Rethinking Material with Craft Victoria
Approaching a new age of material consumption – Australian makers and designers are leading the way in rethinking the role of materials.
Craft Victoria is excited to announce its hero program across February and March 2022 – featuring new and celebrated works from Australian makers, artists and designers at the forefront of contemporary craft making. “Rethinking Material” presents a series of programs and innovative designs with new ideas that will shake the world – challenge our way of using material and rethink our roles and responsibilities to the idea of “re-use” and “re-purpose”.
Melburnians will have the opportunity to experience the breadth and dexterity of contemporary craft and design through the lens of creative making process and unique product ideas. Emerging practitioners are featured alongside established makers, showcasing creative ingenuity and material mastery.
Alternative Provisions
10 Feb – 26 Mar
Presenting the work of six artists, designers and makers expanding material practice as an act of making good – exhibition Alternative Provisions explores how unexpected and under-utilised materials, driven by the notion of ‘reuse’, are developed and used in interesting ways by today’s makers.
The artists each forage for their material, whether organic matter or discarded waste product, to create works that offer production alternatives, as well as a means to tell new stories.
The audience will be amazed by the artists’ innovative use of unexpected materials, including Jessie French’s new body of work that transforms sawdust into bioplastic vessels; a weaving installation made with recycled yabby nets by Yu-Fang Chi; Narelle White’s alternative clay revolution using carefully chosen organic matters including food and grains; James Walsh’s Anthropic Lamp series made with locally sourced soil and repurpose recycled glass is a retake on the rammed earth process that dates back to 5000 BC; Ella Saddington’s new experimental work turns excess denim into functional wares such as side-tables, lamps and stools; and the ground-breaking exploration of bio-textile using microorganisms from nutrient-rich food waste by textile artist Alexi Freeman.
“By joining these makers in their search for more mindful provisions, we are led to re-evaluate how we engage with materials for production and the potential presented by seeking conscious alternatives.” Eliza Tiernan, Curatorial and Programs Manager at Craft.
Presented as part of Melbourne Design Week, Alternative Provisions also joins the broader conversation on the environmental implications of human presence and the revaluation of our actions.
By/Product
Launching 8 Mar
Craft is launching a new product series with a selected group of Australian makers and designers to join the challenge of repurposing/ reusing discarded materials to produce a new line of handmade products.
The aim of the series is to highlight the value of raw materials and to recognise the threat of material scarcity on designers, artists and makers, and associated impacts on their artistic and commercial outcomes. Through this process, designers and makers work to rebuild structure, redefine aesthetic appeal and reinstate value in otherwise discarded materials.
By/Product 2022 series will officially launch on 8 March. Featuring innovative makers and designers including; Caro Pattle (textile artist), Dean Toepfer (multidisciplinary designer), Misseu (glassblower), and Brigitte Buccianti (furniture designer).
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