Venetia Allan
Wanting to work with living materials in a no waste, non extractive process, seeing the beauty in the overlooked. I wanted to make something beautiful working with a living material which is often overlooked and even unwanted in many places.
Prototype moss table: recycled table, ceramic, commissioned glass, repurposed gravel, found stones and moss
I gathered moss from urban environments – especially the alley behind by house as well as local tennis courts, pavements after storms and so on. I made a mobile moss collecting unit and a home moss incubator. The tennis courts were about to be ‘cleared’ so this moss was rescued.
It took a lot of work to identify the species of moss.
Actual moss table: Making
Cane, lapping, recycled bowl, found moss, found stones, circadian lighting: repurposed Arduino board, white LEDS x 3. Custom glass top. Downs mould from self drying clay.
Finished Moss Table – with the moss planted on a replica of the south downs
I decided to plant this moss table as a replica of the South Downs near where I live. Following on from my project last year. I wanted to see if I could make a mini world – a tiny wild place that anyone could have – even in a tiny house. I think the planting could be more beautiful, I could make the downs bigger and if made from terracotta could be a porous water storage vessel which would stay moist for weeks.
Circadian Lighting: to enhance the moss tables and simulate a natural living environment.
