Latest / Project Emerald Collective / From Waste to Wearable Art: Creativity, Activism and Change with Natalie Hamblin
Transcript
- Natalie: I think that's when I melded the two fashion with waste to carry my message across. fashion is a vehicle for me. and because we've got so much waste and I've been working in education for over 25 years. I wanted to teach the kids there's a way that you can have a say about all the waste. Eve: that's right, and not to just turn a blind eye or not do anything about it. Welcome to the Project Emerald Collective. I'm your host, Eve McIntyre. Every week I sit down with women who have chosen to live differently. Designers, founders, creatives, psychologists, adventurers and change makers. People asking bigger questions about how we live, work, create and connect. These conversations aren't really about fashion. They're about living with intention. finding the courage to be yourself and discovering what becomes possible when you stop living by expectation and start living by choice. If that's the kind of life you're creating too, you're in the right place. Now let's go. Today I'm joined by Natalie Hamblin, who is a Tasmanian artist and designer, whose work challenges us to look differently at the things that we discard, and perhaps at our relationship with con c with consumption altogether. Her environmental story started long before her work in fashion. Before she could even walk, Natalie was being carried on her parents' backs at protests against the damming of Tasmania's Franklin River. Today she uses art, fashion, and discarded materials to continue asking questions about our relationship with the natural world, including through her works such as Quel Dommage, hopefully I've pronounced that right, which confronted the destruction of Tasmania's old growth forests. Such inspiring and important work. And Natalie is also one of the designers that we'll see at this year's Tasmanian Fashion Festival. I'm so excited to get into our conversation today, Natalie. Welcome. Natalie: thank you, Eve. Eve: So before we talk about what you create, I wanna go right back. So you were being carried to environmental protests before you could even walk. What kind of childhood did you grow up in? Natalie: it was residential, Hobart. it's a suburban life in the eighties, I think even though I lived in suburbia, I had a connection with nature. From a young age, as long as I could remember, art and nature were high up on the agenda for me. Eve: were you always collecting and making and creating? Natalie: Yeah, my work now is much to do with being resourceful, but even back then I was resourceful. Anything that I could find, sticks, rocks, just observing nature, arranging, manipulating, anything I could find to create art. I guess I was into. Eve: Yeah, absolutely. how much of your environmental consciousness do you think came from your parents? Natalie: A a great deal. They would talk about it a lot and the evening news you would get messages, you know, about im environmental things happening, logging. so there it was always an active conversation in the house, I suppose. Eve: Yeah, and did you feel a sense of empowerment as opposed to overwhelm? Natalie: Yeah, art is a big outlet for me. So while I observe things that are going on or I hear things that are going on environmentally, I respond through art. So instead of getting overwhelmed, I guess art is my voice in carrying messages across. So I've always done that in my art practice. Eve: Yeah, I love that. when did you start looking at things that other people considered waste and seeing creative possibility instead? Natalie: I think I've always like utilized whatever I could find to create. But I think what pushed me to create garments or wearable art through waste. was during the pandemic that was the turning point where I decided there's way too much waste. there's way too much packaging, I was getting really sick of the throwaway society, so I wanted to r respond. And I think that's when I melded the two fashion with waste to carry my message across. So it's a vehicle. I suppose fashion is a vehicle for me. and because we've got so much waste and because I've been working in education for over 25 years. I wanted to teach the kids there's a way that you can have a say about all the waste. yeah. Eve: Yeah, that's right, and not to just turn a blind eye or not do anything about it. So Natalie: Yeah. Eve: do you think having fewer resources actually makes you more creative? Natalie: I just see a possibility in everything that I find and I wanna challenge myself I suppose and see what the possibilities are with the materials. and there's endless Eve: Yeah. Natalie: amounts of materials. So I got the milk bottles from the school cafe that I work at. And they were just throwing them in the bin. Not the recycling bin. they were going straight to landfill. so I saw a possibility in that. And I also worked out that all the plastic that comes off new TVs and white goods they just get thrown in the hopper out the back of the store. And it moved me on to questioning why aren't businesses recycling? Why aren't they made to recycle? we as households have to recycle, Eve: Yeah. Natalie: and we get fines if we don't. why aren't they being a held accountable? Eve: Mm-hmm. Natalie: so I I've moved on in inquiring about that