During my work at the Bio Design Lab, I experimented with bio-plastics made from starch, gelatine, and agar-agar. My goal was to develop textile-like sheets with varying properties.

To investigate the material’s behavior as a textile, I made a Bio-Coat. I used a starch-based recipe and added hemp fibers for stability and beetroot juice for color. After cooking, I spread the mixture evenly and as thinly as possible on aluminum foil. The foil’s smooth surface made the material very glossy and gave it an almost plastic-like appearance.

Further I collaborated with Michelle-Marie Letelier, Eva Butzkies, and Julia Ihls to create bioplastic costumes for the theatre play Salm Ethos, written by Karin Pittman and Michelle-Marie Letelier.

I had the chance to research and test many different recipes, additives, and conditions for making bioplastic sheets with various properties. In the end, I made 40 large sheets. Some were very glossy and transparent, while others were matte and milky. I also made a few red ones. Eva Butzkies, a costume designer, produced 10 costumes: 5 were shown during the exhibition Experimental Ecology, and the other 5 were worn by actors during the play.

While making sheets is one approach, I also wanted to create a bioplastic-based yarn and test its feasibility for knitting. I used alginate mixed with water and cured it in a calcium chloride solution. I experimented with adding glycerol or chitosan to improve the softness and stability of the yarn but ended up not using any additives, as they caused the yarn to break more easily whiles knitting. I was fascinated by the fact that the knitted material reacts to humidity. It dries out and becomes very hard when the air is dry but can become soft and flexible again when it becomes wet again.