Crafts, Science and Nature expertise

In 2021, Miloš established his workshop Atelje Jovanović as one of the youngest stone masons in Serbia. Using traditional techniques for shaping marble, his work brings a significant variation of motives and products – from sacral to every-day decorative objects.

The production of paraments (liturgical textiles of Christianity) is a tradition-rich branch of crafts that is becoming increasingly rare in today's secular era. For over 150 years, the Parament Workshop of the Deaconess Institution Dresden has been designing and weaving textile furnishings for the churches of the surrounding communities. Even as a child, Maria Selle was fascinated by textile crafts, especially embroidery and weaving on a small round weaving frame. She learned the profession of the parament maker in her childhood/youth in her circle of acquaintances. Working on a parament always has a spiritual dimension for Maria Selle. The parament serves as a form of preaching or proclamation of the biblical message.

Dinis Cunha learned wood splint basketry from his father from a young age. Uninterested in studying at school or into practising the craft, Dinis left his hometown at 18, only to later return and become bitten by the 'basketry bug'. Thirty years in the business, he is today the only basket weaver in Vilar de Nantes, a municipality in the very North of Portugal, where the craft once thrived.

Alberto was born in Gonçalo, Portugal, to a family of basket weavers. When he was a little boy he started 'playing' baskets with his father. He began weaving professionally at the age of 24 upon his return from military service. Dedicating himself to this craft, he makes wickerwork in a wide variety of shapes and forms.

The LaNDER3 research network aims for the holistic material and technology development concerning natural fiber-reinforced plastics. In various research projects, the entire material cycle is considered, starting from the extraction of natural fibers to their use in composite materials, and finally to the utilization/recycling of components at the end of the product life. The partnership has its scientific foundation at the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences (HSZG) and is strengthened through co-operations with primarily regionally based companies and partners. In this portrait, we present the working group for fiber extraction, the utilization of resulting organic residues, and the recovery of inorganic valuable substances - crucial components of the efficient use of natural resources.

Manuel did a training in Heritage Conservation - Furniture in bulrush. To support this art and encourage its continuity, the local municipality donated a space, tools and raw material for the new craftsmen to begin a small business. Four years later, only Manuel endured. He wild-harvests his own material locally along the river, and is always open to training others in the craft.

The interdisciplinary starting point of Kim Cordes’ work is to create aesthetically appealing textile design from silk textile waste and combine it with other materials. “ReFib - Recycling Fibroins as Textile Refinement” opens the exciting field for in-depth research with silk fibroins. By combining research and design, experiments are developed that are intended to make the scientific findings tangible and usable. On the one hand, visions are to be shown, but also the more efficient and diverse use of the materials is to be researched, made visible, and used. On the other hand, illustrative experiments show that these visions can also be implemented. The aim is to keep the exclusive material silk in the product cycle for as long as possible. In the BioLab of Burg Giebichenstein University of Art and Design Halle, research was conducted into how fabric remnants can be recycled and used for textile design, for example. Finally, it was possible to silken local wool with ReFib.

Since 1995, he has been engaged in goldsmithing and filigree work with master goldsmiths Bruno Lozančić and Mensur Muratbegović. For master Senad, the knowledge of a mechanical technician helped him a lot in learning the goldsmith-filigree craft, and his innate tendency towards beautiful design expression made him excellent in that craft.

The oak is a tree that can reach heights of 25 to 30 m and easily adapts to continental conditions, withstanding cold and snow in winter. Considered a medium-light to light species with a robust temperament, it thrives in various soil types and can tolerate temporary waterlogging. In Portugal, this type of wood is commonly used in wood splint basketry.

Lebiba Džeko is an orientalist by formal education, but for many years she has been working as an ethnologist, and the head of the ethnological department of the National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina with the title of museum advisor.

Junco is a wetland perennial plant, commonly known by various names such as common rush, mat rush, or soft-rush. It ranges from 30 cm to 1 m in height.

