Luna's Visual Journal

After cutting the pieces of fabric into strips, I then made my corn starch solution and started to place the damp strips of fabric vertically onto the glass bowl.

In hindsight I would’ve placed the strips either vertically or horizontally because as I was peeling my bowl off the glass bowl there were some areas that had been torn.

However I decided to highlights the flaws of my bowl by hand stitching these gaps/torn edges with red thread which I will later explain why red. 

Overall I was pleasantly surprised at how sturdy this bowl is and how beautiful the pieces of fabric turned out in that vertical manner. It created this design where are you can see where the two pieces of fabric overlap and you can see the difference in shades one placed in front of a light source.

I also stitched a piece of conductive fabric on the inside of the ball that will act as the piece of puzzle that will complete the circuit that was placed on the bottom of the lid.

Again, I was very surprised at how sturdy this bowl is!

I decided to create a very simple electric circuit that would make the light on top of the lid let it light up when the lid is placed on the bowl and then the circuit is cut when the lid is removed off the bowl.

Here is a look at the very simple circuit that I made. I would definitely have gone with something a bit more advanced in the future but since my knowledge is very limited I decided to go something very simple because the purpose that I was going for is not as complex.

For the Lebanese dialect word that I have written on the outside of the lid, I used leftover wire and shaped it into the word. Then, I stitched it down using thread and a needle, hand sewing method. 

Overall I would say the corn starch solution held up very well on this fabric which had been recycled fabric from an old PJ. I just massage the corn starch into the strips of clothing that I had pre-cut using fabric scissors and I just laid out all the strands in the same direction and overlapped a third of them on top of each other to create a sturdy surface. 

And oddly enough the one bowl that I made with a bigger piece of fabric was the least sturdy of all the bowls that I made. also it was very wrinkly although I had tried my best to make it as smooth as I can when I wrapped it up. The folds on the bottom were unavoidable since it’s the only way I could wrap the fabric around that bowl. And although the folds on the bottom did make the bowls sturdier, I found that it took way longer to dry and created very uneven ridges; not only on the outside of the bowl but also on the inside, which meant that if I were to put anything in the bowl, it would go in those folds and it would be almost impossible to clean up. Not efficient at all.

And to my surprise the only bowl that was very sturdy was the bowl where I decided to combine a bunch of scraps of fabric just so I don’t waste any materia. I placed them in different directions. Although this did also take a lot of time to dry, it was very very very sturdy. I was extremely surprised because I did not even expect anything of this bowl, since it was just a scrap bowl.  I included a video below where you can see and hear how sturdy this bowl is.

I intended to use this on its own at first but as I was cooking it I dropped a little bit of the solution on my clothes that I was wearing. And I realize that I created this leathery texture and it kind of solidified that piece of cloth on my shirt so then I said to myself “hey why not use fabric and the solution and mould it into bowls!” so I started experimenting with different shapes and sizes and so before I went and cut my limited amount of my eco-diet fabric, I tested my designs on recycled paper instead.

After I was somewhat satisfied with the shapes that I had done I decided to go ahead and start cutting the pieces of fabric.

Then I just moulded them by first taking some of the corn starch solution and massaging it into the fabric until the fabric was pretty much damp and then I started moulding it onto mugs or glasses or bowls that I had and I made sure to smooth it out and remove any air bubbles that have been trapped underneath the fabric.

While cutting the pieces of fabric I realized that there’s a lot of scraps of fabric so I just decided to use them as well. I used the same method but I just placed the strips in random directions kind of imitating a Birdsnest just for the fun of it.

And for my last bowl I decided to take a large piece of fabric and wrap it on the bottom of the bowl. I used the same method as the previous small bowls by smoothing out any air bubbles and making sure it’s all flat onto the surface of the glass bowl. 

For my first play with bioplastic I decided to make the agar agar solution where I pour it into a lid and then shape it into a bowl and in this particular try, I added smoked paprika and a maple leaf in the middle. Although the smoke paprika was more for aesthetics, the Mapleleaf wasn’t. I wanted to use some thing off this land some thing that I foraged while taking my daily walks.

