This Portuguese Artist Uses Textile Waste To Create Beautiful Ocean Inspired Tapestry
Vanessa Barragão is a Portuguese artist who creates beautiful tapestry from discarded industrial textile waste. The artist grew up in the coastal city of Albufeira and many of her works are inspired by the ocean – coral reefs, underwater plants, and animals are all common themes in the tapestry she creates.
She opened her studio back in 2014 while attending a Master degree at the University of Lisbon. It was there that she learned the artisanal art of creating tapestries. Vanessa is currently based in the northwestern city of Porto, where the country’s textile industry core is located. The artist divides her time between working as a textile designer in an artisanal rug factory and running her own studio.
“The textile industry is one of the most polluting in the world”
“In almost everything process chemicals are used, specially when it comes to the fibers treatment and dyeing,” says the artist on her website.
The machinery used in the industry consumes a lot of energy and produces great amounts of trash
“It is extremely harmful for our world and it affects all of its different natural environments, particularly the ocean which absorbs 90% of the atmosphere pollution, warming up itself to the point that so many species get threatened, being the corals, who sustain so many other creatures, one of the most endangered ones.”
The artist aims to reduce the waste by upcycling it into beautiful tapestries
Vanessa gets the materials for her works from the deadstock of several local factories. She then cleans up and selects the materials that will be used for the tapestries.
To create the works of art, the artist uses artisanal techniques
Latch hook, felt, knitting, macrame, and crochet are just some of the techniques she uses to create the tapestries – it truly is a rare art in our modern times.
More info: Vanessa Barragão | Instagram | Behance | h/t: designboom
See the amazing details of Vanessa’s work below!
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