I’ve been interested in folk history as a lot of movements and strategies I admire originate from the culture. When I think of Folk, I typically associate it with the summer and winter solstice. I think of these as seasonal holidays as they are the longest and shortest days of the year. I like this celebration due to the focus on the natural systems and seasons. Other celebrations alike Christmas and Easter, focus on capitalist profits for the celebration. Current trends resonating with folk culture include handmade designs, objects inspired by nature, embroidery, and vibrant textiles. A lot of these techniques have been incorporated into symbiosis. With moss rug (for the final exhibition) I have handmade these textures through knitting, crochet, embroidery and weaving. The inspiration from nature that folk designs work with connects to symbiosis ethos. At the heart of symbiosis, the primary focus is to create a sustainable change through our business structure, and that is where the use of biomaterials has become a focal point. The association with traditions, historical continuity and a sense of place and belonging these words describe folk culture and are strong leads for the symbiosis brand. Traditionally throughout history, there has been documentation of biomaterial being made through communities; through my HSC essay, I’ve been looking into the connection between biomaterials and nomadic communities with the question, “How have traditional nomadic materials have evolved into present advances in Biodesign.” This has helped me contextualise the history of Biodesign as, through my research, I have compared how nomadic design and object curation can be categorised as Biodesign as they are working with the key elements of the practice, which include working with nature as a model, nature as a coworker, and nature as a hackable system, these statements are from carol collets study discussing “Designing our future bio-materiality”. The difference between nomadic objects and biomaterials is the difference in technology used and the knowledge of materials and basic building blocks, which have been discovered through technological and research bases. Connecting the earlier traditions of curating materials from the nomadic period preserves a perspective of culture that focused not only on their growth through economic and consumer profit but viewed a successful one being surviving with the natural world. Through the branding of symbiosis, I want the brand’s online space to feel like a
welcoming and safe space for the environmentally anxious consumer, as a lot of media sources focus on the negatives of sustainability but don’t offer sustainable solutions. Through my sketchbook, I’ve been researching Folk objects and clothing from the UK and Europe. From these examples it was clear the connection to nature through the garments. From the examples from the UK, the costumes and objects explore a lot of handcrafting and sculpting, but personally, to me, the UK examples represent more of a cult stereotype. When I think of folk culture in the UK I often associate it with its folk horror, specifically the representation in the wicker man to summarise very pagen and a lot of rituals. I acknowledge that this isn’t the case in a lot of folk culture; however, this is my personal impression. When researching more European designs, the culture refers more to travellers and gypie references, with a lot of functional items of clothing. Links to nature in these designs focus on colour schemes and patterns. Elements that have made folk culture flourish globally are being affected by climate change, and animals are losing their habitats, and food sources due to the climate rising; people depending on riding for transport and livestock herding are forcibly being transitioned into a modern context due to the damage from globalisation.