Fiber (fabric) cycling
Cloth wears out. There is a whole cycle, from when fibers are processed into cloth, made into items like clothing or bedding or whatever, then-then what? For thousands of years, since people made cloth and items with it, there has been a then-what. Fabric was salvaged in all kinds of ingenious ways. Smaller garments were made from the best parts of fabric salvaged from worn items, pieces of fabric were used in quilts and appliqué, worn fabrics were used in rag rugs or as rags outright. And when the rags were too worn to be used as rags, the fibers were used to make paper. Today the vast bulk of cloth items get tossed in a garbage can and sent to a landfill.
Fast-fashion is all about profit. Resources both human and natural are gobbled up without regard to anything but short-term profit. What happens when the consumer is finished with the item is not considered. It is a one-way linear process that takes natural resources, turns them into trash.
I made a decision to mindfully cycle and transform fiber, both in my art and my everyday life. If you look at the whole of human history, this is a return to what was the norm. Yes, it is a pushback against fast-fashion and mass-consumer culture. How this relates to my art is all about the color. Natural dyeing and reclaiming of fabric became more than inspiration; I began to collaborate with nature to create color. Which is why in my head I'm still painting, whatever media I might be using.
Some of what I've been transforming fiber;
Cloth wears out. There is a whole cycle, from when fibers are processed into cloth, made into items like clothing or bedding or whatever, then-then what? For thousands of years, since people made cloth and items with it, there has been a then-what. Fabric was salvaged in all kinds of ingenious ways. Smaller garments were made from the best parts of fabric salvaged from worn items, pieces of fabric were used in quilts and appliqué, worn fabrics were used in rag rugs or as rags outright. And when the rags were too worn to be used as rags, the fibers were used to make paper. Today the vast bulk of cloth items get tossed in a garbage can and sent to a landfill.
Fast-fashion is all about profit. Resources both human and natural are gobbled up without regard to anything but short-term profit. What happens when the consumer is finished with the item is not considered. It is a one-way linear process that takes natural resources, turns them into trash.
I made a decision to mindfully cycle and transform fiber, both in my art and my everyday life. If you look at the whole of human history, this is a return to what was the norm. Yes, it is a pushback against fast-fashion and mass-consumer culture. How this relates to my art is all about the color. Natural dyeing and reclaiming of fabric became more than inspiration; I began to collaborate with nature to create color. Which is why in my head I'm still painting, whatever media I might be using.
Some of what I've been transforming fiber;
- Natural dyeing
- Cording
- Spinning
- T-shirt yarn
- Weaving
- re-cutting
- Use as painting support