Material Response: Shaping Sustainable Practices from Clay and Waste

Join us for a programme of talks, exhibition and networking exploring circular economy, sustainable materials and cross-disciplinary practice.

This symposium will bring together speakers from policy, industry and creative practice for a day of talks relating to the circular economy, sustainable art and design practice, and the benefits of cross-disciplinary collaboration.

Led by the Material Cognition Research Group at the University of Leeds, in collaboration with local ceramics studio Sunken Studio, the day will be fuelled by the underlying belief that the most interesting work happens when we follow our curiosity, and work across disciplines.

From art to science, design to engineering, craft to industry, these cross-disciplinary collaborations are where new ideas are made.

Furthermore these entangled approaches to working are becoming increasingly important as we face the realities of climate breakdown and resource scarcity.

The symposium concludes a six week co-research programme of activities activities with University of Leeds students, Sunken Studio members and other collaborators, and will include an exhibition.

There will be ample opportunity to network with like-minded professionals and find new opportunities for collaboration and extension of existing research. 

Speakers

The day will include talks from professionals within the West Yorkshire Waste to Resources network – as well as guest speakers from across the country and across different fields – with a shared objective to find less extractive and more sustainable ways of designing, crafting and manufacturing.

Speakers will discuss their own practice as well as their own perspectives on sustainability and the benefits of cross-disciplinary working. 

Venue

Sunken Studio
Unit 3 Butterley Street
Leeds
LS10 1AW

Book your place

The symposium is free to attend and all are welcome.

Please book your place here on Eventbrite.

More information

This symposium concludes a six week co-research programme led by the Material Cognition Research Group and hosted at Sunken Studio (backed by the Cultural Institute IGNITE fund at the University of Leeds).

It saw a group of students from the School of Fine Art, History of Art and Cultural Studies embedded with Sunken Studio members and other collaborators in six investigative sessions looking at how recycled clay derived from construction and demolition waste could be used to craft more sustainable ways of making – both in ceramics as well as unfired applications of clay drawing on traditional earthen building techniques.

Material Cognition is a practice-based research group that foregrounds the materially conditioned, multi-sensory and experiential aspects of making and encountering art.

Image

Demolition waste recycling, Mone Brothers Blackhill Quarry Waste Wash plant, Bramhope, Leeds. Photo by Chris Crawford.