My goal is to create a mirror for society, highlighting the beauty of waste

Phlox van Oppen graduated cum laude from the KABK in 2022 as a textile designer. Currently she is doing her masters at the Swedish School of Texiles, with a specialization in weaving. Phlox approaches weaving as both material practice and conceptual language, exploring textiles as sites of storytelling, transformation, and tension. Rooted in an experimental mindset, her work continuously challenges traditional techniques, allowing construction and deconstruction to coexist within layered, shifting surfaces.

Emerging from a generation, where recycling, upcycling, sustainability, and other ecological terminology have become commonplace, Phlox focusses on overlooked everyday materials as a source of inspiration. During her time living in the largest female student house in the Netherlands shared with 36 women she began observing the systems, routines and unnoticed material flows within domestic environments. This experience fueled an ongoing research practice exploring materials, waste streams and ecosystems as both conceptual and physical foundations for her work. 

Big Art 'Het spectrum van afval' 2023   - 'Dutch Design Waste' 2024