The Alchemist - Manifesto

WE need to cultivate a different
understanding of value.

WE are too eager to discard 
clothing that we consider no longer
has value.

WE need to recognize that we can
transform this clothing with our
own hands, and by doing so, give
it new value.

WE all have the potential to be
‚alchemists‘, its just a question
of attitude.

So much of the clothing we discard (because we consider it worthless) can become valuable simply by transforming it through upcycling, reclaiming or repair. Too many of us are blind to our own ability to be alchemists. The medieval alchemist magically transformed cheap metal into gold (metaphorically). The contemporary alchemist magically transforms discarded cloth into cloth that is valuable by using the processes of upcycling, reclaiming or repair.

A rag is usually discarded cloth that is no longer of any use and therefore no longer of value, so the only function it has before it‘s thrown away is to be used for cleaning things. On the other hand, a flag is a piece of cloth that is rich in value because it symbolizes and celebrates a country, belief etc. in fact, there is a phrase „from rags to riches“ which describes a person‘s rise from a state of extreme poverty to a state of great wealth.

The textile and fashion industries do not value ‚old cloth‘ because ‚new cloth‘ brings economic profit. The only function these industries give to old cloth is as rags ‚oiling and cleaning the machines‘ that produce new cloth.

The gold thread on my flag is a reminder of the medieval alchemist, who magically transformed cheap metal into gold. Embroidering my „fingerprints“ onto my flag shows that the hands of the contemporary alchemist can achieve what industrial machines cannot achieve: the „hand done“, which will always have special value.