A Material Transition

The study of history and culture often relies on excavating objects left behind by our ancestors. These objects, made from materials that degrade over time, provide insight into a society's values, ideals, and lifestyle. However, since industrialization began, contemporary society has left a different legacy for future generations. Mountains of discarded manufactured objects, such as plastics, metals, synthetic textiles, and electronics, don't break down predictably and are piling up in landfills and oceans. This overconsumption and waste are directly linked to environmental and social challenges, threaten all life, and lead to social inequality.

Designers and activists have questioned the linear economic model for years, and their concerns are now attracting wider attention. As a result, circular models and new material recovery methods are emerging, focusing on regenerative materials that can create effective environmental and social changes. To achieve circular solutions, it's essential to be aware of local materials. The Danish design and research studio Natural Material Studio is leading the way in exploring organic materials like seaweed, fungi, shells, hemp, collagen, and organic waste.

Founder Bonnie Hvillum's long research on alternative resources has led to collaborations with brands that share the same values and seek radical ecological solutions. In 2021, Natural Material Studio partnered with FRAMA CPH to present the Materials Installation at Frama Studio Store during the 3 Days of Design event in Copenhagen. The installation showcased the incredible potential of materials to communicate a message of sustainability and an understanding of regenerative aesthetics.

A Material Transition

In September 2022, Natural Material Studio showcased an interactive and speculative material installation at Architect@Work architecture & interior design conference in Copenhagen. The installation addressed the need for a radical transition towards biomaterials sourced from Denmark's rural landscape. The installation featured graded colours and layers of biomaterials that provided visitors with a unique and immersive tactile experience, encouraging them to reflect on unknown natural resources as potential design materials.

"I love when people get amazed or surprised because they're not quite sure what material they're touching or looking at," Bonnie Hvillum explains to Ignant. "However, we also have to respect that the visitor may not have a long history or any associations cognitively constructed in the brain yet with the material. I always seem to find myself in this balancing act of letting the material run wild while, at the same time, making sure the visitor is alright."

With art and design installations, Hvillum hopes to make the world's transition to respectful natural resources more accessible and accelerate positive changes.

Knowing the need to change and broaden the knowledge of artists and designers to biopolymers and biomaterials, the Natural Material Studio created an online course with the collaboration of Through Objects, an important digital platform which highlights art and design.

To learn more about natural Material Studio's projects, processes and courses, visit the website.

https://naturalmaterialstudio.com/

@natural.material.studio/

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Nina Zulian