2020 Edition

Ochre, gelatin, glycerin, and water. With these four natural substances, Soowon Chae has developed a contemporary material, called Ocragela, which is sustainable and biodegradable. Red ochre which has been generously used by early human beings to survive in nature plays an important role in this project as a coloring agent but also as a tribute to the curiosity and creativity of the prehistoric man, and the respect early human beings showed for nature. And gelatin, often regarded as a kind of ‘inferior’ residual product of the meat-processing and leather-making industry, used as the second main ingredient to create a sustainable material with completely new possibilities. And with Ocragela, Soowon is not only twisting the stereotyping and the value of standardized mass-products of today but also suggesting a new sustainable approach for the upcoming stages of human history.