When we're all gone, what will be left behind?
"By 2050 there will be more plastic in the sea than fish". This poignant projection from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation fueled my project "By 2050" for my foundation diploma. Perhaps more abstract than my usual work, I faced up to the hard truth that being passionate about the environment isn't enough. As a creator I need to consciously change the norms within the fields I operate.
Holding myself accountable, this project was an investigation into the fragilities of the future. I had no planned outcome, wanting to let the investigation forge its own path.
Ellen MacArthur is committed to promoting a circular economy, so I began with my own experiment with material circularity.
Waste Material
Using spent coffee grounds, a waste form I produce in quantity, I created a bioplastic. I was able to create a yarn through a process similar to extruding synthetic yarns. My yarns were met with disgust. It's slimy texture and wormlike appearance gave it a disturbing quality. I harnessed the power of horror to comment on how I view our current future trajectory.
Everything Intertwined
Creating a knitted fabric from the bio yarn was symbolic in several facets. The structure of a knit is a series of loops where each relies on the previous, as do generations of future humans rely on us to change now. A knit can unravel from the pull of one loop, which here is indicative of society's fragility.
For visual cues I studied a suit of chainmail armour, which might have protected us in sword duels, but wouldn't stand a chance against an AK-47. Even the most bulletproof of vests won't help you in a wildfire. My knitted bio yarn is a commentary about the futility of material protection in the rage of nature's elements in my speculative dystopia.
A Closed Loop
I dissolved all of my samples into the mixture to be used for the exhibition piece. Because this mixture contained a variety of organic matter, I was expecting the resulting yarn to decay quicker than the experiments had. I did not predict however, how rapidly this process would occur. The vast quantity of yarns I produced moulded before I could complete my planned sculpture. What I could salvage I turned into a sample piece of the intended textile. At first I perceived this as a monumental failure, but upon reflection it serves as a cautionary tale.
You can't predict what nature will do. Act before it's too late.
