COLLECTION 06 - YAD

In Galib Gassanoff's native Azerbaijani, YAD signifies “foreign” or “strange” , evoking a sense of not belonging. Simultaneously, as a borrowed word, it also means “memory” or “to remember.”

Institution is YAD in two ways: one side represents the memory of the creator, the communities, cultural belonging, and heritage; the other reflects the reality of not belonging, the place where we exist and present our memories.

A selection of carpets from the Caucasus, Anatolia, Northern Iran, and Central Asia covers the runway, evoking the culture of the creator, who was raised among carpets in his hometown in Georgia. The selected carpets are primarily woven with the Turkic Gördes knot or are kilims, both representing the cultural memory of populations spanning from Siberia and West Asia to Eastern Europe.

The models walk barefoot on the runway, dressed in handmade jorabs, traditional socks. In the Caucasus, people typically remove their shoes before entering a home. The jorabs showcased are hand-knitted by Azerbaijani artisans in Georgia's Kvemo Kartli region, using wool from their own livestock.

Three sculptural knitted pieces crafted from cotton cord have been handmade by the same community, offering a contemporary reinterpretation of this ancestral craft.

The looks represent an evolution of human forms, emphasized and restructured through materials ranging from silk to stainless steel. Tetri - the Georgian fractional currency, in circulation since 1995 - is repurposed as a symbol of freedom from repression. Applied to silk, it shapes the human form in steel, recalling the chain-mail shirts of the Middle Ages.

The majority of the collection is made from natural fibers. These materials are sourced from the deadstock of high- end Italian producers, making each piece limited in availability. Wool yarns are sourced and spun by communities in Georgia.

Three special knitted pieces made from silk, cashmere, and mohair yarns were developed in collaboration with the Consinee Group.

INSTITUTION is a creative project established by Galib Gassanoff to express his personal and aesthetic connection to the cultures he belongs to. Operating as a social-artistic organization with an ethical foundation, INSTITUTION reaches beyond fashion. The name itself refers to the broader role of an institution: a human-devised structure of rules and norms that shapes and constrains individual behavior. All definitions of institutions carry the idea of persistence and continuity, values reflected in the work.

INSTITUTION is the recipient of the 2026 Zalando Visionary Award and the CNMI Fashion Trust Grant, and is currently a finalist for the 2026 LVMH Prize. Galib Gassanoff, founder and creative director of INSTITUTION, is Georgian of Azerbaijani descent, raised on the outskirts of Tbilisi, immersed in a world of contrasting languages, crafts, and traditions. At eighteen, he moved to Milan to pursue a career in fashion through education and professional experience. He founded INSTITUTION in 2024 as a platform for cultural reflection, community collaboration, and artistic exploration.