International Symposium: Fashion Beyond the Centers – Identity on the Margins

You are kindly invited to the international symposium Fashion Beyond the Centers: Identity on the Margins, which will take place on 11 December 2025, from 9:00 to 12:30, in the Small Hall on the 1st floor of Center Rog.

Geographical space, cultural diversity, and social integration are central concepts in fashion that shape both its creation and dissemination. Fashion can be understood not only as a material construct with measurable dimensions and value, but also as a space of symbolic meaning attributed to specific fashion identities. In contemporary discourse, the concept of space has expanded to include questions of identity, belonging, and cultural representation. Within national contexts, geographical space is closely intertwined with the formation of both individual and collective fashion identities.

The symbolic significance of major urban fashion centers—often situated within hierarchies of dominance—plays a crucial role in shaping the global fashion system. The influence of these dominant local and global geographies on the production and perception of fashion remains a subject of critical examination, particularly in light of the growing visibility and impact of peripheral fashion hubs and alternative style communities. The idea of a “universal” fashion paradigmatic model maintains a form of voluntary global uniformity that often overlooks the cultural, social, and geographical specificities of the so-called fashion periphery. This dynamic sustains existing inequalities in the fashion system, grounded in the unequal distribution of cultural capital, historical privileges, and the symbolic value associated with geographic origin and clothing practices.

Guest speakers:

• Assist. Prof. MA Lidija Jovanović, Metropolitan University, Belgrade, Serbia
• Lea Vene, Faculty of Textile Technology, University of Zagreb, and CIMO – Center for Fashion and Clothing Research, Croatia
• Petra Jerič, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Maribor, and Vivre, Slovenia
• Ivana Biočina, Institute of Sustainable Fashion, Koprivnica, Croatia
• Tina Princ, Things I Miss, Ljubljana, Slovenia
• Assoc. Prof. Tanja Devetak, Faculty of Design and Center for Design Research, Ljubljana, Slovenia
• Vanja Meško Russenberger, Meško, Berlin, Germany

The symposium is supported by Center Rog and the Faculty of Design.

The producer is the Center for Design Research. The project is co-funded by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia.