TEXTILE CONNECTION - Two textile districts online exchange seminars

TEXTILE CONNECTION is a ongoing collaboration we initiated with Hirokawa New Edition, a creative hub located in the town of Hirokawa (Japan), operating in the textile field. As Lottozero, it is located at the heart of a historical textile district, where coexist artisanal textile traditions and industrial productions.

Through an online exchange seminars we will present our textile production areas, best sustainable practices, local traditions and handcrafts creations, aiming to create a bridge between the two different textile districts, which are geographically and culturally distant, by introducing them to our creative hubs’ respective communities.

Supported by the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF)

SEMINAR I: Hirokawa, Japan (Language: Japanese with English translation)
20.09.2021, h 10.30 - 12.00 (digital event on Zoom platform)
The seminar held by Hirokawa New Edition is dedicated to the discovery of Kurume Kasuri, a cotton ikat textile, tied dye before being weaved. The Kurume Kasuri industry was established by the 1820s, especially around the towns and cities of Hirokawa, Chikugo, Yame. Along with the mass-produced, synthetical-dyed, machine-woven Kurume Kasuri, some studios keep using domestic indigo fermented in natural dye, hand-bundled threads, and handlooms to produce Kurume Kasuri as traditional crafts.

Speakers:
Aki Watanuki: Textile designer and cultural researcher for Hirokawa New Edition based in Kibiru Atelier in Hirokawa.
Koichi Moriyama: artist/craftsman who runs Ai-Moriyama, a Japanese workshop of Kurume Kasuri that has been in operation since 1858.
Yasuhiro Ota: professor of the Faculty of Economics at Tokuyama University in Japan, presenting cases of innovative and sustainable Japanese textile companies.

SEMINAR II: Prato, Italy (Language: English with Japanese translation)
23.09.2021, h 10.30 - 12.00 (digital event on Zoom platform)
The seminar held by Lottozero focuses on fashion and textile production, providing knowledge to understand consumption and production models, materials, and processes within fashion and design. The seminar gives a theoretical overview on these aspects complemented with virtuoso examples of successful processes and products taken from the Prato textile district (such as the regeneration process of wool) and Lottozero's current projects.

Speakers:
Arianna Moroder: Co-founder and creative director of Lottozero.
Margaux Minodier: French textile artist and designer, currently collaborating with Lottozero on the "Circular Wool" project, which aims to transform a waste material (wool from local dairy sheep farms) into a circular textile raw material.

HOW TO PARTICIPATE:
Free participation. Registration is required through this link.
After registration, in the following days, participants will receive the link to join the session on the Zoom platform.

We hope to see you all there!