Synthetic Feathers

Feathers are the most complexly structured skin types in nature. Thanks to unique attributes such as light weight and softness, feathers have remained an irreplaceable unique raw material. They have also come to symbolize many things in human culture. In Egyptian mythology, a person’s heart is weighed against a feather after death: a heart with equal weight as the feather may continue on into the afterlife; however, if the heart weighs heavier than the feather, that person’s soul is doomed to obliteration. This work closely follows feathers’ unique aesthetic, recreating them in 3D printed biopolymers and asking – does their symbolic value remain?