Sofia Klimkowski Arango, Fiber, 2025
Project Overview
Something Sweet, Something Scorned
K. hansenii bacterial cellulose, 2nd place ribbon, branded sugar, denim rope, wire, gingham fabric
17” x 26” x 2” inches
2024
I made this piece as a mock trophy-award-plaque that could fit into a state fair. Utilizing aesthetics of gingham, red ribbons, branding, and denim, I drew forward the imagery of the hot, sweaty sun on a July day in a stall with fingers sticky from cotton candy sweets. Made to be forgotten or undervalued from time, a crumpled ribbon, a denotation of second place (the first runner up), and visually similar to a brand stamped into the side of a hide, this piece elevates discomfort and pride. A delicate balance between gratitude and humiliation, a bittersweet love that time cannot erase.
Process
I grew my bacterial cellulose with an aluminum flashing design. I curled and creased the design of the hearts and made them in two interlocking parts. I cut it half way from top on one portion and from the bottom on the other side.
I took the larger plastic container and cleaned it with soap and water, isopropyl alcohol, and then UV sterilized it. I autoclaved my aluminum flashing and tongs. I placed in the aluminum flashing into the container. I then poured my bacterial cellulose liquid culture into the plastic container, insuring that the existing cellulose pellicle was contained within the heart shape that I planned to remove. I slightly lifted the flashing to then stab the existing pellicle underneath to hold the flashing in place.
I let my pellicle grow and monitored for mold, but it was difficult to tell through the lid and the sides of the flashing. Next time I would cut down the height of the flashing to better monitor the growth of the pellicle.
Once I let my pellicle grow to the appropriate size, I sterilized my pellicle. I took out the aluminum flashing but maintained the spacing of the two parts so that they did not overlap one another. I had to do an extra round of bleaching at the start because I had a small amount of mold grow at the intersection of the base of the heart. I then took the pellicle to the metal shop and attempted to brand it. I heated a horse shoe with a propane torch for approximately 3 minutes- I watched for a heat patina to envelop the entire piece of metal. I then used pliers to lift the horse shoe and press it into the pellicle. I found out that it made no color change, compressed the wet pellicle, and evaporated the liquid in that area. I then tried burning the pellicle directly with the propane torch. It resulted in making black sections that dissolved/melted down the pellicle into nothing. This did not result in my desired effect.
I pivoted at this point by using sugar to caramelize it to dark brown. This creme brûlée-ing effect worked because it turned the material both liquid and a different color. The liquidized sugar was able to seep into the pellicle and maintain its color while becoming part of the pellicle. For my final piece, I compressed the pellicle with the horseshoe and then placed in mounds of sugar where the indent of the horseshoe was. I heated the horse shoe for over 5 minutes on the side with a propane torch and then picked up the horseshoe and compressed it into the sugar mound. I let it sit for over 60 seconds, until the noise of the sizzle of sugar had tapered off. I then applied the sheets of hardened sugar back into the areas of the pattern and reheated the sugar sheets with the propane directly on the pellicle. Once I had finished caramelizing the design, I took the pellicle and gently/carefully rinsed it to get the loose sugar granules off of pellicle.
I then made a board with a tapered edge to lay my pellicle on, drilled holes for the metal staples/pellicle through the board, stapled the gingham fabric onto the board, placed the pellicle down and punctured it through the wire staples I made, placed the rope around the edge and held it in place with the wires that I tucked back into the rope. I finally attached the ribbon. A wire stapled to the back of the board is how I hang the piece onto the wall.
Learn More
sofia.klimkowski.arango@gmail.com