen Institute in Los Angeles on April 21, 2022. Expert speakers will include Vice Chair of Digital Biology and Medicine at Singularity University Tiffany Vora; founder of Google’s Artists + Machine Intelligence K Allado-McDowell; and historian of space technology Lisa Ruth Rand. A reception will follow.

FOOD | Redemptive Diets: Pathways to an improved global food system. Brands and consumers are coming together to build a sustainable and resilient food system that supports societal change and secures the food supply chain. A recent article published by Anuga highlights the necessary means to find new approaches and attitudes to our global food system and explores the reasons why we eat and how we should eat, with the aim to help business and consumers develop environmentally friendly practices. The 2030’s will see a variety of approaches to food ranging from, cultivation space, flavour museums, ‘climatarian’ diets and desert superfoods.

BEAUTY | Dip into P&G’s newest and innovative digital beauty experience, BeautySphere, an immersive and digital world presenting possible futures in experience Beauty retail. BeautySphere is the beginning of P&G Beauty’s presence in the metaverse, with a virtual experience allowing consumers to interact via simulated gamification content. “BeautySPHERE was inspired by our ongoing commitment to find new and surprising ways for people to connect with our brands, products and values,” shares Alex Keith, CEO, P&G Beauty.

ARCHITECTURE | The Island of Okinawa, Japan, features an impressive collection of brutalist structures, made up of 90% harsh, imposing concrete. This is quite a unique contrast due to the combination of climate and war, which have turned Okinawa into an accidental treasure of architectural brutalism. British Photographer Paul Tulette beautifully captures the chunky concrete buildings, shedding light on an area of Okinawa that has been preserved since the 1950s.