In 2014 I founded Folkwear Society.

I envisioned an online educational platform dedicated to digitalising rare knowledge on cultural and folk artefacts and aimed to build a community of collectors, art historians, cultural anthropologists, museum experts and connect them with pure enthusiasts from across the world.

Starting with my native country, I single-handedly carried out the research for salvaging the knowledge and history around folk clothing and artefacts from Romania, including archive research, museum experts’ and collectors’ meetings, and travelling the country to source precious artefacts.

At www.folkwearsociety.com, people can now learn about the history of the folk culture and folk art in Romania, the ancient techniques of making of these items from hemp or linen fabrics, the typologies and the ethnographic regions specific to types of folk wear.

The project has no commercial outlet and relies on salvaging and preserving original ethnic clothing and continuously generating anthropological content, together with offering the space for debates on issues of sustainable fashion, heritage, the meanings of “authenticity”, zero-waste design and ethical trading.

I collaborated with branding agency Brandient in developing the name, the visual identity, brand architecture, website and merchandise design of the Folkwear Society platform.

Branding Agency: Brandient

Photography: Horatiu Sovaiala