Morphotex is the world's first structurally coloured fibre, developed by Teijin Japan by the process of biomimicry. By mimicking the way colour is produced in the Morpho butterfly's wing, the fibre appears coloured but does not use any dyes. Iridescence in the butterfly's wing is formed through structural or physical colour, rather than chemical colour. I was able to work with Morphotex during the 1st Shinmai Creator's Project.
In Exhibition
1st Shinmai Creator's Project Show and Exhibition, Japan Fashion Week in Tokyo, 2009.
Trash Fashion: designing without waste, Antenna Gallery, Science Museum London, 2011-2012.
FashionWare @ StyleX, SXSW Interactive Festival, Austin, USA, 2011.
Private exhibition curated by Biomimicry Europa for Renault at their Technocentre in Paris (2012).
Biomimicry exhibition, Taiwan Science Education Centre, Taiwan, 2016 and touring South-East Asia 2018-2023.
In Permanent Collections
London Science Museum
Biomimicry Europa
Taiwan Science Education Centre
In Text
Biomimicry + Fashion Practice, Fashionably Early Forum, August 9, 2012, National Gallery Canberra.
In this paper I discuss the Morphotex dress, in relationship to some broader issues surrounding biomimicry and fashion practice. A copy of the paper can be found here.
Research Practice
The Morphotex Dress has been instrumental in defining the direction of my current research practice. The ability for fashion to create meaningful ways for scientific innovation to be translated for the general public is something that the experience of travelling this dress has taught me. That a dress can inspire conversation about science and innovation and the ways it impacts our daily lives is a source of inspiration to my research practice.