Kombucha Cloth Sampler, 2017, 116 x 130mm, kombucha cloth, copper yarn.
Kombucha cloth is a democratic material pioneered by London based fashion designer Suzanne Lee in 2013. It requires a lengthy fermentation process where a skin is formed and dried.
How do we engage with this new type of fibre? We can come to understand the potential of kombucha cloth, and other emerging materials such as bioplastics and mycelium fibres by applying all the skills we have as makers. Slice, fold, stitch, mold, tear, layer, piece, perforate, burn and dampen are some of the ways in which we can manipulate the textiles to build haptic knowledge and generate a new visual and tactile language.
Embroidery samplers are an historic example of learning through textile engagement, where young girls had an opportunity to gain literacy and numeracy through stitch. We are currently in a space where we must educate ourselves in new ways of engaging with textiles without implicating the health of the environment and the lives of those that produce our cloth.
Image Credit: Emma Peters
This piece was included in the Wangaratta Petite Miniature show in 2017.