Shé:kon (Hello/hi), marhaba, hello, Bonjour

Although I have Lebanese parents, I grew up here in Kahentàke (south shore) which is in Kanien’kéha. One of my closest friends whom I have known for over 10 decades has taught me so much about his heritage. I’m talking about my dear friend George Lenser of the kalyexwentis house from the Gitdumdin clan (known as the bear clan), on Wetʼsuwetʼen territory. He used to live here on Kanien’kéha, which is how I got to know him but he has returned to wettsuweten territory a few years ago to be with his family. We do keep in touch using zoom and texts. George and I often talk about the similarities in our cultures and one particular topic is welcoming guests. George explained to me that in his Gitdumdin clan, it is a custom to offer food to newcomers or visitors, as a way of welcoming them. He explained to me that it is even considered rude and disrespectful to refuse the food that was offered even if it’s something unfamiliar like elk or deer (unless of course you have dietary restrictions or allergies).

So For my project I decided to talk about my own aboriginal lebanese heritage. Similar to the Gitdumdin clan, In the Lebanese culture when somebody comes over to your place whether it’s friends or family or first time guests, it is crucial that you offer them nuts, fruits, baked goods, etc.. as a welcome and a token of generosity and in a way it’s like accepting that person into your inner circle.

Those offerings are usually placed in some sort of decorative bowl or plates and they are placed on the The coffee table where it’s easily accessible to anybody sitting around the table. It is placed purposefully in sight and in reach or in close proximity of the people sitting around the table and it’s the duty of the host to make sure that the bowl is full or that there is something on the coffee table that signifies that person is welcome

For this project, I had the idea to make this bowl out of cornstarch based bioplastic and recycled fabric. I discovered this by complete accident when I dropped some of the cornstarch solution on my pjs and it solidified into this leathery texture. I used leftover fabric from the ecodying workshop and the lid is recycled from the pjs I talked about. I added a circuit to really emphasize or put on display the idea of “you are welcome here”

I wanted to take the lebanese custom to the next level and include some technical aspects. The guest is encouraged to remove the lid and have some food. On the outside I wrote “TAFADDALO* which is a word in my dialect that translates to a very formal way of saying “have some” or it can also be said as “you are welcome here”. It is often said to guests as they walk in and also said when serving food to the guests. I used left over wire from the circuit and shaped it into the word and stitched it to the lid. I used white, green and red colours throughout the project as a subtle reference to the Lebanese flag. I want to highlight that this bowl was made entirely by materials I have found on Kanien’kéha.

My dear scoby,

I am sorry that you did not live the life you deserve. My (cute but evil) cat Olly, who has just turned one year old, has eaten you. He suffers from PICA syndrome so I do not blame him, but I am still sad to see you go.

I knew you wouldn’t go without a fight, which is why you made Olly throw up and made him sick enough to go to the ER Vet. Only to find out that you actually helped him, because it turns out he had worms.

Hence, I want to thank you for making Olly a healthier cat! He now has 13 years to look forward to, thanks to you.

You will be missed Scoby! ❤️

Here is a picture of Scoby in “sheet form”, a week or so before the incident.

Bio plastic

How? To make this bioplastic a combined agar agar and water with plant-based glycerine and let it second up over low to medium heat until I achieved a thick texture and then I poured it into a lid and let it sit for at least 24 hours and this is the result in the first picture. After 24 hours I placed it in between these two measuring cups to form a bowl like shape. However the plastic just shrivelled .

Overall the experience was fun and very intriguing it is definitely something that I would love to look into and explore.

It is interesting how this material can biodegrade without harming any creatures in our environment and also we can make this with plant-based products instead of animal-based products like gelatin. 

On October 14th, we went to the Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery where we visited an exhibition called Poetic Disorder by Beatriz Santiago Muñoz.

What I learned:

There are a HUGE variety of materials that are conductors like threads and textiles. It is an eye opener because that opened up my mind towards the possibilities of electrical clothings! I made a circuit seen above with my teammate and we used a thread that was a conductor to make a circuit my sawing it into a cotton fabric. We then made another one where we added a switch. We decided to use a textile for the switch as seen below 👇

Please Remember!

I can’t speak up but my actions do. You know that I am mad at you and you can’t blame me. My tears…they’re drowning you. Anger, deception and fear. You can sense it in the air I provide to you. Yes, I have fears too. You used to think that I don’t because I am so "powerful" but trust me, I do. I fear that you’ll never change for the better and you’ll keep on destroying me till you my child, you’ll die with me.

Look, I am all around you. The scars that you have caused me throughout time, I can’t hide them from you anymore. And it’s funny because you return to me in a different form. You embrace me and nourish me…yet you still abuse me, even in your new body that I gave life to. But..I will try my hardest to forgive you. I know that you will make me suffer for a long time and my health will only get worse from here no matter how hard you try to "fix" me. My child, the damage is done and your race, the human race, will be the end of me. Thus the end of me is the end of you.