On 16 June 2026, Katrin Kabun, a doctoral student in the Art and Design programme at the Estonian Academy of Arts, successfully defended her doctoral dissertation, Rehabilitating Sheep's Wool: Applying an Archaic Material in the Context of Contemporary Design.

The dissertation was supervised by Professor Jüri Kermik (Estonian Academy of Arts) and Professor Andres Krumme (Tallinn University of Technology). The pre-examiners were Professor Kärt Ojavee (Estonian Academy of Arts) and Dr Natalja Savest (Tallinn University of Technology), and the opponent was Dr Tüüne-Kristin Vaikla (RMIT University). 

The dissertation is available in the EKA Digital Archive.

The dissertation is a practice-based artistic research project centred on sheep's wool as a material. It begins from a paradox: while sheep's wool has been highly valued throughout history, today this renewable and valuable natural resource remains significantly underutilised.

The research explores sheep's wool as a material for designing contemporary living environments and investigates ways to rediscover, apply, and maintain its functional, aesthetic, and emotional value in contemporary design.

Since the widespread adoption of synthetic fibres in the mid-twentieth century, the use of sheep's wool has declined dramatically. Wool has increasingly become a by-product of meat production and is classified as a Category 3 animal by-product, often disposed of as cheaply as possible, including through incineration or burial. Yet the material itself has not changed. On the contrary, the complex morphological structure and chemical composition of wool fibres make sheep's wool a naturally high-performance material with remarkable technical properties.

Katrin Kabun's research traces the historical uses of sheep's wool and reinterprets them within the context of contemporary design. Drawing on scientifically verified material properties, the dissertation identifies and maps new application areas that extend beyond traditional uses and respond to the needs of contemporary society. In doing so, the research aims to halt the destruction of this valuable biological resource while contributing to the restoration of sheep's wool's historical, emotional, and economic value.

The successfully defended dissertation makes a significant contribution to the field of material-based design research and opens up new possibilities for the use of sheep's wool in sustainable, resource-conscious design.