Vanessa Barragão is Transforming Discarded Textiles into Amazing Ocean-Inspired Tapestries

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Tex­tile artist Vanes­sa Bar­ragão recre­ates land and ocean envi­ron­ments by comb­ing craft and recy­cled mate­ri­als into car­pets for the floor and tapes­try for the walls. Using many of fiber art approach­es includ­ing latch hook, felt, knit­ting, macrame, and cro­chet, she and her team form high­ly tac­tile land­scapes that include coral reefs and the var­ied ter­rains found in the world.

In craft­ing these pieces, Vanes­sa is rais­ing aware­ness about the tex­tile indus­try and the detri­men­tal effects it has on the envi­ron­ment. “In almost every­thing process chem­i­cals are used, espe­cial­ly when it comes to the fibers treat­ment and dye­ing,” she writes. “All the machin­ery used requires tons of ener­gy while pro­duc­ing a lot of waste and dis­pos­able trash.” Because of this, Vanes­sa choos­es to use upcy­cled sub­stances. “All the mate­ri­als used come from the dead­stock of sev­er­al local fac­to­ries,” she explains, “which is first cleaned and then select­ed to recy­cle and reuse in her projects.”

Fol­low Vanes­sa and her work on Insta­gram and favorite her shop on Etsy.