A design commission presented by MPavilion, Open House Melbourne and Melbourne Music Week, MERGE is a collaborative project that sees five local music acts respond to—and perform in—five local heritage locations. The artists chosen for MERGE represent a microcosm of the eclectic musical talent that has made Melbourne a global music hub.

Tune in and watch these pre recorded performances as part of MPavilion 2020’s virtual program, wearing custom designed garments by RMIT Bachelor of Fashion (Design) students.

Students of the Bachelor of Fashion (Design) program at RMIT University School of Fashion and Textiles draw inspiration from MPavilion MERGE artists who are due to perform at select Open House Melbourne venues – to develop and create designs reimagined for performance. As the next generation of fashion design leaders, the students have speculated on the future of fashion while working remotely due to the COVID-19 related social distancing measures. The work embodies the collective zeitgeist in response to the unprecedented conditions through a diverse range of projects and propositions including physically contactless digital filters and speculations, sustainable design and making practices, reflections on diverse identities and heritage, as well as ideas of place.

The students participating reflect the diverse national and international mix of the student cohort in the Bachelor of Fashion (Design) program at RMIT University; including from the Netherlands (Amsterdam), China, Interstate, and regional Victoria as well as from here in Melbourne. The MERGE fashion project looks to draw from the shared synergies between musician and designer to consider a fashion of music performance.

For part two of the project, these musicians will perform their new musical work as part of MPavilion 2020’s expanded program and Melbourne Music Week, live at MPavilion 2015 by Amanda Levete, at Collins Street, Docklands, at a date to be announced.

This event is free, and will be streamed online.

https://mpavilion.org/program/merge-x-rmit-fashion-design/

Acknowledgements across all infeed post captions: MERGE is presented by MPavilion, Open House Melbourne and Melbourne Music Week. Supported by Victorian Trades Hall Council, National Trust of Australia (Victoria), Villa Alba Museum and Australian Tapestry Workshop. With thanks to RMIT Bachelor of Fashion (Design).