CPHFW Official Talk Program: Craft is Key – Can Traditions of the Past Solve Obstacles of the Future
Our SS26 talk series with Vogue Business as media partner make up a vital element of the official schedule each season, representing an opportunity to dig deeper into wider issues facing fashion.
Copenhagen Fashion Week will bring the SS26 talk program to a live audience, with a dedicated talk being held each day in the Copenhagen Fashion Week Talk hub hosted in Verpan, right in the center of the city.
Attendance to the talk program is open to the public and will be on a first come first served basis and will include a 30-minute panel talk followed by a 15-minute Q&A. The talk will activate the global network of Copenhagen Fashion Week, inviting industry leaders from a variety of organisations and practices to speak across the topics at hand.
Furthermore, Copenhagen Fashion Week is excited to announce Vogue Business as an official media partner, who will use their global audience to amplify the reach of the talks that will be launched as podcasts post release.
About Verner Panton:
Verpan – for Verner Panton – is a design company working closely with Verner Panton Design to preserve, reissue and recontextualise the Danish architect and designer’s radiant body of work.
Born in 1926, Verner Panton came to represent a new direction and energy in Danish design history – deeply original, daringly experimental – for close to five decades. Creating visually distinctive furniture, lighting and objects as well as immersive interiors, his spirit and work remains radically ahead of the curve. Concerned with the future and our capacity to imagine it, his vast output is full of vibrant and playful pieces with a social character, made to be enjoyed, for pleasure.
Craft is Key: Can Traditions of the Past Solve Obstacles of the Future
A discussion on the role that craft currently plays within the fashion landscape, and whether a volatile future for the industry could signal a return to traditional practices.
This talk examines the resurgence of traditional techniques in contemporary design, asking whether heritage methods offer not just aesthetic value, but tangible solutions to the industry's most pressing challenges. Panelists explore how slow, skilled, and often regional practices are being reimagined for a new era of sustainability and innovation. Could looking back be the key to moving forward?
To explore the topic, moderator Emily Chan, Senior Sustainability Editor & Acting Executive Fashion News and Features Editor at British Vogue, brings together Indré Rockefeller, Founder of The Circularity Project, Nana Sacko, Fashion Leader & Founder, Oriole Cullen, Senior Curator of Fashion and Textiles at the Victoria and Albert Museum, and Tina Lemke, Marketing & Brand Experience Manager at OnceMore® from Södra.
Moderater:
Emily Chan, Senior Sustainability Editor & Acting Executive Fashion News and Features Editor, British Vogue
Emily Chan is the Senior Sustainability & Features Editor at British Vogue and covers all things related to sustainability in fashion and beyond, from the designers pushing for change to the climate activists we should be paying attention to.
Panelists:
Indré Rockefeller, Founder, The Circularity Project
Indré Rockefeller is a climate communicator, entrepreneur, and Founder of The Circularity Project, a nonprofit dedicated to championing circular design in fashion with the goal of sparking creative approaches to reducing the industry's environmental footprint. Indré began her fashion career at Vogue and held senior executive positions at e-tailer Moda Operandi and Spanish luxury fashion brand, Delpozo. Before launching The Circularity Project, Indré was the Co-Founder and Creative Director of Paravel, where she oversaw the award-winning sustainable design. Indré graduated from Columbia University’s Climate School, where she earned her Masters degree and launched an educational series on climate change that has amassed over 7 million views. She holds a BA from Princeton University and an MBA from Stanford University.
Nana Sacko, Fashion Lead & Founder, Sacko
Nana Sacko is a fashion and textile lead with over 20 years of industry experience, specializing in design, production, and material sourcing. As the founder of Sacko, a small-scale dyeing studio, she champions natural dyes and circular design practices through curated slow fashion collections rooted in craftsmanship and cultural heritage. Nana is also dedicated to talent development for fashion designers, nurturing new industry leaders and driving innovation and circular design in western Sweden.
Oriole Cullen, Senior Curator of Fashion and Textiles, Victoria and Albert Museum
Oriole Cullen is a Senior Curator of Fashion and Textiles at the Victoria and Albert Museum where she has run the Museum’s contemporary Fashion in Motion programme since 2006. Prior to joining the V&A, she worked as curator for Dress and Decorative Arts at the Museum of London. A graduate of the Courtauld Institute, her recent exhibitions and accompanying publications include Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams (V&A 2019, Long Museum Shanghai 2020) and Gabrielle Chanel. Fashion Manifesto (V&A 2023). She is currently working on the V&A’s new permanent fashion gallery due to open in 2027.
Tina Lemke, Marketing & Brand Experience Manager, OnceMore® from Södra
Tina Lemke’s background is in fashion, having worked with several Swedish brands such as Lindex and Vagabond Shoemakers. She has been involved in marketing and digital marketing in various capacities, primarily as a project manager for digital initiatives and sales. At the beginning of 2023, her career took an exciting new turn. As Marketing & Brand Experience Manager at OnceMore® by Södra, she is now helping drive change in the fashion industry - raising awareness around textile-to-textile recycling and the innovative MMCF processes and products.
