https://mothernacre.cargo.site Mother Nacre Wed, 21 Jun 2023 04:01:12 +0000 https://mothernacre.cargo.site en https://mothernacre.cargo.site/What-how Wed, 26 Apr 2023 14:23:31 +0000 Mother Nacre https://mothernacre.cargo.site/What-how How do we redefine what we value and protect in a world where “worthless” objects refuse to disappear?Our generation’s material ideology has been shaped by plastic. Letting go of plastic means turning it over to entropy. &nbsp; Thinking about materials we preserve, especially as heirlooms, the pearl came up over and over. It is at once a token of generatioal love and a symbol of craft tradition, but also a visceral reminder that extraction (of earth, labor, and currency) is the core of the “precious materials” industry. <img width="2268" height="4032" width_o="2268" height_o="4032" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/bf5f4989e7ae82b6f13ddc573cd1486a5c66a0947049a04d5713904c9b34473c/PNG-PMMR-DIP.png" data-mid="182770176" border="0" data-scale="100" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/bf5f4989e7ae82b6f13ddc573cd1486a5c66a0947049a04d5713904c9b34473c/PNG-PMMR-DIP.png" /> <img width="1800" height="1775" width_o="1800" height_o="1775" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8b7caf72859345023d5c7d5f761f74a35537406030512e4e45e32bac91880f6f/FirstMICPLasercut.png" data-mid="182769685" border="0" data-scale="96" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/8b7caf72859345023d5c7d5f761f74a35537406030512e4e45e32bac91880f6f/FirstMICPLasercut.png" /> What does a modern heirloom look like? Mother Nacre’s approach to bacterial nacre looks at the oyster as a role model for handling our most valued plastic, and uses bacteria to develop both a multi-layer coating and a bulk material that have properties of mollusk nacre. This process happens outside of an ocean; in collaboration with, not inside, an organism; and outside of industrial environments. https://mothernacre.cargo.site/What-is-Nacre Mon, 01 May 2023 16:47:28 +0000 Mother Nacre https://mothernacre.cargo.site/What-is-Nacre <img width="1222" height="1810" width_o="1222" height_o="1810" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/610da3dee141b76019d5941e05b1d01b49864bc35fc5d7b700afa4d66a3a6db1/locket1-1.png" data-mid="182770396" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/610da3dee141b76019d5941e05b1d01b49864bc35fc5d7b700afa4d66a3a6db1/locket1-1.png" />︎IrritantsMollusks form nacre around an irritant that has entered in its shell. These layers build up around it into what we call pearls. This protects the mollusk from harmful objects and organisms, but it also protects the irritant at the pearl’s core. We parallel this process, using plastic items with sentimental value as the “irritant” at the core of the pearl to create a Plastic Heirloom. <img width="1790" height="1448" width_o="1790" height_o="1448" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/9bf06a214bc90e2e9b4a2628837b46288931865ea112d83f5c044675fa0153fb/clay.png" data-mid="182904721" border="0" data-scale="97" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/9bf06a214bc90e2e9b4a2628837b46288931865ea112d83f5c044675fa0153fb/clay.png" /> ︎Nacre Nacre or Mother-of-Pearl is the biomineralized secretions produced by mollusks. It is made up of alternating layers of calcium carbonate laminated with a biopolymer.Mollusk nacre is made out of aragonite crystals and conchiolin proteins. Bacterial nacre is made up of calcite crystals and gamma-poly glutamic acid (y-PGA).These two componets can coat plastic substrates or be mixed with bacterial cellulose to mineralize in bulk. <img width="1564" height="1106" width_o="1564" height_o="1106" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/1c526295e05dc2c25e45ed9a50be143abaada181826e5f1d5830818155ac0a82/nacre_cake.png" data-mid="182904831" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/1c526295e05dc2c25e45ed9a50be143abaada181826e5f1d5830818155ac0a82/nacre_cake.png" /><img