Drawn by the sun
SLOW PATTERNS von Meyers & Fügmann
Sustainable Innovations
Textiles as witnesses of time: SLOW PATTERNS is a collection by the Berlin studio Meyers & Fügmann that changes over time due to the influence of sunlight. This works by using an unconventional technique that combines the natural and the artificial. In concrete terms, this means that European is woven and dyed in Europe by hand, with the side effect of preserving traditional skills of the European textile industry. The collection combines wool with synthetic yarns. When the textiles are exposed to UV light, the natural dyes fade over time, while the stable synthetic colours retain their shades, changing the materials and eventually revealing delicate patterns.
The textiles have the peotic power of tracing time. The changes in the colours make the ageing process visible and make transience a subject of discussion – spiritual as well as material. Seeing the textiles develop creates an emotional relationship, as both the owners and the objects age side by side. The textiles thus reflect and make transience visible. In doing so, they raise questions about physical obsolescence. Instead of connoting these aspects negatively, SLOW PATTERNS encourages us to value the products over their entire lifespan and to accept and celebrate their changes as well as our own.
A sign against fast fashion: the low lightfastness of natural materials is often seen as a shortcoming. Meyers & Fügmann, on the other hand, show with their project how aesthetically natural colours change and that beauty can lie in this process. SLOW PATTERNS thus becomes a plea for the dignity and vitality of natural colours.
“Lightfastness is a relevant topic for future industries, as natural and recycled dyes and fibers demonstrate lower lightfastness.
Our approach is to show the liveliness of natural colours and romote them as a real alternative to synthetic dyes, opening markets for less durable colours. The aging process is designed into the product in order to foster a debate about slow consumerism and the relationship we have with our belonging.”
SARAH MEYERS AND LAURA FÜGMANN
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