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Maria Medina Medina

Central Saint Martins

I am a Colombian fashion and textile designer based in London. My background in textiles, tailoring, and womenswear has turned me into a designer who looks to traditional craft and pushes it towards a modern fashion context, questioning the boundaries of what we consider fashion. My work is rooted in telling stories that haven’t been told before. In finding a niche cultural or historical narrative, or theory, or perspective, and pushing it towards the light. I try to explore what’s been forgotten, and question what is being told instead. My professional experience at Erdem, Knatchbull, and Edward Sexton, Savile Row, has turned me into a versatile, adaptable designer. I have a deep appreciation for traditional textile and fashion construction practices that inspire my design process and allow me to subvert them. Finally, my studies at Central Saint Martins in both Textile and Womenswear Design have turned me into a curious designer, always looking for an answer for a more sustainable and creative fashion industry.

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Chiquita

Category: Apparel

Competitions: Fashion Competition 2026

This project is a conversation about rebranding. About brands erasing their pasts, changing their logos, and hoping that people forget. Forget the pain they’ve created and the lives they’ve stained. This project was inspired by Chiquita, previously known as the United Fruit Company. In the 20th century, the fruit exporters heavily influenced Colombia's economy and politics. In 1928, they instigated the Banana Massacre. In 1984, they changed their name, took the shotgun off their logo, and erased their past. Through the lens of fast fashion companies and denim manufacturers, this project uses materiality to bring awareness to the dangers of a rebrand without accountability. Drawing parallels between the fruit and textile industries, this project uses fashion as a form of protest. Through recycled deadstock fabric and bioplastic sequins and embellishments, the materiality of the textile collection in this project tells a story of hope and resourcefulness through accountability. These “jeans” show how clothes can visualise a sustainable future in material, environmental, and social terms. Reimagining one of the most environmentally damaging sectors of the fashion industry, the denim industry, this garment is made with 100% lightweight cotton and embellished with biodegradable bioplastic sequins made with recycled denim. This garment is thus a proposal for a more environmentally conscious version of denim that repurposes deadstock fabric. Although rebranding can be incredibly dangerous, if done with accountability and enough creativity and intentionality, it can push us to find new ways of producing and creating, promoting a more sustainable industry and future.

In association with Arts Thread

Working with our partners at Arts Thread to develop lifelong learning and career opportunities for students of fashion and design. Our partnership provides the opportunity to compete on a world stage, participate in industry led workshops, set up an outstanding portfolio and gain access to the resources that will kickstart careers in fashion and design.