Ella Rossi

SEPIA

All things are impermanent. All things are imperfect. All things are incomplete. 

These statements embody the Japanese philosophy of wabi-sabi, which views objects as existing in a dynamic state between creation and decay, where the notion of a point in time at which the object is most ‘complete’ doesn’t exist. Wabi-sabi philosophy provides context for the traditional Japanese ceramic repair technique Kintsugi, which uses gold-dusted lacquer to seal cracked pottery. The mending leaves visible scars, which celebrate the objects story of rebirth and passage through time. 

By translating the value system of Kintsugi into the garment design process, discarded textiles are given a new life by recontextualising existing forms through an emphasis on the join. The paradoxical sense of strength and fragility embodied by Kintsugi ceramics is reflected through the juxtaposition of hard industrial materials such as metal, upholstery leather and spinnaker nylon, with soft, handcrafted elements like wool felt and crochet.