Mending by Design: Making Bags to Ideate Mending Excess Waste in the Ecological Environment Through the Aesthetic Lens in Design

• Main Author: Mowatt, Una (Author)
• Other Authors: Jowsey, Sue (Contributor)
• Format: Others
• Published: Auckland University of Technology, 2020-02-18T02:21:26Z.
• Subjects: Mending in Design; Sensory Aesthetics; Material Drawing; Washing machine felting; Thesis
• Online Access: Get fulltext

 Using a design-based ideation process, I have paid attention to how sensory aesthetics can communicate ecological narratives. This research project considers ways design can creatively raise awareness of product and material excess. Applying a mending-drawing philosophy, I have explored how felted wool can be used to make bespoke shopping bags. The ideation process employed to create these works is personal and evolving. Through ideating, I have been able to think, reflect and make thoughtful products. 'Mending' as an ethos has also guided my decision-making and provoked me to experiment with new tools and materials. The notion of aesthetics, when applied to design, is often interpreted as referring to 'surface' or 'superficial' attributes. I have questioned these assumptions, contemplating how aesthetics-in-design contribute to an understanding of the value and worth of a product. Set within an environmental conversation, the bags I have designed, speak to my ecological concerns and are part of a broader strategy to instigate change. These products draw attention to my understanding of our need to repair, restore and aid the recovery of planet Earth.