03/414 – Leathers of Solofra

Solofra is one of the most highly esteemed tanning centers in Europe. Several prestigious companies are established here. At the invitation of the mayor of the city, an artistic and technological reflection is conducted on how to give new life to the leather scraps accumulating in the workshops of Solofra, currently going to waste. This approach is similar to the one conducted on luxury fabric scraps produced by Tessitura Umbertino (see project n°03/381).

The proposal aims to combine art and social engagement with the help of accessible modern technologies. After selecting the scraps solely based on the harmony of colors, they are glued together as they are, without further shaping, using a high performance adhesive. The result is like a quilt, the form and the use completely free, which can be flat or adapt to any geometrically non-developable shape that could be used as a piece of clothing or furniture, for example. The low-tech and very low cost manufacturing method allows its practice by many different people, from a confirmed artist to a person in social breakdown in the framework of a rehabilitation program in art, through a schoolchild in an artistic awakening workshop.

This creative process refers both to the patchwork and to the stone pavements in opus incertum, an ancient tradition in Italy.