Danijela Đukanović belongs to the new generation of ethnologists and cultural anthropologists who link their research to the primarily material cultures of the Serbian people in Bosnia and Herzegovina and other peoples in the geographical area of the Bosnian Krajina (Northwestern Bosnia). Her role in the promotion of the special skill of decorating fabrics (costumes) in the area of Zmijanje, the so-called 'zmijanjski vez' (Zmijanje embroidery), is particularly significant. Zmijanje embroidery is also included in the UNESCO list of world intangible heritage from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Large deposits of Venčac marble can be found on Venčac mountain in the Šumadija region. It is characterized by high percentage of calcium, giving it pristine white colour. The high level of calcium it contains marks it as ideal for extraction in powder form and pebble to be used in construction, road building, animal feed, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry.

“Practically all landscapes in Europe today are cultural, we hardly have any wild landscapes left to speak of. Landscapes have been cultivated for millennia, shaped and altered by humans to secure their survival. But over the past decades we have seen this balance between nature and humans has disrupted as the result of radical changes in our lifestyles and new technologies.”

Jela Duvnjak is one of two academically educated ethnologists in the large area of southwestern Bosnia, which covers an area of several thousand km² along the border with the Republic of Croatia where different cultural-historical lines of oriental and Mediterranean origin intertwine.

Metka Zver found her mission in creating wooden objects on a lathe. She learned her craft with perseverance, her feel for wood and woodturning, and advice passed down by masters. In her hands, local wood turns into bowls and lights that give voice to her artistic expression, as does reclaimed wood that she transforms into wall decorations. She lives and creates in the Karst where she set up her workshop in an old barn. She shows and sells her creations in the picturesque medieval village of Štanjel, a popular tourist spot.

Pomace, also known as olive cake, is an organic waste material commonly found in rural areas of coastal regions such as Dalmatia and Istria. Pomace is a by-product of the olive oil production process. During processing, olives are initially pressed to extract the oil, resulting in a mixture of fruit skin, pulp, and pit residues. It has various applications, including its use as fertilizer and a source of energy. Historically, pomace was created by pressing olives in traditional presses or crushing them with feet, and it was used along with wood for household fireplaces. Today, dried pomace continues to be used for energy production, representing an environmentally friendly way to utilize waste material from olive oil production.

Mošćanica travertine stone (miljevina, milika) has been used for more than seven decades to make 'stećak' tombstones, and millstones for mills. It is still in use today for the same purposes due to its characteristics and easy way of processing and availability.

As the third generation of a family-run goldsmithing workshop, Marina and Danijela built their own specific expression in applying the techniques of working with precious metals and stones, which they learned as children. Today, their workshop and shop space are still located in the old premises, where 'two craftswomen of fine jewellery' create signature pieces, preferably from recycled/repurchased materials.

Our planet is strongly influenced by human activities, so we have called this era the Anthropocene. Some of the most important threats are environmental pollution and dramatic biological diversity loss. All this is strongly reflected on the sea and oceans, and protecting these largest ecosystems on earth is equal to protecting the planet.

In 2013, Diane Maren Jende and Christian Jende took over the manufactory out of insolvency. Their intention was to preserve the endangered craft of trimmings and at the same time contribute to the preservation of an artisan culture in the region. The company is broadly positioned with the production of trimmings, the creation and realisation of textile interior concepts, the restoration and reconstruction of historical trimmings in the field of monument preservation.

3D printing is one of the major revolutions in the recent history of manufacturing processes. The transformation of this technology for integration into woodworking processes is the focus of the research project ADDWOOD. The goal is to promote the democratization and decentralization of production on a sustainable basis using low-energy methods.

Dražen Cepić is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Sociology at the University of Zadar, where he has been working since 2016. After receiving his postdoctoral degree in Birmingham in 2021, he assembled a multidisciplinary team of scientists and initiated the project ‘Sustainable fishing: Social Relations, Identity and Co-management of Adriatic Fishery Resources’ pioneering its relevance within sociological research in Croatia.