through the government and suddenly recycle bins are at our school now. So Eve: well done. Natalie: Yeah, so I don't know how actively they're using them, but it's a step. It's a step in questioning. yeah, but back to your question, there's just resources everywhere and I the happiest day of my life will be when I don't have those resources that that we're all doing the right thing and we're limiting our single use plastic, taking a stand on all our waste products. Eve: Yeah, absolutely. do you start generally with an idea and find the materials or do the materials tell you what they want to become? Natalie: A little bit of both. so I might I might see something and think and and do a little bit of research or a little bit of upskilling so I made plan, which is plastic yarn out of the sheets of plastic. So I had to Google it. and just a bit of trial and error. And sometimes I I guess with when it comes to fabric garments, it's depending on the texture of the materials that I'm upcycling. And I look at a garment that's been thrown away like a wedding dress, a single use garment, like from formals and I mean they date so quickly that and people keep them in their cupboards for 20 years and then they give them to charity or throw them out. So I look at those garments and they do speak to me and I go, Okay, I know what to do with this garment depending on the texture. some things work, some things don't. It's all a bit of an experiment. Eve: Mm. Natalie: Yeah. Eve: were you always into sewing growing up? Natalie: Not at all. I I think I was the biggest avoider of sewing. I learned to hand sew. I still hand sew a lot more than machine sew. but I now understand how much faster it is to machine sew something than hand sew it. but very basic skills for a very long part of my life. because I was refusing to learn to sew. I probably saw myself more as an artist than someone that could sew. a lot of people in my family wanted me to learn to sew, because I come from a long line of people that can sew in my family. So I I think I was trying to avoid that a lot. through my life, but because it's been around, it's a resource that I have drawn upon now, later in life. Eve: sometimes life works that way. Natalie: Hmm. Eve: You can't avoid it, so you might as well just join them. Yeah. Natalie: Yeah. Eve: tell us about Quell Dommage, so when art becomes activism. can you describe that piece for someone who hasn't seen it and tell us the story behind it? Natalie: Okay, so Quell Dommage is a French word. it means what a pity, what a shame. I chose the title because it spoke to me that I think in the future we're gonna look back on the destruction of what l logging of ancient forests. and what impact on the ecosystem that's going to be in the future. what Quell Dommage is all about is the mountain ash, which is like a hundred meter two hundred year old tree that grows above the canopy of the forest and It's a Tasmanian tree or a South Australian tree. And it's in harm's way of being logged. And I wanted to use this tree because it featured in Bob Brown's documentary, but I'd already decided upon the tree. prior to that documentary being released. and it's talking about the importance of d giant trees. Now these trees are being logged and chipped and sent away overseas to be made into paper products, paper waste products such as packaging, boxes, grocery bags, toilet paper rolls, I wanted to create a a wearable art piece made out of this paper packaging of a mountain ash tree to show the destruction of these trees to make paper products. so I entered into Paper on Skin in Tasmania. It's on the northwest coast and with this tree, paper tree garment. And I thought, well, that's not the end of the story with this garment. I wanted to take it to the Tarkine and photograph it. so I went on an a art residency with the Bob Brown Foundation and And they've beautifully photographed it in the Tarkine of a logged area and an unlogged area to show the destruction. and I was fortunate enough to d be on the art residency and then it was on display at Salamanca Gallery. And it auctioned for eight hundred dollars and so that money went back to the foundation. So that helps the people that are trying to protect the trees because I'm in Queensland and I can't physically be on a tree climb to protect a tree. I wanted to give back in that way to help the foundation with their cause. 'Cause I thought it was important for this this actual garment to have full s circle and send the message. so it's done its job. So I was very happy with the outcome of that. Eve: What a great cause to contribute to. And that's one that's very close to my heart actually. I was Natalie: Mm-hmm. Eve: part of the Takanya run this year and ran through the Tarkine. And Natalie: Yeah. Eve: it's such a special place. I cannot believe that it's not World Heritage Protected. Natalie: Yeah, yeah. Not many people know that. I was under the illusion that it was protected, but it's state Eve: Mm. Natalie: forest and at any point it can be taken. and we need to fight to protect it. Eve: the Bob Brown Foundation does such important work and anything that we can do to protect those wild places, is so valuable. you're so multifaceted, do you think of yourself as a designer, an artist or an activist or all of those together at once? Natalie: All of the