THE REPAIR ATELIER
ART and DESIGN in REUSE
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LEXICON OF REPAIR

This Lexicon is an extension to the “Lexicon of Repair” from the book Repair: Sustainable Design Futures edited by Markus Berger and Kate Irvin, Routledge 2023, and expands the books 12 samplings of reparative philosophies and methods practiced around the world within different cultures, religions, and languages. Some in this inventory of key concepts of repair have been around for centuries, while others are much more recent. We aim to expand the initial 12 lexicon entries from the book (snapshots in the cultural world of reparative thinking and practice), they represent a wide array of rooted practices that we hope will spark interest in further research on the myriad examples of global traditions and modes of repair not included in this vocabulary.

PLEASE submit here your contributions to above topics- we will soon transfer all these entries to a Digital Commons Site hosted by the RISD Library.

On Darning

By Lisa Z. Morgan

Darning is a stitched response to holes/breaks/wounds that develop in knitted fabrics; perhaps rubbed through by repetitive wear and tear or eaten away by moths. Due to the nuances of material, weave, fibers, etc., the hole requires a darn that fully meshes with the body of the garment. The outcome is prescribed, i.e to fill the hole, mend the hole, and to make wearable/useful once more. The darning of a hole, no matter how small, is wide open to interpretation; it requires tender involvement, and a readiness to sit with a level of discomfort before beginning to respond. One needs to almost “listen to” what the wound/rupture might need—assessing, touching, feeling, intuiting, as well as a close examination of the threads that remain; what is strong, resilient or weak. Darning also becomes a compelling proposal to activate ideas regarding reciprocal responsibility and thought. It engenders connection and also makes visible the endeavor to mend the flaws. The very presence of the stitched response or “mark” communicates the wish to ameliorate, to tend and to care, and on a local scale it affords us an agency for how we might address questions, and shape answers that are responsive—to ourselves, social relations, and our environment.

Markus Berger