Alba Arillo

RESONANCE: Dressing for Decay

Resonance is an exploration of burial attire as a bridge between presence and absence, life and decay. This collection of biodegradable garments invites us to reconnect with the earth in death, embracing decomposition as an act of renewal. Biofabricated from organic waste and discarded matter, the materials form a vast archive of textile-like leathers and foils, wrapping the body in an intimate, soil-bound embrace. Through gothic-inspired silhouettes, still life configurations and heirloom-infused textiles, these pieces offer a new aesthetic for biomaterials and death care—one that nurtures grief, honours memory, and transforms the body into part of the eternal cycle of life.

Resonance explores funerary attire as a living, decomposing archive that reunites body, garment, and soil, embracing decay as regeneration rather than loss. It seeks to reimagine death rituals through materials that invite closeness and wonder. By working with organic waste through biofabrication, this project proposes garments that decompose alongside the body. It challenges conventional notions of permanence in design by honouring the temporality of all life.

– My materials are not just constructs. They are companions, meant to become part of the world that cradles them. A garment-as-a-body is a promise of another life, a return to the very soil that gave us birth.

The project unfolds through a collection of extensive material experiments that prioritise sensorial intimacy and meaning. Reclaimed matter turned into biocompatible, living textiles, then crafted into intricate handwork. Each piece invites hands and eyes to linger, to celebrate the beauty of what will eventually transform and become with soil. 

– When we dress and bury our kin, we are not saying goodbye. We are letting them return to the embrace of the earth, to nourish the womb of the future in ways we will never fully comprehend.

The central piece is a shrouding pall, conceived as a quilt of memory and passage. Layers of bioleathers form a nuanced fabricscape, while a series of pockets open spaces for farewell gifts. Rather than acting merely as a covering, the pall becomes a companion in death, completed by offerings from those who stay behind. 

Complementing it, the burial ensemble has been designed specifically for the body’s repose. The mosaic of biobased materials is interlaced with pointelle knits of cotton and paper yarn inserts. A collaboration with artist Katri Kankkunen captures the murmurs of soil in a soundscape to remind us that endings are never silent.

– A garment is not just worn; it lives and breathes, embodying the dance between the human body and the world that becomes with it. To design for death is to understand that all things—ourselves, our clothes, more-than-human life—are in constant flux.