01 — Introducing Patchwork System

What if a design was never finished?

For more than a decade, we have worked with discarded sneakers: taking them apart, understanding their construction and developing new ways to use what already exists. Patchwork System takes this practice one step further.

Together with researcher Mariana Pereira Silva, we are exploring how design can contribute to a world in which care, justice, collectivity and ‘enough’ take centre stage, rather than continuous growth.

At the heart of the project is a monumental wall tapestry measuring 7.5 × 3.5 metres, made entirely from deconstructed post-consumer sneakers.

But the tapestry is not designed to remain intact.

Over time, sections will be cut from the work and adopted by people. These pieces can become objects, shoes or simply material to take care of. Every opening left behind is repaired with newly assembled patchwork.

The work therefore continuously changes: it grows, decays, is repaired and transforms.

We took inspiration from natural systems, where decay is not an endpoint but part of regeneration. Instead of designing a finished object, Patchwork System asks:

Can we design something that is made to change?

 Photo by: Rene Gerritsen