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Crafts CouncilStories

6 makers with a reduce and reuse philosophy


ByJessica Klingelfuss

12 February 2021

From salvaged plastic to paper beads, these artists are bringing sustainable craft to the fore at Collect art fair


Jessica Klingelfuss

12 February 2021

  • Collect 2021
  • Sustainable craft

RE:animate, by Zoe Robertson, 2016, salvaged granulated polymer. Courtesy: House on Mars Gallery. Photo: Cheri Davies. Styling: Katie Phillips

How can craft clean up its act? Some makers have focused on making their studio practice greener to reduce their ecological impact, while others have been giving waste material a second life. Similarly, a growing mass of craftspeople – backed by designers, scientists, engineers and investors – are looking to biodesign. Whatever the solution, it’s a pressing concern that is increasingly surfacing in the work of makers. Here are six artists exploring sustainability in craft at Collect art fair this year.

Zoe Robertson (House on Mars), salvaged plastic

Jewellery artist and plasticsmith Zoe Robertson has developed an interest in salvaged plastics in recent years. At Collect 2021, she will debut a brand-new series of vessels, entitled Grain, using a technique developed for a previous body of work RE:animate (2016), that will also feature at the fair. In her process, remnants of previous works are granulated before being thermoformed via fusing and pressed into new material. This laminated flat sheet is then vacuumed-formed to create three-dimensional objects, which are finely sanded to penetrate the coloured layers and reveal unexpected patterns.


  • Quetzal, by Juli Bolanos-Durman and Jorum Studio, 2020. Courtesy: Gallery TEN. Photo: Shannon Tofts

Juli Bolaños-Durman (Gallery TEN), found and blown glass

Costa Rican glass artist Juli Bolaños-Durman’s practice is driven by ‘second chances, where waste material is the starting point’. At the fair, the Scotland-based maker will present a selection of works from Wild Flowers, a recent collaboration with Edinburgh-based perfumers Jorum Studio. The sculptural collection is made from reconfigured discarded glass, which are embellished with hand-cut details.


Cocoon series, by Naomi McIntosh, 2020, beech. Courtesy: Ruup & Form. Photo: Juno Snowdon

Naomi McIntosh (Ruup & Form), gathered beech

Material provenance is essential to interdisciplinary maker Naomi McIntosh, whose work evokes ‘the narratives that different woods can tell through grain, colour and form’. Her new project for the fair, Cocoon, is a series of three sculptural vessels that uses beech wood locally sourced from a tree surgeon. McIntosh’s wider practice explores the impact of sustainability in craft: she uses minimal water and energy processes, while leftover wood is used to heat the workshop.


  • Echidna wall hanging, by Maria Sigma, 2020, 100% pure new undyed natural British wool and dyed silk waste saris. Photo: Yeshen Photography

Maria Sigma (Design Nation), ethical handwoven textiles

London-based maker Maria Sigma specialises in zero-waste, ethical handwoven textiles that draw on her Greek heritage and the colour palette of the British landscape. For a recent trio of wall-hangings that she will take to Collect, Sigma mined Greek mythology for inspiration, creating works based on the legends of the Hydra (a serpentine water monster), Echidna (a half-woman and half-snake, and mother of monsters), and Chimera (a fire-breathing hybrid creature).


Detail of SHINTOU 2 (Osmosis), by Kazuhito Takadoi, hawthorn twigs and black and white waxed linen twine. Courtesy: jaggedart

Kazuhito Takadoi (jaggedart), grass, twigs, leaves

‘My aim is to interrupt the process,’ reflects weaver Kazuhito Takadoi, speaking to Crafts magazine in 2019. ‘If hawthorn twigs and grasses were just left outside, within months they would be gone. I step in to halt the decay.’ The Japanese artist began his career as a gardener, collecting materials including moss and leaves to make embroidered greeting cards. ‘Art soon took a leading role’ and he now incorporates grass, twigs and other elements from nature into his work, combining them with materials such as gold leaf and waxed linen twine.


  • Shopping, by Sanaa Gateja, 2020, paper, acrylic, bark, cloth. Photo: Ben Anders

Sanaa Gateja (50 Golborne), textiles, upscaled materials

Having studied jewellery design in London and interior design in Italy, mixed-media artist Sanaa Gateja is known for his use of recycled manmade waste in his practice, which spans installation, tapestry and sculpture. His use of beads – fashioned from discarded paper – earned him the nickname ‘The Bead King’ in his native Uganda. He also works with raffia, wood and banana fiber, constructing large textured artworks that reference indigenous art practices like stitching and weaving.


Collect 2021 will take place online on Artsy.net from 26 February, with works on view and commissions available until 24 March. Follow the pre-fair action online and on Instagram at @collectartfair and #collect2021.


Discover more inspiring makers

Visit the virtual 2021 Collect art fair

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