design & artistic research
Transforms overlooked and unwanted materials, inviting reflection, dialogue, and care.
Designer and artistic researcher Billie van Katwijk strives to find beauty and opportunities in materials that are unseen, unwanted, or uncomfortable. For example, she makes leather from cow stomachs, which are usually processed into dog food, and glazes from wastewater treatment residues. Van Katwijk works with industries or players in a (broken) system to transform processes and challenge views. She believes that awareness of the journey of materials can allow for imagination and better care for our environment. Materials change, the industry changes, we change.