In Tandem: Exploring the Craft of Conventional Materials and Biomaterials • 2023

Materials Acrylic yarn and gelatin bioplastic

Studio Material Matters

Professor Megan Valanidas

Photographers Audra Grays, Sophie Meyer, Fiona Frohnapfel

This project represents my small investigation into the biomaterial of gelatin bioplastic. The purpose of this project was to comment on how we can societally shift from using conventional goods which cannot be recycled such as acrylic yarn and instead search for more environmentally conscious options that can biodegrade. Through the process of creating sheets of gelatin bioplastic, cutting the sheets into yarn, and using the yarn to crochet, I was able to create wearables out of the unconventional material of gelatin bioplastic.

Each item created in this project metaphorically represents the journey and shift from conventional goods to biodegradable goods we are slowly making societally. The blue dress pictured below is created from only acrylic yarn symbolizing the past and how designers have only produced goods with materials that last forever and cannot be recycled. The second piece in this lineup is a scarf which represents our present with the worlds of conventional materials and biomaterials merging shown by the scarf being crocheted with both acrylic yarn and the gelatin bioplastic I had created. The third piece represents the future with a dress crocheted solely from the gelatin bioplastic. The last dress in this line up depicts both how conventional goods can work in tandem with biodegradable materials, but also the shift we can make as designers.

AUDRA GRAYS

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