16 March, 2021
INTERVIEW - DESIGN WANTED
‘GUIDED BY NATURE’S GLITTERING COLORS’

"On an exploration path where human demands meet wider ecological systems, Elissa Brunato experiments with innovative materials, driving the fashion and textile industry towards more sustainable approaches."

Full interview online here:





2 March, 2021
INTERVIEW - DUTCH DESIGN WEEK
‘WHEN GLITZ & GLAM BECOME SUSTAINABLE’

At the start of this year I had the pleasure of being interviewed by Viveka van de Vliet from the Dutch Design Foundation about my latest project Float, as well as my ongoing work with Bio Iridescent Sequin - discussing fashion, sustainable materials and how I came to do the work I love!

Full interview online here:





15 December, 2020
WE NEED TO TALK - DAMN MAGAZINE

Bio Iridescent Sequin has been featured in DAMN Magazine. The article “We Need To Talk” is an encapsulation of Esther Munoz Grootveld and OfficCCXD ongoing conversation about the role of beauty in design.

Read the article online here:





7 November, 2020
SUSTAINABLE DESIGN OF THE YEAR

Super excited to announce that Bio Iridescent Sequin is shortlisted for Dezeen’s Sustainable Design of the Year 2020. Very proud to sit alongside some incredible projects.

More on the awards here:




October, 2020
ARTS FOUNDATION FELLOWSHIP 2021

I have been nominated for the Arts Foundation Futures Awards 2021 under the material Innovation category. Thank you to those that put me forward to be considered for the award, to the judges for this amazing opportunity and to the Arts Foundation for extending your warm welcome into this incredible community.

Find out more here:





June, 2020
RISING STAR AWARD

Feeling very honoured - Thank you to the judges of the Rising Star Award for the motivating comments:

“Elissa’s work is innovative, relevant and beautifully executed to show design excellence in both study and thought process, and work that demonstrates rigour. The work is exciting, fresh and future focused, and the convergence of new technologies and science in the area of materials and how these impact on human experiences is inspiring. This is a wonderful mixture of conceptual and explorative thinking, blending design, science and collaboration, and pushing the fashion industry to think differently and clean up its act. Elissa is definitely one to watch.”

More info here:




25th October 2020
THE SUSTAINABLE PRODUCT TALK SHOW: GLASS

Our project ‘Float’ on Live Dutch TV made possible by Het Nieuwe Instituut’s New Material Award and Dutch Design Week 2020. We were honoured to be part of the live talk show where we discussed Glass from both a material, product and consumer stand point along with some fantastic industry experts: Oscar Verheijen, Annemartine van Kesteren, Inge Oskam, Lonny van Ryswyck, Faidra Oikonomopoulou and Telesilla Bristogianni.

The panel was hosted by Ulle Lundin who navigated the discussion seamlessly as we delved into the life cycles of glass, it’s ever more scarce component sand, and our relationship to it. Widely advertised as a better choice than plastics, but really how sustainable is glass?

Rewatch the live show here:




22 October 2020
DEZEEN x DUTCH DESIGN WEEK

Christoph Dichmann and I were invited by the Dutch Design Foundation to take part in Dezeen x Dutch Design Week, 'It’s In Our Nature' discussion. Thank you for the opportunity to show our work and share our thoughts on the narrative of local consumption and how this is entwined with the global market.The theme was curated by the wonderful Marleen van Bergeijk.

Rewatch the full talk here:




17 October - 15 November 2020
GEO—DESIGN COMMISSION

Together with designer Christoph Dichmann we have been busy with a new project for ‘GEO—DESIGN: Sand. The Building Block of Modernity’ which features nine original research-based projects. The exhibition portrays some of the possible applications, materialities, geographies and economies of this global resource. The exhibition will be at the Van Abbe Museum, Eindhoven.

For our project 'Float' online interviews conducted with experts around sand and glass lay out a virtual conversation that discusses the necessity to regulate the extraction and use of these materials.

Check out the exhibition here:

More info here:




17 October 2020
THE FLOAT GLASS LAWS OF DEMAND AND SUPPLY


We were interviewed by Jeannette Petrik for the publication of GEO-DESIGN: Sand. The interview discusses our research insights and how we explored sand as one of the most critical elements of our everyday life. The publication can also be purchased at Onomatopee.

Full interview here:




1 APRIL 2020
'HOW TO MAKE' BBC FOUR


I’ll be on BBC FOUR speaking to my hero Zoe Laughlin about structural colour and my project, Bio Iridescent Sequin.

In this three-part series, Zoe dissects three classic everyday items, to reveal the craft, designs and engineering that lies behind the things we take for granted. Along the way, to truly understand how form, function and materials come together, she builds her own bespoke versions, step by step!

Episode 1: The Trainer, (broadcasting at 8pm on Thursday 2nd April 2020)

Read about the series here:




27th February - 1st March 2020
TALK: DESIGN INDABA CONFERENCE CAPE TOWN

Thank you for the incredible opportunity to share my story on stage at the Design Indaba Conference in South Africa. The Bio Iridescent Sequin was not only my MA project but also a passion project that began its foundations during my career in the Fashion Industry.

