CMF for a Conscious Future: A workshop by Clara Bartholomeu

In a quiet room filled with curious designers, Clara Bartholomeu began not with slides but a story. A Brazilian by origin and a global voice in CMF (Colour, Material, Finish) design, she walked us through a journey that challenged how we perceive design, beauty, and responsibility.

"CMF isn't just what you see at the end," she said, eyes bright. "It's the first thing people feel. The first message a product sends."

Clara's love for materials started not in a design studio, but in sustainability labs. She didn't want to design more things; she wanted to design meaning. And so, her path led to CMF, a space where colour, material, and finish converge to influence perception, emotion, and environmental outcomes. From working with Studio BaLab in Milan to lecturing at Istituto Marangoni and designing for electric vehicle startup Peec Mobility in Dubai, Clara has applied CMF across the automotive, interiors, electronics, and other sectors.

One of Clara's most provocative insights came from her work at Peac: "We don't build new electric vehicles. We give old, unused urban fleets a new electric life." This repurposing model wasn't just more environmentally innovative but emotionally richer. "Why scrap a car that still works? Why dishonour the materials we've already used?" In Clara's world, CMF isn't about starting fresh but adding depth to what already exists.

Clara demonstrated how CMF influences identity. Consider SMEG refrigerators: their glossy pastel finishes aren't just about retro charm; they evoke durability, nostalgia, and cultural memory. Or Apple's AirPods Max, with aluminium bodies and knit mesh headbands. These materials don't just perform but also embody lifestyle.

Then came the unexpected: a tablet cover made from grape pomace (winemaking waste), coated in marble powder from the Italian quarry industry, and finished with banana fibre textiles from Indonesia. It was a product of deep storytelling, not trend-chasing.

Clara explained colour is primal. It's the first emotional handshake between user and product. Whether Ferrari's red, Hermès orange, or a disruptive lime green from a Charli XCX album "brat", colour carves memory and meaning. "We don't just choose colours, we choose what to stand for," she said. "But context changes everything. A blue in one setting can feel vibrant, in another, dull." Through concepts like simultaneous contrast and cultural perception, Clara revealed how colour behaves, mutates, and communicates.

CMF must keep pace with global shifts, from climate change to supply chain disruptions. Clara shared heat-retaining curtains, bioactive textiles that change colour, and finishes that reject fingerprints or conduct electricity. She emphasised a rising need for tactile satisfaction in a digital world. From hospital environments mimicking wood grain to ASUS's stone-inspired aluminium finish (Seruminium), the craving for material presence is real, even in tech.

She offered examples of paint choices, coating dilemmas, and the struggle between cost and conscience. Her message was that no 'perfect' material exists but only informed, intentional choices.

Could AI replace CMF designers? Clara doesn't think so. "AI can calculate. It can even suggest. But it doesn't know your context, your user, your culture. That's your job." She shared her newest venture: Peec Studio, a cultural spin-off designing EVS with local heritage, gutra-inspired seat patterns, karak tea sets built into the car, fridges designed for laban drinks. "Culture is strategy," she said. "It's not decorative, it's identity."

Before the workshop closed, Clara left us with this:

"CMF isn't a final touch. It's the soul of the product. It can whisper nostalgia, shout innovation, or nudge the world toward circularity."

Her advice to designers:

• Build a reference library. Let the world around you teach you.
• Use moodboards like semantic boards. Tell a story, don't just match colours.
• Partner with recyclers and local producers. Materials have lives beyond you.
• Design for durability but also desirability.

The session concluded with a collaborative workshop, during which attendees applied Clara's ideas in real time. In small groups, designers created CMF mood boards for everyday products like bags, headphones, bikes, and more. But there was a twist: each group first made a deliberately "bad" CMF choice for their assigned product.

After a brief swap, teams were tasked with fixing the flaws in another group's mood board, guided by healthy critique and insight from Clara. This dynamic, shared learning experience revealed how much thought, empathy, and awareness go into every good material decision. It was a playful but profound reminder that design isn't just about having the right answers. It's about learning to ask better questions.

CMF is how we tell the story of our values through every hue, texture, and finish. In a world that desperately needs more thoughtful making, Clara reminded us that the surface is where impact begins. But more importantly, stay curious, critical, and make every choice count.

This session was part of the Extended Pack Collective Workshop series curated and moderated by the Designers at Wolffkraft.