He admitted that while studying at Esmod Jakarta, the demands for creativity and artistic taste were not a big problem. He could fulfill them well. Emil, as he is called, is quite confident in his ability to fulfill them easily.
However, “I don’t want to cut new fabric. Making roro4d clothes is too easy. I want to recycle,” he said, repeating what he had said to his teachers at Esmod Jakarta when he was about to graduate.
Emil admitted that the idea was based on his concern about society’s consumerist attitude towards fashion. Added to that was his anxiety about seeing the reality in the environment of fashion people.
He saw many contrasts between the fashion world he entered, including his school environment, and the social reality around him. He felt uncomfortable with that. “You could say that from first grade to third grade, depression continued to increase. Third grade was the peak,” Emil recalled.
“I was really fed up with the social circle of fashion. Then I thought, how come here lives so glamorously. How come, it’s as if the people here (fashion social circle-ed), can be said to be quite elite compared to most of those I see outside the fashion environment. How come their lives are like this, while there are people out there who have trouble even eating. Then, I also thought, these luxurious clothes, after the fashion show, where do the clothes go? From there I looked back again. There was a call to collect used goods from the past, so I took advantage of that,” said the woman who had been a fashion history teacher at Esmod Jakarta.
His decision to choose the path of making clothes from used and discarded materials was realized by building the Nobis Pacem brand. It means more or less “we are at peace”. He was quite sure of this unusual choice, although he admitted that it was not easy. Therefore, for now he has not been able to make a ready-to-wear recycled clothing collection. The production is still based on orders. But he does not hesitate to face the challenge. Quoting Tan Malaka’s words, “Idealism is the last luxury that only young people have. Well, if I die, I will die trying,” he said enthusiastically.