Cultivating Colour

This project was developed as part of MaDe 2019, a competition, event series and platform devoted to realising the positive impact material designers can have across all creative sectors. It asks the question ‘Where does colour come from?’.

The textile dye industry is a significant source of fresh water pollution. Synthetic dyestuffs are petroleum reliant, and industrial agriculture is accompanied by its own range of ecological problems.

How then, do we create a world of colour both rich and responsible?

Could creating our own botanical colours, in hyper-localised, small garden structures offer an alternative?

Growing our own materials encourages care, stewardship and a deeper consideration of supply chains. Can cultivating our own colours create more balanced relationships with our surrounding ecologies?

Nutrient films. Buckthorn + Onion + Coreopsis. Agar Agar. Buckthorn Chips + Saffron Threads.

The films provide a slow release of nutrients to plants grown in confined spaces , suggesting a use for waste that is beneficial, not destructive.