In this new series, we will explore three revolutionary artists who have crossed over from the art world into textiles and fashion, delving into the obstacles they faced and what led them to pursue commercial ventures. Art and fashion: two distinct industries, yet their divide is more porous today than ever. Many of today’s contemporary artists…
Category Archives: TEXTILES
Many of our artisan embroiderers started their design life out doing something completely different and then found themselves in embroidery, almost by accident. This is no more true than for Evelin Kasikov who, after completing a Fine Art graphics BA at the Estonian Academy of Art, worked as a graphic designer in advertising for ten…
The next of our artisan embroiderers is Aimee Betts, who describes herself as a “˜Creator of Adornments’. Aimee combines more modern processes, such as industrial sewing and digital embroidery with the more traditional hand-sewn approach to create contemporary embellishment pieces. Her work spans fashion, interior design and visual art and includes modern crafted accessories, jewelry,…
Sydney-based sisters’ Maricor and Maricar Manalo‘ describe themselves as “˜Makers of Things assorted’. They’re designers, illustrators and animators by trade, but in recent years have gathered somewhat of a cult following due to their incredible embroidery skills. ‘ Their hand-stitched typographic works are playful and geometric as well as bursting with color, and have earned MaricorMaricar commercial and…
The first of our embroiderers is Emily Jo Gibbs,’ a British artist specializing in hand-stitched textiles. A member of the 62 Group, she became internationally known for her exquisite luxury handbags, but has recently found more artistic acclaim for her embroidered portraits. Her unique ability to bring objects and drawings to life with embroidery means…
Similar to our exploration of the Bohemian Modern trend, we’ve noticed a revival of artisan craftsmanship across the western world. Young people are stepping away from technology and learning a more traditional craft – be it woodwork, beer brewing or knitting – and turning that craft into a business. The last few decades have seen…
When people ask me about craftivism,* I love to talk to them about what’s happening now and who’s doing what here in the present. However, I also try and remember to make the point that craftivism is nothing new, as like with The AIDS Memorial Quilt, which I mentioned last week, many amazing craftivism projects…
After donation and beautification, notification is the third tenet of Craftivism.* Compared to the other two tenets, notification tends to garner the most discussion. Unsurprisingly, it is also the one most likely to hit people with the biggest punch, as it features a juxtaposition between the “soft” world of craft and the “hard” world of…
This post is the 3rd in a series about craftivism. If you missed the previous posts, you might want to check out the Introduction and Part I. The second tenet of craftivism is beautification, or making your surroundings more beautiful by using your craft skills. As yarn bombing is what people think of first when…
A finger puppet from Craft Hope’s project with Country Woman magazine Last week on the blog, I wrote an introduction to craftivism, an international creative movement that I started in 2003. As I noted last week, within craftivism, I created three different tenets to help illustrate whether something falls under that umbrella:’ 1) donation (creating items…
In late 2000, I lived in New York City and learned how to knit. I just wanted to learn a hobby with which I could connect to others, I didn’t want to create a movement. But that didn’t mean I didn’t need to change my life. It wouldn’t be until later that I fully realized…
A painting depicting women inspecting silk, early 12th century, ink and color on silk, by Emperor Huizong of Song For hundreds of years, China tightly controlled the production and manufacture of silk, making it the most prized of all fabrics.’ The desire for silk created thousands of miles of trade routes as well as advances in…
The Fair Isle Jumper by Stanley Cursiter, 1923 Nothing says warmth like a cozy wool sweater but it took’ thousands of years of selective breeding to get it.’ Ancient’ sheep bear little resemblance to today’s wool sheep, selectively bred for their fine coats. Like other domestic animals, humans bred sheep for different traits to develop the breeds we…
Robe à la française, France, block-printed cotton, c. 1770. Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) Next in our history series is cotton. The history of cotton is the history of trade and industry with a lot of politics and economics thrown in. Now the most prevalent fabric in the world, it’s humble beginnings…
This will be the first in a series of blog posts where we will take a closer look at natural fabrics such as linen, cotton, and wool, and their journey through the ages. Today, natural fabrics can be found in all shapes, styles, and forms from basic undergarments to high end fashion. In decades past,…
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