Cornelia Stehling

-raw

/PROJECT 8, raw

»Raw« is a sustainable alternative for foodcontainers made of plastic and metal. It tries to make use of natural characteristics of the birk barch and at the same time questions our understanding of hygiene and neatness.

First the quivers which were found with Ötzi, the man who had been frozen for more than 5500 years were taken to be used for transport. Later it was discovered that the bark of the birch tree that they were made from, contain a lot of betulina. The tree produces betulina in order to protect itself from insects and fungus. Tannin acid as another main ingredient was used in the leather industry for disinfection and conservation of the skins. Its natural potential to conserve predestines birch bark to contain food and to protect it from molding. This makes »Raw« a natural alternative to ordinary food containers, which are mostly made of plastics or metal. In contrast to the clean appearance of these products stands the raw and untreated aesthetic of the bark box, which brings nature in a hygienic and functional context as it is classified as a product to use and not to decorate with. A description in the packaging gives details about the material and the product and obtains confidence in the unusual understanding of hygiene. One the one hand this builds up a stronger relationship to the product and keeps it from being thrown away and questions the sterility as our definition of clean on the other hand.