This body of work emerged from a collaborative project titled Plumes and Pixels, which reimagines the complex legacy of early fashion and its entanglement with nature. The project began with the discovery of a 19th-century headpiece adorned with a real bird of paradise, uncovered during the digitization of specimens from the Academy of Natural Sciences. As part of this initiative, Digital Media graduate students created a high-fidelity digital twin of the artifact using computational photography and 3D reconstruction.

My artistic response took form through two textile-based pieces—collectively known as the Woven Narratives collection—each exploring themes of beauty, exploitation, and ecological loss. Both works intertwine historical and emotional narratives surrounding the extinction of species once sacrificed for fashion’s fleeting desires.

In Threads of Nature, organic hues and intricately layered fibers evoke the delicate balance of natural ecosystems, while bold red threads slice through the surface, symbolizing the violent intrusion of human greed. This tension between softness and intensity reflects the paradox of beauty born from destruction—a meditation on how allure and loss coexist within the human pursuit of luxury.

Paradise Plundered adopts a more somber tone. Muted grays and earthy textures recall the preserved bird specimens whose vibrancy has long faded behind museum glass. Thin red lines reappear as both wound and warning—a quiet acknowledgment of the exploitation that led, eventually, to the birth of protection movements. Through its stitching and layering, the piece mourns what has been lost while honoring the fragile resilience that remains.

Together, these works transform historical tragedy into tactile reflection—paying tribute to the birds once hunted for adornment and questioning the enduring relationship between desire, consumption, and the natural world.