Organic Fiber Art with Nobel Laureates
Crochet & Knit Pieces that Have Lives of Their Own
Oct 1, 2008
Math and crochet certainly go together. What about science and crochet? That may seem to be more of a stretch, but science and design both play a role in redefining our relationships with each other and the world around us.
A number of fiber artists wanted to create an exhibition exploring creative overlaps in science and design, evoking new meaning and enriching culture. Because of their efforts, there are now impressive strides being made in just that—the union of crochet and science. In fact, even Nobel laureates are involved.
Nobel Textiles: Sustainable Garden Textiles and Furniture
Nobel Textiles is a project whose residence is at Central Saint Martin’s College. London based Central Saint Martin’s College of Art and Design has developed a reputation for pushing the boundaries of arts, design and performance.
The Nobel Textiles project aims at investigating the creative potential of marrying design and science. Five designers were paired with a Nobel Laureate to produce an innovative design concept. The project was completed at the end of July 2008, and was shown in an exhibition funded by the Medical Research Council in the United Kingdom.
The Fiber Artist Organizers
The project pioneers, Amanda Fisher and Carole Collet, explain that “designers fundamentally shape the way we live, while science pervades the very fabric of our lives. Nobel Textiles involves a journey into the interface between science and design-- a dialogue between leading researchers in both fields.” They were intrigued by the work of John Sulston.
The Nobel Laureate
John Sulston identified the first mutation in a gene that participates in the deliberate suicide of unwanted cells in multi-cellular animals, for which he was awarded a Nobel Prize in 2002 (with Sydney Brenner and Robert Horvitz). The scientists worked on the roundworm. The scientists found that programmed cell death plays an important role in development and protection from diseases like cancer.
The aforementioned textiles collection explores the principle of programmed cell death as a methodology for design. In other words, the fiber art acts somewhat alive.
The Suicidal Textiles Project
Suicidal Textiles is designer Carole Collet’s name for her creations inspired by John Sulston’s research on cell development in roundworm. Collet took cell death that enables development to take place as the key theme for her furniture that combines natural and synthetic materials.
One of her projects, a knitted ottoman, will organically change over time, as natural material degrades to reveal the final, synthetic form. In a way, this ottoman is living—and dying.
This project was supported by the European Epigenome Network and the UK Medical Research Council.
Not the First Time
Although these concepts may seem unrelated and even bizarre, this occurrence is not the first time science has meshed with yarn. Recently, The Hyperbolic Crochet Reef exhibition illustrated some very complex theories using the fiber arts. Certainly, science knows no boundaries; it appears the same is true of the fiber arts.
