Long before 'upcycling' and 'sustainable fashion' became marketing slogans, Susan Cianciolo was already doing it all. Between 1995 and 2001, her label, RUN, built a cult following by treating fashion not as a product, but as a practice.
An Antidote to 90s Fashion
To understand the
impact of Susan Cianciolo, you have to picture the era she emerged from. The mid-1990s fashion landscape was defined by extremes: the high glamour of supermodels, the severe minimalism of designers like Calvin Klein and Helmut Lang, and the mass-produced gloss of corporate brands. Into this world stepped Cianciolo with her label, RUN, which operated for 11 collections from 1995 to 2001. Her shows weren't on traditional runways; they were happenings in art galleries, under bridges, or in pop-up restaurants. Instead of polished garments, she presented one-of-a-kind, handmade pieces that were intentionally raw, personal, and imperfect. It was a quiet but radical defiance of the industry's demand for commercial perfection and seasonal disposability.
The Art of Mending and Memory
Cianciolo’s central thesis was that existing things are beautiful. She worked with recycled fabrics, thrift-store finds, and textiles gifted by friends, transforming them through a process of deconstruction and painstaking reconstruction. Unlike today’s slick, commercialized 'upcycling', her approach was deeply personal. Garments were adorned with hand-stitching, drawings, and even evidence of past lives, like stains or frays. This wasn’t about erasing imperfections but celebrating them as part of an object's history. She sold DIY kits, complete with materials and instructions, empowering people to create their own versions of her designs. This philosophy treated clothing not as a finished product to be consumed, but as an ongoing story to be participated in, mended, and added to over time.
Building a 'Collection' of People
The word 'community' is now a staple of brand mission statements, but for Cianciolo, it was the literal method of production. For RUN, the term 'collection' referred as much to the gathering of people as it did to the clothes themselves. Her garments were often created in collaborative 'sewing circles' with friends, family, and other artists, turning the solitary act of design into a communal one. This spirit extended to her presentations. The RUN Restaurant, first staged in a New York gallery in 2001, was a performance piece where every element—from the food to the interiors to the clothes worn by staff—was part of the experience. It was a rejection of the passive consumer-brand relationship, instead creating a space for shared creation, hospitality, and connection.
From Radical Act to Industry Buzzword
Cianciolo stepped away from the fashion industry in 2001, citing burnout from its relentless pace. In the decades since, the concepts she pioneered—repair, reuse, craft, and community—have been fully absorbed and commercialized by the mainstream. Today, luxury brands tout their sustainability credentials while still operating on a model of mass production. The 'handmade' aesthetic has become a widely replicated trend. Yet Cianciolo’s work remains a vital touchstone, influencing a new generation of DIY-spirited designers. Her career serves as a powerful reminder that these now-commonplace ideas began not as marketing strategies, but as a radical, deeply personal philosophy about how to live and create in a world of excess. Her approach, which fuses art and life, continues to challenge what fashion is and what it could be.
