Thread - Sustainable Exhibition Design
Sydney Design Week Material Labs
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Thread weaves a new narrative for contemporary textile and sustainable design across the Asia-Pacific. Curated by designer Margaret Hwang and driven by transparency and curiosity, Thread showcases experimental biomaterials combined with commercially produced recycled and natural textiles and materials from suppliers, designers and artisans across the region.
The exhibition includes two large-scale installations designed in collaboration with multidisciplinary design studio Cave Urban and fabricated from locally harvested bamboo. It highlights innovative, contemporary textiles and materials, including mushroom leather from Indonesia, woven silk from China, upcycled textile waste from Thailand, recycled newspaper stands from Korea, coffee yarn and pineapple leather from the Philippines, rush grass from Taiwan, organic fibres from India and materials fabricated from recycled water bottles, oyster shells and fishing nets.
Thread features a bespoke installation by designer Toyokazu Ono from Yotsume Dye House in southern Japan and AI generated silk textile designs by Hangzhou Silk Elegance from China. It also includes process material from Korean artist Young Eun Kim who has dedicated nine years to mastering the art of hanbok making, using natural upcycled materials such as hemp and silk.
Above images by the photographer Hamish @hamishmcintosh. Exhibition supported by @powerhousemuseum #sydneydesignweek2023
Our sustainable practice throughout our exhibition
Cave Urban avoids using drills or creating holes; instead, they simply tie the bamboo together to ensure they're in perfect condition for other art projects. Both rush grass from @taiwanlin_rushweaving and bamboo will continue to be used by @caveurban - a multidisciplinary design studio formed by artists, architects, and sculptors.
The recycled newspaper plinths by the Korean designer @woojai are loved and adopted by many Sydney-based architects and will be given a second life.Some textiles have found new homes by artists/ designers and some will be used for educational purposes.