JEWELRY DESIGN BY MATERIAL EXPLORATION OF WATER HYACINTHS THEMED YOGYAKARTA’S SUMBU FILOSOFI

Abstract

Water hyacinth is an invasive plant that disrupts freshwater ecosystems in many tropical and subtropical regions of the world. This plant hampers fisheries, makes the water lack oxygen, and shallows the waters, so ways to use water hyacinth are always sought. The water hyacinth is then used into various preparations, one of which is for craft materials. An exploration was carried out to process the shape of the water hyacinth material to increase options for developing product designs using this material, especially for jewelry products. Sheet experiments were carried out to obtain information about the ability of water hyacinth to be made into sheets and the differences in flexibility and appearance obtained from the sheets. Finishing experiments were carried out to obtain information about the various finishing effects applied to water hyacinth and their effect on water resistance and scratch resistance. Natural coloring experiments were carried out to find out how simple coloring with natural ingredients affects water hyacinth. Experiments on the use of tools were carried out to determine the effect of using tools in processing in terms of speed, neatness and quality of processed water hyacinth. Soft stem processing experiments were carried out to obtain techniques for processing the shape of water hyacinth with a stem shape. Experiments on the use of anti-fungals on water hyacinth components were carried out to obtain information regarding the effects of using anti-fungals and the differences with water hyacinth components that were not treated with anti-fungals. Experiments on the use of essential oils were carried out to find out how long the aroma of oil dropped on water hyacinth lasts if it is placed in an open room with air circulation. This material processing is carried out to obtain material that can be used as an attractive jewelry object. The use of the Sumbu Filosofi theme was encouraged by the Yogyakarta Special Region Government which wanted to preserve Yogyakarta culture which is centered on an axis that draws a line from the South Coast to Mount Merapi. In designing this jewelry, vegetation was chosen from the area around the Sumbu Filosofi because of its organic shape and because the vegetation in the area is full of meaning so it has a strong storytelling value for the background of the design.

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