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BEING HUMAN FESTIVAL

Workshop 2021


A New Circle of Life

As part of the festival’s theme of Renewal, through a weekend series of events, we invited people to confront mortality, connect with loss and explore how current burial practices might be unsustainable. Events took place over two venues; the historic Toxteth Cemetery and the beautifully restored Granby Winter Garden.

During a Walking Death Cafe,we shared our experiences with death and loss and discussed the impact of current practices on the environment. We introduced sustainable alternatives using bioremediation and natural decomposition that can contribute to the regeneration of the earth and support grief.

My work as part of the event was inspired by artist Jae Lee Rhim’s Infinity Burial Suit, the second prototype of which is covered in
a crocheted netting embedded with mushroom spores, arranged in a pattern to mimic the growth of mycelium.

Stitching Elegies Workshop

Elegy… a poem of seriousreflection, typically a lament for the dead

Focusing on the potential of mushroom mycelium, participants crocheted a foundation chain and stitched them onto a sample of sustainable fabric in the shape of a significant word. We used fabrics made from nettle and jute as an alternative to the heavy water intensive cotton, often grown using chemical fertilizers & pesticides that the burial suit is currently made from.

The slow process of crochet and stitch allowed time to reflect on the incredible potential of mycelium to offer a way of interacting with the urban and natural environment at the end of life, presenting death as an opportunity for physical and emotional renewal.