A research project into raw wool, craft, technology, and the city
In the Netherlands, thousands of kilos of raw wool are discarded every year. Once a precious material, today it is often considered waste. Unearthing Wool is my ongoing artistic research into what happens when we look at this material differently — not as waste, but as a living starting point for experiment, craft, technology, and dialogue.
This project unfolds in phases, each one opening new questions, experiments and collaborations:
Phase 1 – Collection & Origins
I started by visiting farmers, shepherds, and hobbyists across the Netherlands. I collected different types of raw, unwanted wool, and documented the shearing process, the landscapes, and the stories of those who care for the sheep. This phase is about tracing the origins of the material, listening to its current status, and recognizing the ecological loss in how it is treated.
Phase 2 – Experiencing the Craft
Wool has a long history of processing by hand. In this phase, I plan to immerse myself in traditional techniques: cleaning, carding, spinning, felting, weaving, dyeing. Each technique reveals something new — both about the stubbornness of the material and about how human hands shape it.
Some experiments happen in the studio. Others move into the city, where I test whether it is possible to clean wool in an urban environment, using ecological methods such as fermentation.
Phase 3 – Wool and the City
This public-facing branch of the project brings wool research into community gardens and shared spaces in Amsterdam. Fermentation is one of the most water-friendly ways to clean dirty fleeces. Each garden hosts a container of fermenting wool, which after one week is rinsed on-site. The leftover liquid is a natural fertilizer for the plants — closing a small circle between sheep, city, and soil.
Visitors can follow the process via QR codes on each container, turning each vat into both a research station and a public artwork. [Read more about this phase → Click HERE ]
Phase 4 – Industry & Machines
From handwork to industrial scale: later stages of the project will explore how wool is processed in factories and what machinery still exists in the Netherlands. What knowledge is preserved, what has been lost, and what might be reinvented? This phase looks at how craft, technology, and ecology collide.
Why Wool? Why Now?
This project is about more than just wool. It is about how we relate to the materials around us, how we value what is considered “waste,” and how we reconnect craft, technology, and ecology. Wool becomes the lens through which we can rethink our surroundings — both in rural fields and in the heart of the city.
Follow the Process
Updates, photos, and documentation will be shared here and on Instagram: @wool.and.the.city
Project initiated April 2025 – Amsterdam