Vegan leather and plant-based textiles: the future of sustainable fashion at the European Capital of Culture
Ethical fashion reaches its ultimate expression when sustainable textile innovation meets performance art. This is exactly what happened in Nova Gorica, as part of GO! 2025 European Capital of Culture, where Slovenian designer Matea Benedetti transformed the runway into a living manifesto of sustainability through immersive scenography. Her creations, crafted from cutting-edge plant-based materials, redefine the very concept of contemporary luxury.
Material Transformation and Reuse
Matea Benedetti stands as an absolute pioneer of sustainable fashion for her use of materials derived from plant sources and organic waste. Her continuously evolving research has been a reference point for years in the fashion industry’s search for alternatives to animal leather and polluting synthetics.
One of the stars of the Benedetti Life collection is leather made from olives: a biomaterial produced from olive oil production waste, where leaves and pressing residues become a resistant, luxurious, and completely cruelty-free material. Equally central is Piñatex®, obtained from pineapple leaf fibers normally considered waste in tropical plantations. This breathable and versatile fabric requires no additional farmland and generates income for local communities.
The designer’s research also includes the use of textile fiber derived from eucalyptus, which requires little water and no pesticides. Seaweed represents an emerging frontier: cellulose combined with powdered algae creates a soft, breathable fabric that’s comfortable in various climates. It also possesses extraordinary properties thanks to minerals that provide benefits when in contact with skin. Seaweed, a renewable resource growing abundantly in oceans, requires no land, freshwater, or fertilizers.
Benedetti Life’s philosophy fully embraces upcycling: garments donated by Manca Košir and renowned primatologist Jane Goodall were transformed into haute couture creations, representing a powerful message of recovery. Every piece has a story, every fiber can rewrite a new life, just as production waste can still be transformed. This is also the message of the “From Waste to Beauty” competition, which during the evening awarded young designers with prestigious opportunities.
Art and Sustainability in Nova Gorica
The event wasn’t just a retrospective of Benedetti Life’s sustainable work but a multidisciplinary artistic experience. Under Nikola Zavišić’s direction, with dancers from MN Dance Company, original music by Anže Igličar, and video by Filip Mikic, the show narrated the journey from industrialization, through apocalyptic atmospheres, to a possible bright sustainable renaissance.
The atmosphere became charged with emotion thanks to the intense musical performance by Boris Benko of Duo Silence, marking the transition to rebirth. Symbolizing this new phase, singer Helena Blagne appeared in a white dress with fluid lines, concrete proof that beauty can emerge from recycling plastic bottles, just like other couture creations made entirely from pieces of Heineken cans, event partner. The evening’s closing was entrusted to a powerful message: women over 75 from the Šavrini theater company wore the slogan “DON’T HARM, JUST CHARM.”
“Through fashion, I want to inspire a global transition toward conscious consumption, respect for nature and animals, and ethical aesthetics. I believe true luxury comes from pure sources and intentions,” declares Matea Benedetti. Benedetti Life doesn’t simply dress the body but cloaks the soul with awareness of a kinder future. It’s not just fashion but a pact with Mother Earth, where every thread tells stories of responsibility and commitment, and every fiber carries respect, innovation, and authentic beauty.
In an era when the fashion industry is held responsible for serious environmental impact, Benedetti’s work points to a concrete path toward positive transformation.
Discover the collection dedicated to the majesty of whales at www.benedetti.life.
By Dinah de Fina
Ph: Arin Rapus, Andraz Fijavz Bacovnik