Forage

The Bermondsey based exhibition 'Urbandsey' took place on 14th April and as the name suggests it followed an 'urban' theme. As a follow up to my 'Ancestors' collection from the previous exhibition (see here for the images) Open/Closed, I modified a set of men's hats with natural materials that I scavenged from my local area and from this the name 'Forage' was born. The key materials were fox bones, wood pigeon feathers, a dead sparrow, faux fur and foliage. My intention was to give this urban associated headwear a feral edge, these pieces can be seen as both a signifier of the rural reclaiming the urban but also the rural bending to the will of the urban. In either case these hats are neither one or the other and a possible ideology of the balance between human and nature. 

Cervid

Cervid was constructed on a sports cap with final shape, and materials used, being reminiscent of some form of hunting attire. With a cervid being the name of an animal from the deer family, combined with mammal inspired qualities and especially the antlers, it seemed an appropriate name and acts as a representative for fur and mammals in this collection. A transgression from the leather to fur and finally the deer head.

Columba 

This was the first hat I completed out of the four, comprising of wood pigeon feathers and one of two dead sparrows I have. The name derives from the genus of 'typical pigeon' that includes the species that provided the feathers, reconstructed from singular findings to form a bird like entity. Through Cervid we have the covering of the head in fur and leather, with Columba it is feather that takes the centre stage and an to show the more refined look of the pigeon.

Vertebrae 

This bowler hat has been adorned with my most important materials that border on spiritual, a fox spine that I found almost in the state you see it though there were several cleaning processes inbetween of course. The human race has historically used and continues to use bone in body adornment all over the planet, so bringing this tradition into the urban setting is satisfying for me. Also important to this design are the highly symbolic connotations of the fox as an animal with associations as the trickster, fire bringer or creature of the afterlife. As a final point, you will frequently see examples of the fox taking on human qualities or the the creature actually transforming into a man in popular culture. With this my hat is a result of urban meets rural, human meets animal. 

Strobilus 

 The final hat, another sports cap, is based around the true name for pine cone - Strobilus. The Strobilus or Megastrobilus is the female sexual organ of the conifer tree, so in affect I have constructed a mohawk shape of plant genitalia. This ties in with the notion of Mother Nature and the reproduction of plant life to take back the urban should the time of humans pass, with the buds of other trees and bushes beginning to emerge.

 

All Images and Headwear by KLV

A Comparative View of the Human and Animal Frame

by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins

Skeleton of Habit

Historically, bone is one of the first widely used materials in jewellery making with the original purposes being adornment, a signifier of social rank, currency and protection. Bone, along with teeth, sinew and skin, is mostly associated with tribal or shamanic origins and as cultures throughout the world today still utilise bone in these ways, modern jewellery designers and artists have not overlooked it as a possible material for their work.

Firstly, there are countless real bone necklaces, bracelets and rings out there but I find those created by Zoe Mou particularly interesting. In a collection named 'Deadly Creatures', there are eight different animal skulls carved out in total  that are designed to 'showcase the beautiful creatures and serve as an educational experience, with hopes of a greater appreciation of the natural world.' The use of gold and silver is intended to enforce the qualities possessed by the animals. Such as, enhancing the humour of the duck bill or highlighting the majesty of the wild boars tusks.

The ideology behind Andrew Ross and his use of cow bone was to reduce waste by recycling what would otherwise be discarded, however that would still be better than ground up and fed back to the living animals, as was the case not so long ago. For this idea he won the 'New Designers Swarovski Crystal Palace Award' for innovative product design. It is all very natural in shape as Ross wanted to retain the bones original form and just apply it to another use, this being on the outside of a living being as opposed to inside it.

Although bone is inspirational as a material, it has also triggered many designers to create metallic replicas. Reid Peppard, who I should have mentioned in the post about taxidermy as her work is very similar to that of Julia deVille, has created a collection of jewellery that features gold and silver lower mandibles as neck ware. I find the work of Peppard equally as intriguing as other taxidermy artists and other examples of her work include a hamster hairband and a purse made out of a hollow rat. Much like her contemporaries, Peppard strides to evoke strong feelings in viewers and it doesn't matter if they are positive or negative. In an interview with the artist on Vize magazine's website, Peppard comments on those that provide the most negative comments on her work, in that they 'wear leather without thinking, will eat meat, drive cars that pollute the atmosphere, then turn around and say my taking waste and preserving it is somehow wrong'.

Metal is not the only applicable substitute, as Molly Epstein knows well. The glass-filled nylon necklace was created in 2002. It is strikingly modern in appearance, due to the materials used, yet timeless as is the human anatomy that it is based on. The same can be said about the pair of shoes designed by Naim Josefi and Souzan Youssouf. They are one of the first wearable pairs of shoes that have been created by a 3D printer and in my opinion, oozes with a strong web-like elegance.