'Vogue'-Featured NYC Designer Faces Backlash for Not Crediting Filipino "Basahan" Design
info@hypebae.com (HYPEBAE) Mon, 14 Feb 2022 HYPEBAE
Last week, Vogue featured New York-based furniture designer Elise McMahon and textile artist Francesca Capone's sustainable T-shirt project spotlighting handmade looms. However, after the article's release, Filipino-American Jan Vincent Gonzales took to Instagram to call out the publication for not shedding light on the fact that the design resembles the "basahan," which translates to "rag" in English.
"The 'basahan' has been around for generations in the Philippines. Why don't you give that a little more light?" Gonzales addresses Vogue Runway. "Our people have inherently been sustainable. We just haven't been labeled as such. But when a white person does the same thing, you applaud them and perpetuate this white savior narrative while demonizing other countries who are, in the end, having to answer for our country's waste," he adds.
The MERCADO VICENTE founder also includes screenshots of the "basahan" in the Philippines that are traditionally used as wiping cloths or doormats. In another post, Gonzales says: "Why am I still on this and so f*cking pissed? Because I’ve worked with these two creatives on trying to get press coverage for their work from the likes of @voguerunway and heard nothing -- yet here we are seeing this small studio owned by a white woman get all this glory and praise for something our people have had for generations."
Since being made aware of the technique that's been used in Latin, African and other South East Asian countries for many years, McMahon has addressed the issue on her Instagram, stating: "I have been focused on educating myself and asking myself how I didn't know about this and what I can do now that I know." In a recent interview, Gonzales comments: "I'm not placing the sole blame on McMahon and Capone here. Because if the last two years have taught us anything, it's that the entire system needs to be changed."
Vogue has not released an official statement regarding the issue. However, it seems to have edited its story with the mention of the Philippines in its feature: "There is a long, global precedent for creative approaches to upcycling discarded garments through weaving: In the Philippines, for example, discarded textiles are woven into doormats known as 'basahan' that are found in most homes."
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