About

Exploring the future of grown materials, craft and art, ‘Rooted’ showcases the synergies between Zena Holloway’s innovative sculptures and wall hangings grown from wheatgrass root and de Le Cuona’s natural textiles woven from flax. Exclusively for London Craft Week, Zena has created pieces inspired by de Le Cuona’s organic colour palette and natural linen textiles. 

Zena Holloway is a photographer, maker and material innovator. She cultivates sustainable sculpture from grass root and in doing so takes an intuitive leap into the future to imagine a material world that is grown, not made. de Le Cuona is rooted in nature. Founder and CEO Bernie de Le Cuona grew up in South Africa and the natural world has always been at the heart of what she does. The soul of the company lies in the unique tactility of its interior textiles coupled with a deep commitment to sustainability and craftsmanship.

Zena started her career as an underwater photographer and became increasingly concerned with the amount of plastic pollution in our oceans. It was then she came across the roots of a willow tree growing in her local river. The tangled root looked like textile and she asked herself: what if we could grow fabrics from seed? 

Inspired by an extraordinary imagination and a drive to make a difference, Zena has pioneered a new technique of growing wheatgrass roots to form intricate textures and patterns. The plant sprouts over the course of about two weeks. As it grows, it produces its intricately woven root structure, which she guides into moulds carved from beeswax to form large, sheet-like textiles. 

With sustainability at the heart of the process, the ingredients are organic and locally sourced. Water is reused from run-off and any leftover shoot, seed or root is eaten as animal fodder. Entirely compostable, the material aims to increase awareness of natural materials and to inspire a more thoughtfully crafted, sustainable world.

In ‘Rooted’, Zena pairs the delicate root structures of her textile art pieces with an experimental approach to natural pigments, from madder and lac to cutch and gallnut, to create stunning and truly original pieces.