Chiel Lubbers

Designer motivated by the resonating, rippling structures in natural and agricultural landscapes. Through exploring and comparing natural growth patterns, I create compositions in bio-based textile, fashion and object that reveal the creative collaboration and ecological connections between human and non-human entities.

Works & Projects
Exhibitions
About
CV

email mail@chiellubbers.com
instagram @chiellubbers

Indusium
Fermented celery fibers
Westlandsmuseum, The Hague
Fashionclash festival, Maastricht

Indusium is a biocouture project that emerged from exploring the parallel between plant and human tissue fibers.The project derives its name from the concept 'Indusium' - the Latin word for undergarment - in which corsets are created that reference the supportive and protective muscle and connective tissue layers, which not only receive, store and transmit energy, but also hold our deepest traumas.The garment materializes a dialogue between physical and emotional layers, reflecting an embodied relationship in which our internal fibrous tissues resonate with and are shaped by our environment. 

Indusium explores the vegetal realm through a meditative process of carefully deconstructing celery plants. By extracting individual fibers from the stems by hand, I initiate a transformation that continues through a slow fermentation process. Each fiber is then positioned and layered by hand, creating patterns that mirror the anatomy of human muscle tissues. The garments form emerges through thousands of these carefully arranged fibers, which unite into one composition. This labor-intensive handwork connects craft methods with experimental material exploration, revealing how human and non-human can collaborate in creative work.

Photography Scott van Kampen Wieling
Video Vera Kruip
Creative Direction / Styling Sem Lubbers
Model Juliet Klaar

                                                                                                                                                                                                                       

Cross-fiber
Fermented celery fibers
Westlandsmuseum, The Hague 

Cross-fiber is a biocouture garment emerged from exploring the parallel between plant and human tissue fibers. Cross-fiber derives its name from the two directional layering of fibers that studies how the placement, density, and direction of fibers function in natural systems, I aim to investigate whether I can develop textile structures where each fiber layer can perform a specific function. The goal is to create textiles that facilitate natural movements rather than restrict them.

Photography Scott van Kampen Wieling
Video Vera Kruip
Creative Direction / Styling Sem Lubbers
Model Juliet Klaar

An Inner-act
Plant vezels, bleekselderij, snijbiet, 30 cm x 50 cm x 180 cm 

'An Inner-act' is an exploration into the analogy of protein fibers in plant material and human muscle tissue. It delves into the relationship between rippled vegetables and muscles, examining their material similarity as fibers. The shared genetic structures of DNA in living beings reveal a connection. Proteins act as threads bridging the differences between plants and humans. The project seeks the essence of humanity within its environment by giving equal importance to non-human life forms that together form an ecosystem in which we participate. The work is like a second skin, bringing the inner outwards and serving as a mirror for human observers. For this project, I have used biodynamically grown celery and chard from the region of The Hague. In this way, I aim to work locally and sustainably while promoting biodiversity.

After graduating from the Royal Academy of Art, the project 'An Inner-act' has been featured on the Future Materials Bank platform, which supports the transition to ecologically conscious art practices. 'An Inner-act' was selected for the group exhibition 'Gardening' at the historic estate of Museum Oud Amelisweerd in Bunnik.

Graduation Show 2021, Royal Academy of Art, The Hague

Other Ways of Living
Documentary Series Waterbear in collaboration with Ellen MacArthur Foundation and Future Materials Bank 
Season 1 episode 2, How We Make

All around the world, people are beginning to transition away from a linear economy. Instead of taking materials from the Earth, making them into products, and then throwing them away, new methods are being developed to keep the things we make in circulation, eliminating waste and regenerating nature in the process. This is Other Ways of Living. A show where Matt Shea, award-winning journalist and documentary filmmaker, finds what's happening in the world of circularity, and whether we can apply it to our lives right now.