above. Yeah, absolutely. And I can't have one without the other. yeah, I feel very strongly that me having a connection with the environment helps serve a purpose through my art. but I also feel that fashion is a vehicle for those two things. Eve: Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, Natalie: My practice. Yeah. Eve: and in your experience, can a garment change someone's mind? Natalie: Absolutely. I feel that many people I've spoken to, when they see the work and when I explain to them what the work's about, they really understand the message. I've had a few people comment it's not just a garment, it's like wearing an experience. I feel like when I hear that I've achieved what I've wanted to achieve. Eve: Yeah. when did buying, using and throwing away become so normal as a society, do you think? Natalie: I remember when we started to move away from say for instance when I lived in Hobart, I remember a milkman used to come and deliver milk in glass bottles and then we would use that milk and then we'd put the glass bottles out and he would refill them and we'd reuse them and recycle them. Now it's just single use plastic all the way. And I remember when Coca-Cola changed their glass bottles for plastic bottles and I remember vividly standing at Newtown in the car park seeing my first ugly plastic coke bottle and thinking, what is that? And what are we doing? Even as a seven year old, I was questioning what, why. I can't believe how much plastic from that point on it just escalated and convenience just took over. at that point we only had a Pizza Hut restaurant that was the only chain restaurant that I remember having. I we didn't even have McDonald's when I lived in Hobart. But then when I went to Sydney and there was McDonald's everywhere, and especially when I moved to Queensland, there was just fast food everywhere, disposable packaging everywhere. plastic just took over in a big way, in the eighties. And we even knew back then that it wasn't a good thing environmentally, but we kept doing it. And I think that that's what baffled me after the pandemic. we didn't curb our ways, we just accelerated it more. Eve: Mm. Natalie: I say in jest, if I ordered a business card, paper business card online, just a single business card, it would come wrapped in plastic and then it would come in a paper package probably a cardboard backing to stop it from bending. And I went, why? Why do we need this excessive amount of packaging? I just think the world's gone crazy and we know that this is not a good thing, but we keep doing it. because I can't go and protest about this out on the streets or go and sit outside parliament or Do a tree sit in the forest. this is my way, of pushing back and saying enough. Eve: I love that and thank you. Thank you for standing up and thank you for using your art to convey a message that's so important. we'll touch on the Tasmanian Fashion Festival, which is so exciting that you're gonna be coming as one of the designers at this year's festival. what are you bringing Natalie: Yeah. Eve: to the runway? Natalie: I've got a lot of my plastic milk bottle garments coming. I've got the strapping that comes around boxes or photocopying Eve: Mm-hmm. Natalie: boxes as plastic. I've made garments using that material. I've used a lot of upcycled fabrics, wedding dresses and part of it's about coral bleaching so all the white garments are about coral bleaching and we've reached the tipping point with the plastic waste so it's a message about that there's also a part where I've introduced black and white garments to just show the stages of that coral bleaching and sending a message about our ocean's health and all the waste and the pollution that we contributing to to that issue. the style of my garments, I guess you could say it's a bit like Lady Gaga meets Audrey Hepburn. it's gonna be a bit of a visual feast and a bit dramatic, I suppose. Eve: Yeah, I love that. Has creating the collection challenged you in any way? Natalie: absolutely with collecting the materials, it takes a long time it's very labor intensive. my poor hands have suffered with all the the hand sewing that I do because it's couture. It's one of a kind. these garments require a lot of work to put them together. Eve: why the Tasmanian Fashion Festival, Natalie? Natalie: being born in Tasmania, this is a very exciting event for me. it's very special, it's close to my heart. I love Tassie. if I had my way I wouldn't have moved, but Life has taken me on a different journey. it's very special to me to to be at this event. Eve: When someone sees your work come down the runway, what do you want them to feel? Natalie: I want them to, I guess, look at the artistry of the creations, see them as an art piece that has a message. obviously they're sculptural pieces, so they're a lot of fun as well. I want people to sort of question what's that made out of? Because at a glance you can't tell that it's made out of waste materials. so I guess that's that's a part in me that I enjoy the the most is people questioning what is that made out of? Eve: what else do you want them to question? Natalie: I want them to probably more or less experience the work. they're not just garments. They carry a message. I want them to try and look hard and to enjoy the experience and to get something out of it. when they