'CHHUPA RUSTAM'

'Chhupa Rustam'

“There's more to it, than meets the eye.”

The course started off with introduction to bio mimicry. We understood that how different creatures and plants in nature have their own ways of surviving different situations. As species evolved, they grew and adapted themselves to the changing environment. Nature provided them great skills and techniques to protect and attack. Taking this as a lead I stepped out to choose a subject for inspiration. Looking around everywhere from parks to roads, I landed up in the vegetable market and my eyes got a glimpse of a leaf of cabbage which was thrown as waste. The veins and the tree like structure of the leaf looked interesting. A cabbage seemed as a package enclosed with surprises, so I took it forward.

Analyzing cabbage

I tried to study cabbage from all angles. From chopping it horizontally and vertically, I could discover some interesting geometry inside it.

Keywords and metaphors

Exploring characteristics of cabbage

After writing down the metaphors and characteristics of the cabbage, using different materials (other than fabric), I tried depicting them.

Materials used: 1. paper, balloon and plastic sheet, 2. synthetic felt sheet, 3.tissue paper and rope, 4. ribbons, 5. tissue paper

Fabric explorations

Fabric prototypes on different attributes of a cabbage. Different techniques were used in making each of these.

After exploring all attributes and characteristics by using different materials and techniques, some of the explorations were took forward to create something that leads to collapsibility and expansion.

Prototypes based on different types of closures and finishes.

'The beach bag'

As a final deliverable, using the quality of cabbage leaves fitting in one another, I made a 'beach bag' which included a set of 4 bags which could fit into each other. Each one of these bags can be used to put in different things and also can be detached to be carried individually. The outer surface of the bags was made using arashi shibori to give it a gathered texture and for the inner lining of each bag, waterproof fabric was used to prevent the things inside it from getting wet. For closure, drawstring mechanism was used for each bag and each bag had snap buttons on its outer side to hold it in place.