Overfishing is a global crisis that has resulted in the collapse of approximately 90 per cent of the world’s large fish stock such as tuna and cod. Various systems like protecting endangered marine areas and implementing controlled fishing regulations are attempts at alleviating the impact, but it’s still important to continue awareness around sustainable fishing practices.
Delft-based designer Nienke Hoogvliet is using design as a platform to convey a message about the wasteful trawling methods used in the fishing industry. Her "Re-sea Me" project is a range of furniture and accessories made from fish waste to generate conversation around overfishing and the tonnes of fish waste produced every year.
Hoogvliet sourced discarded salmon skin from various fisheries to create a stool and rug. Using a completely natural and traditional process, she scaled the skin by hand, then oiled it and hung it out to dry. The outcome of that process is a leather-like material with elastic properties that allows the skin to be stretched out or sewn.
Her beautifully designed products call attention to sustainable fishing and the ways in which we can use design to find creative solutions to a worldwide problem.
