Tate Boswarva, an emerging artist from Balgowlah, has collected coffee cup lids, drink bottles, chewing gum containers, takeaway containers and denim jeans over the past five years and transformed them into a wearable art piece.
Boswarva’s piece, “Occyan Morphosis,” has been named a finalist in the prestigious 2024 Northern Beaches Environmental Art & Design Prize in the Wearable Art category, selected from 680 entries across all the seven categories.
The three piece wearable artwork “Occyan Morphosis” is a reflection on the impact of plastic waste on marine life. The wearable artwork envisions a future where sea creatures, entangled in pollution, undergo a metamorphosis to survive.
Crafted from 17 upcycled denim jeans, the ensemble includes a bolero, bralette, and trousers, each meticulously stitched to symbolise the 4,000 litres of water typically required to produce a single pair of jeans.
The design is further enriched with 21 metres of discarded fast fashion plastic packaging and sequins repurposed from everyday waste items like chewing gum containers, coffee cup lids, water bottles, and takeaway containers, collected over the past five years.
Boswarva employed the Cyanotype method to dye the denim fabric, utilising the sun’s energy and incorporating objects that mirror ocean pollution. The resulting denim captures the hues of the ocean, making each piece a poignant reminder of our environmental footprint. “Occyan Morphosis” challenges viewers to rethink their relationship with the environment.
Boswarva is a second year student at the NSW TAFE Fashion Design Studio (FDS) and was previously been recognised for her innovative approach to textiles and wearable art, with a selection for the HSC Exhibition Shape at the Powerhouse Museum in 2022, showcasing her textiles major work “Norms vs Neutrality”.
There are 200 finalists all exhibiting as part of the Northern Beaches Environmental Art Prize exhibition, which will be open free to the public from August 2 – 25, from 10am to 5pm, Tuesday through Sunday, with the Design category category exhibited at the Curl Curl Creative Space and other categories at the Manly Art Gallery and Museum and the Mona Vale Creative SpaceGallery.
The 2024 judges of the Environmental Art Prize include fashion designer Genevieve Smart (Ginger & Smart), industrial designer Trent Jansen, and visual artist Khaled Sabsabi.
The prize pool totals $46,000, distributed across the different categories.
Winners will be announced on 1 August.
The public can vote for the People’s Choice Category that will be announced after the exhibition on 23 August.
For more information on the 2024 Northern Beaches Environmental Art & Design Prize and to view the full list of finalists, click here.
Words: Melissa Fleming
