INTERVIEW WITH XIAO-YUN
Tell us about the inspiration behind your project:
Origami can transform the original flat form of paper into endless 3D possibilities. Leather is not as thin as paper and can’t be folded into sharp edges; so, I thinned the leather and laser-engraved the folds inside without the need to mould. I converted the common materials that can be used for lamps into leather, removed the stitching and used the fewest joints to make it look integrally formed. I punched some light-transmitting points on the surface of the leather to increase the interest and render the space through the light points to create Origami.
What has been your experience in working with leather for this competition?
My experience has been focused on changing the shape of leather. Folding the leather like origami requires more attention to the individual elements of the garment rather than simply sewing the leather together as each leather parts maintains a different level of stiffness to them.
How do you think winning this competition will impact your career as a designer?
Winning the Gold Award in this design competition has for the first time made me realize that there is so much potential for leather, it shouldn’t be restricted to just being used in the most common way to make an object.
How has this competition influenced your view of working with leather in the future?
There must be many undiscovered possibilities for leather. I hope that in the future, the leather industry will develop as close to the life of Taiwanese as my Origami design.
Click here to view all the shortlisted entries from this year’s Taiwan Competition.
Click here to learn more about leather and sustainability.
Josslyn Shi from California College of Art has been crowned Overall Winner of the Real Leather. Stay Different. International Student Design Competition at a glittering final event held at the U.S. Embassy in London.
Think small is where RLSD takes a look at some of the companies around the world that we think are doing the right thing with leather. This is a greenwashing free zone – no matter what they produce, sustainability is at the heart of what they do.
When almost every waking moment is spent working to survive, people learn to make the very best of what they have.
Meet Chengrui Xu, participant in our 2021 China Student Design Competition.
Meet this year’s People’s Choice Category Winner for the inaugural Nordic Region Student Design Competition, Maria Julia Echarte Pascual – with her entry Sukeban.
