When creating her graduate collection 'Zooxanthellae' Sophie Vivien was inspired by the impact of climate change upon the beautiful, fragile coral reefs of the planet, and the phenomenon of coral bleaching.

Her initial inspiration was found in a collection of photographs taken by herself and her mother on holidays to America and Australia, when she discovered a fascination for coral reefs. Once she began research, she found her attention turning to coral bleaching, and wanted to raise awareness of this lesser well-known threat to our reefs through her passion for crochet.

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She began experimenting with this through design and development, and when she heard about how much single-use plastic PPE was being thrown into landfill due to the Covid-19 pandemic, she decided to try to reuse this and turn it into yarn to crochet with. Using white PPE also made a statement about the plastic that is in turn causing bleaching. Alongside the PPE, Sophie Vivien also visited some beaches in Norfolk and Essex, collecting pieces of plastic litter which have also been incorporated into the collection.

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"We need to know how human activities are affecting coral reef ecosystems; coral reefs are among the most sensitive indicators of the health of the oceans."