Deep Dive: Organic Cotton Canvas
Fabric Banners: Process
Before ever ordering fabric, I needed to have all my text written and edited. Although my exhibit doesn’t have a clear direction of travel, since it’s a circle, I decided to organize my text blocks so that material-specific information is on the outside of the exhibit and conceptual, overarching information is on the inside. In Adobe Illustrator, I created scale flat maps of the inside and outside of each exhibit wall and began placing text, rearranging until I had each text block in places that made sense based on travel through the exhibit and where each material was located.
In Adobe Illustrator, I created scale flat patterns of the exterior and interior of each wall to map out graphics and text in the exhibit.
Once I decided on text location, I worked on choosing fonts and font sizes, as well as editing the kerning and rag. Throughout the process, I printed out tiled versions of the text at full size to see if my banners would be legible from a distance. These print-outs gave me the first sense of what the full size banners would look like.
I printed out tiled paper versions of my banners at scale using different font sizes and weights to figure out which was most legible.
Using color swatches for the fabric I planned to order, I decided that a medium-light green tone for the banners best complemented the natural wood tones and reddish-orange of my milk paint.
Comparing my fabric swatch to Pantone colors.
After I finished mapping out all the text, I pulled dimensions for the size of the banners in Rhino and used that information to calculate how much fabric I needed.
In my Rhino model, I assigned each fabric banner a color.
The fabric I planned on ordering came in 60” widths. I laid out each banner to scale on 16’ long representations of the fabric to figure out how many yards of fabric I needed. I ultimately ordered 13 yards (39 feet).
From the Rhino model on the left, I took dimensions for the fabric to send to the screenprinter.
I partnered with a Connecticut-based zero-waste screenprinter, Cinder + Salt, to print the text on my banners. Each block of text needed to be organized to fit on a 28”x26” screen. The introductory banner, shown in the below image, used three different screens. The ink is recycled. Given time limitations on the development of my exhibit and the need for ease of installation, I ultimately decided to use velcro to attach the banners to the exhibit. The loop side of the velcro is sewn to the banners and the hook side is stapled to structural plywood of the exhibit.
Before stapling Velcro to the exhibit, I hung the banners with binder clips and push pins to make sure they were the correct size.
The red boxes in this image represent a screen used to print the text. Certain blocks of text needed to be split into multiple screens, such as on the banner second from the left.
At the end of my exhibit’s display life, I plan to repurpose all my banners into tote bags to continue the useful life of the fabric and keep it out of landfills. Although the exhibit is still on display, I am currently preparing for the creation of the tote bags by learning how to sew on my grandmother’s sewing machine from 1949. Learning to sew on a heirloom not only connects me to my family, but is also another way to engage in the circular economy.
What Are Voluntary Standards?
The banners in Material World are made of cotton canvas certified under the Global Organic Textile Standard, a third-party verified voluntary standard.
Voluntary standards are standards that go above and beyond what is required by law. They vary in focus, covering issues such as human health, labor rights, and environmental health. They also range in stringency and effectiveness. Generally, voluntary standards with third party certifications are reputable since any certified companies have been evaluated by an independent organization for compliance.
False or misleading labels are often used to greenwash products, or make them appear more sustainable than they actually are. One fabric I found during my research was marketed as being certified sustainable and biodegradable. However, upon further reading, the certification was created by the same company selling the so-called certified fabrics. While their claims may be true, they are difficult, if not impossible, to verify since there is no unbiased party to confirm their claims.
Since GOTS involves third-party verification through an on-site auditing process, it ensures that the fabric I purchased meets the GOTS social and environmental responsibility requirements, including that the fabric:
must be composed of at least 95% organic fibers that come from locations free from labor rights violations
has not been treated with substances recognized as harmful to the environment or human health
Evaluating Sustainability
The fact that my fabric is GOTS certified ensures that it follows certain environmental and social sustainability requirements. However, it was shipped from India. Had I ordered fabric produced closer to Connecticut, would the carbon impact have been less than it was shipping overseas?
In the process of creating the banners, printing full-scale paper versions of the banners generated a lot of paper waste. Although this paper can be recycled and the process was valuable to ensuring that my banners are legible, is there a way that I could have eliminated or at least minimized that waste?
Additionally, the hook and loop tape used to attach the fabric to the exhibit was bought new. It is the only virgin plastic used in the exhibit, and ideally I would have liked to use a different system for attaching the banners, perhaps grommets. Using grommets would have taken much longer, though, to make sure that they line up properly with the exhibit. With hook and loop tape, it is much easier to reposition the banners on the exhibit to eliminate wrinkles. Additionally, what is the impact of producing grommets? If I were to redo the exhibit, I might still use velcro, but would try buy it second hand so as not to contribute to the creation of virgin plastics.
Two points in which I believe my fabric banners truly fulfilled my criteria for sustainability are the fact that they were screen printed by a zero-waste, locally-based screen printer, and that they will become a part of the circular economy after the exhibit is over in the form of tote bags.