ABOUT THE PROJECT

COCOON — SECOND LIFE was developed as part of DEWA (Design from Waste of Agriculture), a project initiated by Thailand’s Department of International Trade Promotion (DITP), in collaboration with กลุ่มรังไหมประดิษฐ์, Saraburi, Thailand. The project began with discarded silk cocoons left from the silk-reeling process, which the community had previously transformed into decorative flowers and keychains.

The project explored how this familiar material and existing craft knowledge could be developed in new directions. Silk cocoons were cut into different geometric and irregular shapes, then arranged and stitched together to create larger textile-like surfaces. Through variations in cutting, repetition, and composition, the experiments generated new patterns, structures, and textures from the same material.

Natural dyeing was also explored using locally available materials, including golden shower bark, pandan leaves, lac, and roselle, introducing variations in color while retaining the distinctive texture and character of the cocoons.

These material studies were further developed into bags inspired by the form of the silk cocoon itself, moving the material beyond its previous applications toward contemporary lifestyle objects. Through cutting, dyeing, stitching, and reconstruction, COCOON — SECOND LIFE reveals the potential of a discarded agricultural material to generate new surfaces, forms, and applications through craft and design.