What we wear can directly communicate to people around us. ›Don’t worry I’m clean‹ is an attempt to approach an uncomfortable but very real issue of STIs (sexual trans-mitted diseases). With this project we want to facilitate a well needed dialogue among friends, partners or even strangers. Derived from microscopic images frominfectology books, we created patterns, as rare as they are visually intriguing, that act as as oft opener to a conversation we should not avoid and a gentle reminder to keep safe.

In 2022, the number of reported cases [in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA)] saw a significant increase compared to the previous year, with gonorrhoea cases rising by 48%, syphilis cases by 34%, and chlamydia cases by 16%. We discussed carefully how we wanted to approach the discourse and agreed on a medium that felt exactly the opposite: warm, sensitive and protective. Something that’s tangible and interesting to explore, that tells a story through a soft and cosy material – wool.

In the time of the Covid19-pandemic many of us experienced isolation and a great increase in distance towards the people surrounding us. Locked behind our screens, we checked in on friends, family and colleagues yet probably all felt a lack of true connection. Touch and physical interaction can trigger mechanisms in our body that reduce stress, aggression and feeling overwhelmed. Moreover, research shows that physical contact can act as a natural antidepressant. Our own experience of that time lead us to reconsider our personal relationship to proximity in an era in which a lot of social exchange and experiences happen online. How does it affect our mental health? What does that say about the quality of connections and relate to our physical well being? Are words enough to stay in touch? 

Across time and space clothing has long had the role to signify status, roles, heritage and other messages, one wanted or had to signal to the world around. While the visual codification bears potential for conflict, too, we wanted to explore the idea of visualising contemporary events and contexts affecting us all in a society instead of individual predicates in everyday garments.