Alongside the WaterBear platform, I participated in the documentary series 'Other Ways of Living', released in the May of 2024. WaterBear is a platform that highlights positive solutions for our changing world. The work is presented as a biocouture garment made from patterns of protein fibers and cellulose extracted from celery. The composition brings our inner anatomy outward through the analogy of fibers inside human and vegetal tissue.

Watch Other Ways of Living. Exclusively on @waterbearnetwork
https://www.waterbear.com/watch/other-ways-of-living

@waterbearnetwork in collaboration with @ellenmacarthurfoundation

Fragmented Body
Patronen van plant vezels, bleekselderij, 1:1 vertaling tot de menslijke spieranatomie.

The 'Fragmented Body' series naturally evolved from the 'an inner-act' project. This collection encompasses both three-dimensional and two-dimensional artworks, portraying patterns that symbolize the path towards fragmentation. It delves into the concept of decomposition within the ecosystem where humans are integral participants.

Exhibition Resonance, Paper Art gallery, The Hague

Ripple Dynamic
Glas, gipsen mal, 2 x 35 cm x 55 cm

As the tides recede, the water gradually flows towards the sea, revealing how the frequency in the movement of the waves affects the seabed. This movement transforms the geometry of the sand into various flowing forms known as ripples. A ripple is the tangible expression of invisible energy. It feels as though I am being influenced by its radiance. The ripples emit their electromagnetic waves and penetrate my energy field, while I sense the energy of the forces that have shaped this phenomenon. Using casting techniques, glass slumping, and glassblowing, 'Ripple Dynamic' captures the transformed, ghostly essence of an energetically charged interaction on the Dutch coast.

Exhibition Rippling, LAB22, The Hague 


A Rippled Messenger
Glas, 8 cm x 8 cm x 25 cm 

Jos Brink Oeuvre Prize 2021 for LGBT/LGBTQIA emancipation commissioned by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science. 

My attraction to the rippled sand symbolizes the way someone moves towards the same vibrational energy of someone or something else. With this concept, I created 'A Rippled Messenger' commissioned by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, being the Jos Brink Oeuvre Award 2021 for LGBTQIA+ emancipation. 

Indusium at New Fashion Narratives, Fashionclash 2024, Bureau Europa Maastricht

Interdisciplinary showcase and development platform for fashion & fashion culture based in the Netherlands, and a worldwide network of emerging fashion makers. The exhibition is built around the idea of ​​the game ‘Exquisite Corps’ that serves as a metaphor for the framework for presenting works that are the result of collaborative and/or transdisciplinary practices.





Gardening, Creative Coding Utrecht, Museum Oud Amelisweerd, Bunnik

Together with citizens, digital creators and activists equipped with technology, we’re going to ‘garden’ and play the game of the elements. We’ll enter into a playful and curious conversation with nature and we investigate the connection between man and nature through technology and spirituality. What does nature mean when we view it from the perspective of technology? What if we don’t put humans first and give rights and voices to non-humans, like a river, robin or roma tomato? Through art and design, GARDENING makes our changing relationship with nature tangible and makes you aware of your and others' role in our ecosystem.

About

As a designer and material researcher, I am motivated by the concept of Resonance – the continuous interaction with our environment, in which we both influence and are influenced by, and transform through, living and existing alongside one another. Through my work, I aim to establish a connection with our environment by stimulating sensitivities to the world around us. In doing so, I embrace the importance of embodied learning and explore the phenomenon and meaning of resonance.

With my background in product and spatial design, I combine field research, craftsmanship techniques, and experimental material research to design compositions in biodegradable materials that actively participate in living processes. My research focuses on the rippling structures in the plant domain, where I analyze, deconstruct, and reconstruct materials and substances to reveal hidden potential. By exploring and comparing natural anatomical structures and growth patterns, I create designs in bio-based textile objects and fashion that make visible the connections between human and non-human entities.

