Leather is a material with a special value. Its consumption must be regulated and optimized to get the best out of it.
Whether in the leather goods, automobile, or object design sector, cutting leather necessarily creates waste.
I find it unfortunate that such a material is thrown away only because it is too small to be used.
I want to find a way to revalue this waste by imagining a product at their scale.
Leather marquetry
I decided to assemble leathers of different species (crocodile, cobra, calf, ostrich or cow) that I cut into irregular shapes and then assembled. The different leathers, the different textures and the different patterns reflect the richness of biodiversity.
Gold represents here this richness and the value of these species. But it also refers to Kintsugi which is a traditional Japanese method of repairing porcelain and ceramics using glue based on lacquer and gold powder. Kintsugi, a symbol of resilience, is an art that gives life to broken objects.
It is not about hiding the repairs, but about highlighting them.
I thought about different objects to shape this leather marquetry. But my choice was a watch box. Precious, small, and not too much exposed to damages. It is the perfect product for this project.
Final product