width="2550" height="3300" width_o="2550" height_o="3300" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/5db447a260bec31535c1e980d812f8e49b4f6a1c3826df9b3782870f6cff05c9/PEARL-STRING-PNG.png" data-mid="182770470" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/5db447a260bec31535c1e980d812f8e49b4f6a1c3826df9b3782870f6cff05c9/PEARL-STRING-PNG.png" /> https://mothernacre.cargo.site/Collaborators Wed, 26 Apr 2023 14:23:31 +0000 Mother Nacre https://mothernacre.cargo.site/Collaborators Collaboration&amp; Accountability <img width="384" height="512" width_o="384" height_o="512" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/639f37c1925c22d252c3d7a0556b9ce0ff6cf9bdf72f4bcf013b6da27aeb265e/B.-L.png" data-mid="182846965" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/384/i/639f37c1925c22d252c3d7a0556b9ce0ff6cf9bdf72f4bcf013b6da27aeb265e/B.-L.png" />B. Licheniformis produces gamma polyglutamic acid (y-PGA).&nbsp; <img width="512" height="506" width_o="512" height_o="506" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/9f746c2700b007dd7fd90c68030681a9233d6a5d042fd71b8aaa42eda2321cf6/cellose-hand.-1.png" data-mid="182846658" border="0" data-scale="100" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/512/i/9f746c2700b007dd7fd90c68030681a9233d6a5d042fd71b8aaa42eda2321cf6/cellose-hand.-1.png" /> G. Hansenii grown in a liquid media produces bacterial cellulose. <img width="384" height="512" width_o="384" height_o="512" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/372f763a9b229de2b0de94964ef1f3262eaccddb27ddf42ab54161afe6c6b941/S.-P.png" data-mid="182846968" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/384/i/372f763a9b229de2b0de94964ef1f3262eaccddb27ddf42ab54161afe6c6b941/S.-P.png" />S. Pasteurii precipitates calcium carbonate <img width="3900" height="2550" width_o="3900" height_o="2550" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/d81ffd8a38cc108a0029e23f9a029d67e9c24c3d9db984a8d7d3296673453c40/pearl-Recovered.jpg" data-mid="182846193" border="0" data-scale="99" alt="Illustration // Orin Noel" data-caption="Illustration // Orin Noel" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/d81ffd8a38cc108a0029e23f9a029d67e9c24c3d9db984a8d7d3296673453c40/pearl-Recovered.jpg" /> Learn more about what they do&nbsp;︎︎︎ https://mothernacre.cargo.site/Collaborators-poster-aside Wed, 21 Jun 2023 04:01:10 +0000 Mother Nacre https://mothernacre.cargo.site/Collaborators-poster-aside <img width="2100" height="1484" width_o="2100" height_o="1484" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/b5f0facd1ca916471babbd058a3a03c206f4fb3fd0ae8be1497feb1a07033e4a/poster.jpg" data-mid="182848849" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/b5f0facd1ca916471babbd058a3a03c206f4fb3fd0ae8be1497feb1a07033e4a/poster.jpg" /> Poster Design // Starling Wolfrum and Sarah Becker https://mothernacre.cargo.site/Care Mon, 01 May 2023 15:24:14 +0000 Mother Nacre https://mothernacre.cargo.site/Care We seek to embody the four tenants of Care as described by Joan Tronto: Responsibility&nbsp;︎&nbsp;Competence︎Attentiveness︎Responsiveness “Caring is by its very nature a challenge to the notion that individuals are entirely autonomous and self supporting.” -Joan Tronto We view the pearl as a role model to rethink our relationships with that which seeks to harm us.The immortality of plastic is a largely invisible plight in countries like the USA that have the privilege of exporting their masses of post-consumer waste to countries in the global south. We position this “invisible plight” as a hypervisible aspect of daily life by acknowledging plastic's physical impact while embracing its emotional place in our lives, families, and homes. <img width="1010" height="1045" width_o="1010" height_o="1045" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/41e95268db5c16554bf37bc263c6694e44fe30651c37fd129df25442a0088b3f/IMG_0163.png" data-mid="177441662" border="0" data-scale="51" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/41e95268db5c16554bf37bc263c6694e44fe30651c37fd129df25442a0088b3f/IMG_0163.png" /> https://mothernacre.cargo.site/Research-and-process