find out or when they look closely. I can see that's made out of milk bottles or wow, is that what's that made out of? Eve: do you think it goes back to questioning our own behaviour as a society? Natalie: Absolutely. I think that bringing this art to the runway is extremely important to evoke a conversation about our wasteful habits. Eve: Yeah. Yeah, it's time. We need to do something about it. Natalie: Hm. Eve: we've talked about a lot about what you create, but I'm also interested in what this journey has done to you. has creating this way changed who you are? Natalie: Absolutely. it's an absolute outlet for me. it's a purpose it's a passion for me. I've delved into painting ceramics and it's not fulfilled me in the same way as this because it's basically art and environment have collided. my two biggest passions into fashion. Eve: awesome. you've spent so much of your life asking people to reconsider what they value through your art. What do you value most now? Natalie: I hope that this work helps make change. I hope that, my advocacy will spark conversation to make those changes. I don't plan on stopping anytime soon until my my work is done. My happiest day will be when we have curbed our ways. And I have nothing more to say on the matter. But I've got a lot of work ahead of me and I don't plan to stop. Eve: for the woman listening to this who cares about these things but feels completely overwhelmed by sustainability and thinks, what difference can my choices possibly make? Where would you tell her to begin? Natalie: there's so many powerful leaders, women leaders. my part is using art as a vehicle. But so many other people possess so many talents. and I would say Hone in on your talent and find a way to create a voice for yourself. So my voice is through producing something visual from the environmental issues that I see. So instead of watching a news report or listening to a documentary about environmental issues and getting really upset about it and then do nothing, find some way of creating a voice to turn that, upset about what you're seeing and turn it around and turn it into something instead of doing nothing. if you're really good at public speaking or like you said, you you did the run in the Tarkine. If you're a really good runner, then that's your way of of helping or advocating. so get involved in something that's your passion and within your skill set, and turn it into, a powerful voice Eve: I have heard that in order to stop feeling overwhelmed, you just need to take action. Natalie: Mm-hmm. Eve: And that's the way that we can make change. So Natalie: Yeah. Eve: Natalie, what does taking your power back mean to you? Natalie: I think if I am not addressing key issues for the environment or being an advocate for the environment, then I'm not doing my work any justice whatsoever and I may as well stop. I always have to check in with myself and just make sure, okay, instead of using something that's not sustainable, how else can I approach a project? I guess the materials I use need to be sustainable and I'm always reflecting and checking back in on myself to say all right that's not a great use of the material. is there another way I can, even if I have to put something to the side to work out that problem. and make it more sustainable, find a different like a solution, then I'm doing myself justice with the project. Eve: yeah, you've got to walk the talk. Natalie: Yeah. Eve: Yeah. So thank you so much for your time today, Natalie. And I can't wait to see what you bring to the Tasmanian Fashion Festival this year. I know it's personal to you, where can people follow or see your work ahead of the Fashion Festival? Natalie: on my Instagram it's Natalie Hamblin Couture and on my Facebook it's Natalie Hamblin. So feel free to follow or check it out ahead of time. You can see a sneak peek of some of the the runways I've been on before. It's pretty exciting that I've got to take my work around Australia and people have celebrated it. I wasn't sure bringing waste to the runway was going to be as well received as it has been. I like to say wearing my work is like wearing an experience. It's not just a garment. It it carries a lot of messages. Yeah. Eve: Yeah, important ones. is your Natalie: Mm. Eve: work for sale? Natalie: Yes, at my charity runway I've partnered with the Australian Cervical Cancer Foundation. they've got a website and you can buy online and proceeds go to the Australian Cervical Cancer Foundation. So yeah, pretty special. Eve: Well, amazing. Thank you so much for all the work that you do advocating for positive change and also the fundraising that you do for these important causes. Thank you. Natalie: Yeah, thank you. Eve: Before we finish I'd love to leave you with one question. When did you last feel like most like yourself? Not the version shaped by expectations, deadlines, or everyone else's opinions, but the real you. Maybe that's something worth sitting with this week. If today's conversation has resonated with you, please consider subscribing, leaving a review, or sharing the episode with someone who may need to hear it. Every share helps us reach more people and grow a community that's choosing to live with greater intention. Until next time, remember, take your power back, one conscious choice at a time. I'll see you in the next episode.