Lilian Marie Furrer
What We Felt
For centuries sheep have been bred in Austria to produce more wool. However, the material gradually lost its significance and became a superfluous by-product of agriculture when international imports from warmer regions of the world became the norm. Although we still rely on sheep for the preservation of our landscapes and the production of meat, the large quantities of wool generated through mandatory shearing are mostly discarded.
What We Felt takes this contradiction as its starting point and explores the use of 21st-century production techniques to discover new applications for the material. Whilst most fibres are processed into fabric through spinning, weaving and knitting, the unique property of wool lies in its ability to be felted – the compaction of the raw material through pressure, friction and sometimes heat directly into form. Across three case studies with Viennese designers, the project explores how these manufacturing processes can be applied to different functions, at various scales and within diverse aesthetic contexts. The resulting prototypes demonstrate potential applications in the fields of fashion, furniture and packaging, whilst also pointing to possibilities across a broader spectrum of disciplines.
website