Mon, 01 May 2023 16:41:24 +0000 Mother Nacre https://mothernacre.cargo.site/Research-and-process We worked with bacteria to create a nacre-inspired layered coating <img width="797" height="498" width_o="797" height_o="498" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/8a96a83af798c8d39d0b7218d67f8aed20c19255c1e5f71366827b411088db6b/BC-PGA-Production-images-.png" data-mid="177295497" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/797/i/8a96a83af798c8d39d0b7218d67f8aed20c19255c1e5f71366827b411088db6b/BC-PGA-Production-images-.png" />&nbsp; We expanded our initial research to attempt vapor deposition of the material<img width="3460" height="3000" width_o="3460" height_o="3000" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/265f45f279cbf173a6097f3a32a4385aac4b28af177d15b66691bded0ad41b22/NACRE-VAPE-1.png" data-mid="182906832" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/265f45f279cbf173a6097f3a32a4385aac4b28af177d15b66691bded0ad41b22/NACRE-VAPE-1.png" />We also experimented with a bulk material, biomineralized bacterial cellulose.&nbsp; <img width="3024" height="4032" width_o="3024" height_o="4032" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/92c72dd9e8051d15c5c24c0cf56d020a8256cc95aaf931b75fa3c1762638aa38/bow.png" data-mid="182939587" border="0" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/92c72dd9e8051d15c5c24c0cf56d020a8256cc95aaf931b75fa3c1762638aa38/bow.png" /> We made a diluted version first. Then we processed it similarly to clay, removing excess moisture with plaster before sculpting it by hand.&nbsp; https://mothernacre.cargo.site/Works-Cited Wed, 21 Jun 2023 04:01:12 +0000 Mother Nacre https://mothernacre.cargo.site/Works-Cited Works Cited <img width="2550" height="3300" width_o="2550" height_o="3300" data-src="https://freight.cargo.site/t/original/i/34f3e75c52638e77d2a19ab752f5b9a78e6c98f5be943b90d3b5609621c13ace/PEARL-STRING-PNG.png" data-mid="182851473" border="0" data-scale="100" src="https://freight.cargo.site/w/1000/i/34f3e75c52638e77d2a19ab752f5b9a78e6c98f5be943b90d3b5609621c13ace/PEARL-STRING-PNG.png" /> Bhat, A. (2012). Bacterial production of poly-γ-glutamic acid and evaluation of its effect on the viability of probiotic microorganisms.Kane, S., Thane, A., Espinal, M., Lunday, K., Armağan, H. H., Phillips, A. A., Heveran, C. M., &amp; Ryan, C. (2021). Biomineralization of Plastic Waste to Improve the Strength of Plastic-Reinforced Cement Mortar. Materials, 14(8), 1949. https://doi.org/10.3390/ma14081949 Nagai, K. (2013). A History of the Cultured Pearl Industry. Zoological Science, 30(10), 783–793. https://doi.org/10.2108/zsj.30.783 Spiesz, E. M., Schmieden, D. T., Grande, A. J., Liang, K., Pahr, D. H., Natalio, F., Michler, J., Garcia, S., Aubin-Tam, M., &amp; Meyer, A. S. (2019). Bacterially Produced, Nacre-Inspired Composite Materials. Small, 1805312. https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.201805312 Yu, K., Spiesz, E. M., Balasubramanian, S., Schmieden, D. T., Meyer, A. S., &amp; Aubin-Tam, M. (2021). Scalable bacterial production of moldable and recyclable biomineralized cellulose with tunable mechanical properties. Cell Reports Physical Science, 2(6), 100464. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xcrp.2021.100464 Yu, K., &amp; Aubin-Tam, M. (2020). Bacterially Grown Cellulose/Graphene Oxide Composites Infused with γ-Poly (Glutamic Acid) as Biodegradable Structural Materials with Enhanced Toughness. ACS Applied Nano Materials, 3(12), 12055–12063. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsanm.0c02565 Han, Zaiming, Taifeng Jiang, Liping Xie, and Rongqing Zhang. “Microplastics Impact Shell and Pearl Biomineralization of the Pearl Oyster Pinctada Fucata.” Environmental Pollution 293 (2022): 118522. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2021.118522.