Bitumen

Material Research · Material Exploration · Casting · Belgium 2024

This project started with an assignment to explore the properties and behaviour of bitumen. I experimented with how the material changes depending on temperature, shape, time and weight, and how these changes could be used as part of the design process.

I worked directly with the material by melting, casting and reshaping it. I developed a mould and used it to create the final forms, testing how different temperatures and conditions affected the outcome. The process was highly experimental, as the material would soften, shift, and change form throughout the process.

Working with bitumen allowed me to explore a material that is heavy, dark, glossy and constantly affected by its surroundings. The project became an investigation into how material behaviour can influence both the making process and the final object. The hangers give the material experiment a clear everyday context. I chose an object that is normally expected to hold its shape and support weight, then used bitumen’s tendency to soften and deform to challenge that function. As the hanger changes form, the clothes eventually fall, connecting the material experiment to the project’s theme of clothing overconsumption.