Introduction

A treadle sewing machine was all I inherited from my great-grandmother, along with the stories surrounding it and a few brief instructions on how to operate it. In her day, a sewing machine was as essential to a household as a stove. People generally knew how to make clothes, even if they were neither particularly skilled nor interested in doing so. They also knew how to build houses, heal illnesses, and source their food. Individuals were polyvalent, they had the freedom to create and define the world they lived in rather than simply selecting from pre-designed options, giving them a sense of agency that we seem to have lost today.

This realization made me increasingly aware of how little I knew about the clothes I wear and the systems that allowed them to reach my closet. It opened a broader inquiry into the many structures surrounding us.

As societies evolved, communities were compelled to allocate tasks and specialize in pursuit of efficiency. While this enabled more advanced systems, it also disconnected us from the very processes that shape our livelihoods and environments, we reached a state of blind consumption.

Having worked across both fields of strategy and design, I am now merging these disciplines through creative inquiries and projects that can hopefully generate meaningful impact. While we may not always be able to return to vernacular ways of living, we can still use this knowledge to imagine new and sustainable forms of coexistence with one another and our planet.

Welcome to Tales of Polyvalence.