The full talk should be up soon and I can’t wait to share it with you.




27 February 2020
WOOD AWARDS WINNER!

A huge thank you to the Wood Awards for recognising my work with ‘Bio Iridescent Sequin’ for Student Designer Category.

More about the Wood Awards here:




26 February 2020
'NATURE BY DESIGN'

A day-long conversation on project-based collaborations between artists, designers and researchers in material science. A great event series made possible by Plymouth College of Art Making Futures Research Group. A massive thank you to the wonderful Stephanie Owens for the opportunity to share my work and take part in these inspiring conversations.




13 February 2020
RAISING CHILDREN TO CONSUME WISELY

‘Circular Socks’ will be featured in the upcoming children's book: ’Our throwaway society’. It shows parents how to positively re-shape their children’s future by involving them in adopting more responsible lifestyles. This has been two years in the making for Anya Hart Dyke, who feels passionate about setting ‘planetary boundaries’ that our children understand and can learn to live within. I agree too!

More info on the book here:




29-30 January 2020
SUSTAINABLE ANGLE 2020 - INNOVATION HUB

The Bio Iridescent Sequin is showing in the Sustainable Angle’s 2020 Innovation Hub. Come and check out the incredible selection of Innovations for the future of Fashion.

Read up on the Fashion Revolutions innovations to watch out for here:




5 December 2019
BIOFABRICATE CONFERENCE 2020

I have been invited to Biofabricate 2020 to show my work, Bio Iridescent Sequin. What an honour to be part of this incredible group of inspiring leaders shaping our material future. A very informative and inspirational day, thank you to the Biofabricate team for this brilliant annual gathering of biotech innovators.

Read more about Biofabricate here:




12-16 November 2019
DUBAI DESIGN WEEK

The Bio Iridescent Sequin was selected to go to Dubai Design Week 2020. So excited to be part of this year selection of Global Graduates 2020. Curated by Eleanor Watson from the London Design Museum.

More info here:




28 November 2019
ECO-AGE MEET THE FUTURE SERIES

“Meet the Future” panel discussion on all things party dressing and sustainability with Livia Firth (EcoAge founder), Lianne Wiggins (head of womenswear at Matchesfashion) and Marie Blanchet (CEO William Vintage). Had a fabulous day with this brilliant, fun and inspiring bunch of women.

Read the Eco Age interview here:




14 September - 27 October 2019
DESIGNING ALTERNATIVES

‘Designing in Turbulent Times’ exhibition is a collaboration between Central Saint Martins, LVMH and Maison/0 and offers compelling and disruptive propositions for a more sustainable future. I am very excited to be showcasing along with 28 fellow Central Saint Martins graduates. The exhibition opens during the London Design Festival 2019 at the Lethaby Gallery Kings Cross.

The exhibition was co-curated by Carole Collet and Kate Keara Pelen who integrated sustainable values into their decision-making of the exhibition. The show is plastic-free with zero waste and all furniture has been designed to be reused. The materials, products and suppliers have been selected to reduce impact on the environment – from the timber choices to vegan paint and the use of screen-printed signage in place of plastic-based vinyl lettering.

Read the article here:




12 SEPTEMBER 2019
MaDe: MATERIAL DESIGNERS

I have initiated a new research project, looking into the wonders and potential of lignin during the MaDe Programme.

MaDe (Material Designers) is a competition, event series and platform devoted to realising the positive impact material designers can have across all creative sectors. MaDe showcases 120 Material Designers, 9 Partners, 6 Workshops, 3 Cities and 3 Winners. The project is co-funded by Creative Europe Programme of The European Union, which aims at boosting talents towards circular economies across Europe.

Visit the website here:




1 APRIL 2019
MULLENLOWE NOVA AWARDS

Super excited to have won the Creative Review Innovation Award and picked up RunnerUp for the overall award. Thank you so much to the judges for this recognition.

The awards are selected from over 1,300 graduating students at Central Saint Martins, 14 students were shortlisted and just 4 MullenLowe NOVA Awards were presented to students whose work represents truly original creative thinking and execution. Congratulations to the other winners and shortlists!

More info on the awards here:




18 June 2019
WINNER! TECHSTYLE PRIZE

So grateful for the recognition from the The Mills Fabrica Hong Kong and being awarded the Techstyle Prize. This prize includes financial capital to help fund ongoing work as well as 3-month residency based at The Mills in Hong Kong. This includes one-to-one mentorship, use of flexible coworking space, membership of Fabrica Lab (state-of-the-art prototyping lab) and access to community events.

Find out more about the award here:




10 June 2019
MAISON/0 x LVMH GREEN TRAIL

Proud to be one of the Green Trail Prize winners for Sustainable Design 2019.

Maison/0 is an incubator of sustainable intelligence designed to provoke practices and challenge our collective futures. Set up as part of the CSM LVMH partnership launched in May 2017, Maison/0 provides a platform to develop innovative sustainable projects across Central Saint Martins and LVMH.

More info on Maison/0 x LVMH here: