Woven Land

Category: Apparel

The project was born from a desire to tell the story of the land I grew up in through material. I explored the local fibers of the diverse cultures around me. In the process, I aimed to express the complexity, multiculturalism, and beauty found in this land marked by pain. My journey took me to three cultures in three different regions, each reflecting a fading craft industry. I met small local producers. In the western Negev, I came to a cotton gin, the last trace of a textile industry that once shaped the early kibbutz movement. In the southern Negev, I met a Bedouin community that still produces raw wool, a tradition rooted in their way of life. In the Hebron Hills, I received hand-spun wool from a Palestinian shepherdess who supports her family through her craft. From there, I began processing the materials using traditional techniques, aiming to preserve their integrity, highlight their raw beauty, and make use of every part. The cotton was felted with its seeds and impurities intact, becoming part of the fabric. The Bedouin wool was cleaned, filtered, and industrially felted. The hand-spun wool from Hebron was processed in two ways. Part of it was felted to create thick, rough wool, and the rest was knitted by hand using threads of varying thickness and techniques. The design was inspired by historical, ethnic, and religious garments. I created a piece that expresses regional heritage while embracing contemporary masculinity. The process combined old and new practices, from paper patterns to free draping to digital design in CLO 3D. Instead of using a sewing machine, I developed a method based on a historical desert coat, connecting the parts with hand-finished seams and knitted joins. This project fosters hope for a future of peace, rooted in love for the land and a recognition of its diverse communities. I grew up surrounded by the complexity of this land where ancient history meets the present, where indigenous communities live alongside new ones. Beneath this history runs a common thread, a connection woven through materials.

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