LONDON DESIGN BIENNALE: PAVILION OF CHILE

Reflecting on the extractivist processes of the logging industry in Chile, Borrowed Matter/Materia Prestada is a sensory installation highlighting novel ways of working with wood cellulose as a bio medium. The installation features seven suspended bio-textile works made with natural fibres and cellulose sheets, the largest of which will gradually degrade during the exhibition to reveal hidden layers of information for visitors to discover.


Image: Pavilion of Chile at London Design Biennale 2023. Image courtesy of Taran Wilkhu

The economic development of Chile has been based on an extractivist model; the overexploitation of natural resources used mainly for export. In particular, the forest industry and its activity, which covers 4% of the national territory. Based on the monoculture of introduced species, such as pine and eucalyptus, forestry has generated various socio-environmental problems. These include increased rates of fires, lack of water supply, the acidification of soils and a decrease in biodiversity.

Image: Sofia Guridi at her studio in Finland. Image courtesy of Vertti-Virasjok

The economic development of Chile has been based on an extractivist model; the overexploitation of natural resources used mainly for export. In particular, the forest industry and its activity, which covers 4% of the national territory. Based on the monoculture of introduced species, such as pine and eucalyptus, forestry has generated various socio-environmental problems. These include increased rates of fires, lack of water supply, the acidification of soils and a decrease in biodiversity.


Image: textures of weaving process. Image courtesy of Vertti-Virasjok

Materia Prestada proposes new uses and formats for the most abundant biopolymer in the world, cellulose – a renewable, biocompatible, and biodegradable material, commonly used to produce paper and textile fibres, of which Chile is the tenth exporting country worldwide.

This work proposes new ways of producing and using cellulose, with a local and cultural vision. Using a weaving technique as a means of visual communication, the pavilion will explore the identity of Chile as a territory. Following a slow manufacturing process that involves the human body, a contemporary reinterpretation of the textile is presented, using graphics and colours to evoke transformation and movement.

Image: Pavilion of Chile at London Design Biennale 2023. Image courtesy of Taran Wilkhu

This fabric will be a reflection of the production, distribution and collaboration chains in three geographical locations: Finland, where research on biomaterials and textiles is carried out by designer Sofía Guridi; Chile, the origin of the cellulose to be used; and London, the place of the exhibition and degradation of the pieces. This installation reflects on global issues, with a critical look at extraction and production processes, promoting collaboration between actors and a decentralisation of resources.

London Design Biennale 2023 is on until 25 June. Find out more on the event website: londondesignbiennale.com