Translucency
The seduction of packaging 1930s
Cellophane sweeps the world as a fabulous sexy material. In this chapter, ideas around the use of cellophane for food packaging are also explored. Although very familiar today, when introduced cellophane packaging was a means of adding value to all consumer goods, from cigarettes to sandwiches. Advertising from the time conjured up a world of dirt, foreign germs and staleness from which cellophane could protect us.
Libretto
Like paper but not paper
Thin as tissue but hard to tear
Transparent as glass but not glass
Cinematic
From Rue de la Chausee d’Autin
La cellophane
A shimmering jewel in sheet form
A shimmying shush
A lone spot of brilliance
A dose of sex appeal
A touch of disposable gloss
(and pre-packed packaging units moving fast)
La cellophane
A complex four part system featuring nitrocellulose, a wax moisture proof barrier, plasticiser, blending agent. Plant fibre is dissolved in alkali and carbon di-sulfide making viscose, which is then extruded through a slit into a bath of sulphuric acid and sodium sulphate to reconvert the viscose into cellulose. The film then passes through several more baths, removing sulphur, bleaching the film and adding softening materials such as glycerine to stop the film becoming brittle...La Cellophane Two thieves in the night, Dampness and Dryness silently rob
The crispy crunch, the tenderness of delicate dainties for lunch… Cellophane stands guard
Let strange hands grab and paw,
Cellophane stands guard
Inquisitive hands that grab and paw,
Cellophane stands guard
Let strange hands touch and feel and grab
Cellophane stands guard
Peek a boo, peek a boo, It's looking after you
and it's keeping foreign odours out too
Shimmering jewel, shimmying shush, cellophane, peek-a-boo.