Francesca Bergamini

She was born in 1999 in the province of Brescia. In 2018, following the completion of her artistic studies at the Piacenza Art School, she enrolled and obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Fashion Design with a specialisation in Knitwear at the School of Design of the Politecnico di Milano. In 2021, she decided to continue her path at the Politecnico, enrolling in the Master’s degree course in Design for the Fashion System, which ended with an experience abroad at the University of Lapland in order to investigate and deepen the aesthetic minimalism and sustainability that distinguishes Nordic design. In fact, she has always been attracted by the way Scandinavian design is able to synthesise essentiality of form, functionality and sustainability through specific chromatic canons. During her master’s degree Francesca developed an interest in sustainability that led her to explore the world of biomaterials.

Abstract
The textile industry is considered one of the most polluting industries in the world, particularly what is known as fast fashion, which considers clothes as disposable products, is responsible for 10% of global pollution, second only to the oil industry. The challenges that the garment sector will have to face in the coming years will have to include both reducing the use of energy during all production phases and reducing the environmental impact of end-of-life products. In fact, the work of this thesis aims to investigate the potential of bacterial cellulose, as a sustainable raw material, applied to the world of fashion, through experiments aimed at improving its aesthetic-functional characteristics with a view to soft robotics, functionalisation by means of circuits, actuators, sensors and programmed growth to obtain different aesthetic-formal and functional-performance results. In particular, the aim of the tests will be to obtain processing, textures, finishing and prints that are commonly used and produced for the fashion industry through the inclusion of technology, while preserving the sustainability characteristics that make the material one of the most promising avenues for a sustainable future of the fashion system.