In my transition and development as a biodesigner, I want to discover what this role truly entails and position my own practice purposefully within the field of biodesign and biocouture. These innovative approaches link biology with fashion design and offer alternatives for textile production. I aim to focus on the hidden networks that connect us to living organisms, their origins, life cycles, and transformation processes. I do this by demonstrating in my research how humans and microorganisms can collaborate in creative processes. For example, when I carefully place a dissected fiber in a jar with water and am surprised by the fermentation process that emerges, I realize I am not creating it alone.

Working with textiles and fashion comes from my fascination with the structure of the human body, and how we receive, emit, and store embodied information from our environment. Textiles and fashion, for me, are powerful mediums as an intermediary layer through which our inner selves are connected with what happens outside of us. They show how we relate to our natural environment, both to other people and nature, and how we can interact with it consciously.

In my design process, I make conscious comparisons with my surroundings to better understand my position in the world. This allows me to comprehend my relationship to others, my societal role, and the spirit of our generation. I experience and observe how stress and tension from daily life affect our bodily tissue and how this manifests in muscle tension. As designer Bart Hess described it: visualizing the physical and emotional burdens that we, as humans, move through. The process of shaping provides me with the space to integrate and embrace this as a mirror for the processes I go through. By making something from my own world visible, a connection is created when others recognize themselves in it. The essence lies in my growth process as a designer, which determines the impact of the work.

Education

2017-2021 Bachelor Interieurarchitectuur en Meubelontwerpen Koninklijke Academie van Beeldende Kunsten, Den Haag
2019 Product Design, Exchange, Iceland Academy of the Arts, Reykjavik
2016 Permaculture Design Course, The Kul Kul farm, Bali
2015-2016 Aviation Engineering, Hva Amsterdam


Exhibitions

2025 Paper Art & Design gallery, Den Haag
2024 Fashionclash festival 2024, Bureau Europa Maastricht 
2024 Limburg Biënnale 2024, Marres Maastricht 
2024 Alter House Gallery, Groeps Tentoonstelling, Object Rotterdam
2023 Musculo-vegetal, Solo Tentoonstelling, Boox.space, Den Haag
2023 Hybrid Realms, Groeps Tentoonstelling, Trixie, Den Haag
2023 Alter House Gallery, Groeps Tentoonstelling, I’m Studio, Amsterdam
2023 Open Ateliers, Kunstgreep, Den Haag
2022 Em-Bodies, Solo Tentoonstelling, 777 gallery, Antwerp
2022 Resonance, Duo Tentoonstelling, Paper Art & Design gallery, Den Haag
2022 Open Ateliers, Kunstgreep, Den Haag
2022 Rippling, Groeps Tentoonstelling, LAB22 Den Haag
2022 Gardening, Groeps Tentoonstelling, Creative Coding Utrecht, Museum Oud Amelisweerd, Bunnik 
2022 Touching, Groeps Tentoonstelling, KABK Lectoraat Art and Design
2021 Groeps Tentoonstelling, Gallerie Zône, Leiden
2021 On Your Own, Groeps Tentoonstelling, Haagse kunstkring, Den Haag
2021 Graduation Show 2021, Koninklijke Academie van Beeldende Kunsten, Den Haag
2019 Hvar Endar þetta?, Groeps Tentoonstelling, Iceland Academy of the Arts, Reykjavik
2019 Leave no Trace, Koninklijke Academie van Beeldende Kunsten, Den Haag                                        


Publications

2025 FD Talenten 2025, Het Financiële Dagblad, FD persoonlijk
2024 Other Ways of Living, Documentaire series Waterbear 2024, An inner-act, Musculo-vegetal, Plural magazine
2024 An inner-act, Musculo-vegetal, Colour Hive
2024 Musculo-vegetal, Boox.space, ArtRabbit
2023 Alter House gallery, Het Parool, Amsterdam
2021 An Inner-act, Future Materials Bank
2021 Biomaterial Cooking, Art & Design Lectoraat, Koninklijke Academie van Beeldende Kunsten, Den Haagu