Julia Debord-Dany

In my projects, I have often worked with so-called “classic” materials in the furniture sector (polyurethane foam, metal, wood, silicone, etc.). I am convinced that there is an infinity of other solutions, specific to each territory and sometimes more environmentally coherent. This is what I intend to investigate.

I maintain a strong connection with materials; they are the starting point of my work and the focus of this residency. In a documentation and research posture, I want to create an overview of materiality in New York, based on the principle of: What remains, what grows.

What remains is to understand waste management and reuse in New York. It involves identifying the “deposits” and meeting those who transform them at different scales.

On the current ruins of what we produce daily, what is growing? What grows are the ideas and initiatives that emerge, from the faculty to the laboratory, from the factory to the workshop.

Throughout these encounters, I would like to discuss the sometimes very special relationship we have with a material. I want to discover and understand materials rooted in a specific historical and human context, and thus celebrate creativity and adaptability in the current environmental context. I hope to establish lasting relationships, enrich my work, and perhaps sketch out new collaborations.

Upon returning to France, the goal is to disseminate this knowledge, to collect this material in the form of a publication to share the insights I will have gathered during this residency with current and future designers.

Focusing on the relevance of materials means considering a defined territory, with its own mechanics, issues, and resources. New York is probably the densest and most exemplary case of this.

I have chosen New York because it is a territory that combines a rich history with a leading edge in sustainability, at all scales. In terms of reuse and recycling, I will explore material markets like Build It Green!NYC and MFTA, which are concrete examples of the circular economy in action.

I will also engage with institutions like the Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University, which embraces a holistic view of sustainability and offers numerous events and meetings.

From an innovation perspective, I will focus on Material ConneXion, a materials library in Manhattan, and innovative companies and industries that will help me understand the practical applications of these materials.

To enrich this overview, I will meet with my peers in Brooklyn’s creative ecosystem. This environment will allow me to innovate and experiment, forge interdisciplinary connections, and create in resonance with contemporary issues.