A new fashion school called Moepööre will be launched in Estonia’s predominantly Russian-speaking Ida-Viru County, allowing fashion lovers to create their own collections under the guidance of fashion designers and to practice Estonian at the same time.
Moepööre (“a fashion reversed” in Estonian) is an initiative of the Estonian Integration Foundation, the Viljandi Culture Academy of the University of Tartu, the Estonian Fashion Festival and Uuskasutuskeskus (the Reuse Centre), with an aim to involve learners of Estonian in the creation of green transition-inspired fashion.
“Creative work can help overcome anxiety related to learning a language. There are many talented designers and seamstresses in Ida-Viru County and elsewhere in Estonia, who do not have good opportunities for starting their own fashion business due to a lack of language skills. We don’t want anyone to miss out on their dreams because of skills that can be developed,” Julia Viirsalu, a teacher at the Estonian Language House in Narva and the project manager of Moepööre, said in a statement.
The fashion school will accept up to 40 people, who would be provided with everything they need to create a green transition-themed fashion collection – starting from workshops with Estonian designers and suitable materials and ending with a public show.
In Moepööre’s workshops, the students can create a collection of clothing and accessories inspired by the green transition and present it publicly. They will pay particular attention to the potential of recycling and reuse in fashion and the creation of their own collections. The list of mentors includes Estonian fashion designers – such as Margot Vaaderpass, the head designer at Ivo Nikkolo; Kätlin Kikkas and Liis Tiisvelt who promote sustainable design; and Anu Sirkas, a creator of knitwear collections.
In addition to creating their own collections, the fashion school students can develop their Estonian language skills. All the activities are in Estonian and are supported by experienced teachers from the Estonian Language House of the Integration Foundation in Narva.
Moepööre is expecting fashion lovers, whose proficiency in Estonian is at least on level A2. The fashion school will start on 5 March. Contact learning will take place at the Estonian Language House in Narva on Sundays over the following three months. The completed fashion collections will be presented at a fashion show in Narva on 11 June.
Applications can be submitted until 26 February.
