About the Future Materials Bank

The Future Materials Bank is an archive of materials that supports and promotes the transition towards ecologically conscious art and design practices.

By collecting information and samples from makers around the world, the archive aims to inspire research and disseminate knowledge about sustainable materials. The collection of the Bank is continuously growing, offering insights into how the concept of sustainability evolves in the fields of art and design. We are grateful to the artists and designers who have so generously shared their material projects with us. New contributions and suggestions are always welcome; you too can become part of the Future Materials Bank community by submitting your material.

The Future Materials Bank is part of Future Materials, a hybrid platform of the Jan van Eyck Academie, which aims to democratise knowledge about these future-proof materials. The other components of the platform are the Future Materials Lab with its collection of physical samples and the Future Materials Encounters, an activation of the Bank in the form of a workshops programme. The three components are closely interconnected and mutually nourishing: the video recordings and the physical sample codes that you find on some materials pages are manifestations of the Lab and the Encounters programme on the Future Materials Bank.

Future Materials was developed in collaboration with the MA Material Futures at UAL Central Saint Martins and the Green Art Lab Alliance (GALA).