Crafting shine & stiffness
Bright fabric techniques of the Miao and Dong peoples transform indigo-dyed cotton into a luminous, structured material through layers of egg-white coating and repeated hammering. The process turns flexibility into sculptural rigidity, where shine and texture become expressive elements rather than mere finishes.
During a one-month residency at the Ròng Design Library in China, I immersed myself in these ancestral practices, exploring both their technical precision and the cultural stories they carry. Each artisan’s method is unique, shaped by personal gestures and local resources.
I experimented with adapting the traditional coating to finer industrial fabrics, investigating how luminosity and stiffness could inform contemporary design. The project bridges craft and research, highlighting the dialogue between material, gesture, and meaning in both traditional and modern contexts.
In Ròng Design Library, Hanghzou, China
Supported by ProHelvetia
2024
