In my perennial search for sustainable materials and sustainability related project, I found the projects created by Ariane Prin and Studio Swine very interesting.
“From Here for Here” by Ariane Prin
Born in Reims (France) in 1983, the work of Ariane Prin covers a number of disciplines: product design, graphic design and art installations. It also ranges from practical improvements and everyday solutions to more abstract concepts. This variety is always carefully documented. As Ariane thinks that a design project is rich when it is paired with something outside the design world, she has taken advantage of the opportunity to work with Japanese craftsmen, bakers, hairdressers, acrobats, biologists and is currently working with engineers in environmental technology from the Imperial College of London.
Her “From Here for Here” project includes two main issues:
1. Create useful products specific to a site from the waste generated there.
2. The legitimacy of creating new objects by keeping the enjoyment of making without the guilt.
This new production system treats the Royal College of Art as an experimental site for demonstrating these principles. It uses waste from the various departments of the school for a local pencil factory that will supply drawing tools to present and future students.
Studio Swine
Studio Swine is a multi-disciplinary design practice by Azusa Murakami and Alexander Groves. Studio Swine engages in projects that are both socially and ecologically driven but also tap into people’s desires, believing that desire is the most powerful catalyst for instigating change and action.
I am fascinated by their Hair Glasses project – where human hair with bioresin are used as a binding agent, the frames are 100% biodegradable and no harmful substances are released during production.
But if you browse Studio Swine website you will also find other great projects, such as Seed Socks, a portable dyer’s workshop containing natural dye plants and sustainably sourced bamboo fibre socks. Each pair is hand dyed and comes with a pack of seeds and instructions to cultivate and produce your own plant dyes.
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