“Indeed, our ancestors were material scientists” - Akinwumi Ogundiran

About Material Selvedges

pronunciation: /məˈtɪəriəl ˈselvɪdʒɪz/
noun (used with a singular verb)

1. A radio-making project examining materiality through Global Majority First Nations perspectives, with a focus on Southern and West Africa.

Etymology: From material + selvedges (plural of selvedge, also spelled selvage), from Middle English self + edge. The term performs deliberate wordplay with salvage (from Old French salvage, meaning "to save"), invoking both the textile concept of a self-finished fabric edge and the act of recovering suppressed knowledge systems.

Field Notes

About with another

Material Selvedges is based on with another’s third design principle:
‘Multi-Sensory Materialism’ as featured in: designmanifestos.org and designprinciplesftw.com.

In partnership with African Life-Centric Design + 16/16

Material Selvedges - Smoke and Shadows

Smoke. Aerosol Transcience

“Smoke signals the transformation of matter into spirit.”- Bachelard

Research summary:
Smoke is a particulate aerosol produced by incomplete combustion; its particles deposit as soot and can chemically interact with surfaces. Smoke’s toxicity and dispersal dynamics make both creative use and conservation challenging.

Smoke as a material:
In fire-related ceremonial practices, smoke serves as a medium for offerings, connection to ancestry, and landscape transformation. Smoke carries agency as communicator and transformer: it both marks and alters materials and can be a ritual mediator. Within these ceremonial contexts, smoke is a social and material actor.

Ideas we are curious to explore:
1. Understanding scientific ritual burning practices, with Indigenous land stewardship as an example.
2. Conservation standards for works made of soot/smoke that respect both material fragility and cultural significance.
3. How different plants create smoke with specific communicative properties.

Senses:
Vision, Olfaction, Thermoception, Tactility.