Craft

The Best Unconventional Embroidery

Get inspired by the work of textile artists who take embroidery out of the fabric

Many people mistakenly think that embroidery is a boring and old-fashioned activity. Contemporary embroidery artists challenge this idea with each of their pieces. They elevate embroidery as a valuable artistic expression and expand the limits of what can be accomplished with the technique.

We have curated a selection of embroidery artists who explore novel themes but also do it outside the canvas. Be amazed and inspired by this work!

Danielle Clough

Better known on Instagram as Fiance Knowles, this South African needle artist likes to embroider on unexpected objects, like snowshoes and even railings on the streets.

Danielle Clough
Danielle Clough
Danielle Clough
Danielle Clough

Alice Kozlowska

Alicja is a native of Poland. Her fascination with pop art has led her to create embroidered three-dimensional felt sculptures made both by hand and with a sewing machine. She recreates everyday objects that surround us, reflecting on consumerist culture and questioning the current context of daily life and the mass media.

Alice Kozlowska
Alice Kozlowska
Alice Kozlowska
Alice Kozlowska

Liz Sofield

Liz is a textile, paper, and ceramic artist originally from New Zealand and based in Australia. Her technique of mixing textiles and paper is inspired by traditional origami and plays with the light and shadow with modifications embroidered by hand. "I like to question the limits in which craft and art intersect, and to test the depths of domestic craft in a contemporary way," she says.

Liz Sofield
Liz Sofield
Liz Sofield
Liz Sofield

Charlotte Lancelot

She was trained as a visual artist in Brussels and worked with architects and interior designers. Her Canevas collection consists of decorative objects such as rugs and cushions, with giant cross-stitch embroidery.

Charlotte Lancelot
Charlotte Lancelot
Charlotte Lancelot
Charlotte Lancelot

Karen Barbé

Karen (@karenbarbe) is a Chilean designer and textile artist with more than a decade of embroidery experience. She is the author of the book Color Confident Stitching, and her main source of inspiration and experimentation is color. At Domestika she teaches the Theory of Colour for Textile Projects course.

Karen Barbé
Karen Barbé
Karen Barbé
Karen Barbé

Emily Barletta

Emily is an artist based in New York, whose work has been exhibited in different galleries. She experiments with embroidery on various surfaces to give the pieces a new artistic interpretation. She frequently includes Polaroid photographs and paper in her designs.

Emily Barletta
Emily Barletta
Emily Barletta
Emily Barletta

Ipnot

Ipnot is the pseudonym of a wonderful Japanese textile artist. She uses the traditional hoop and fabric technique for her creations, but her embroidery is three-dimensional and often calls for the viewer’s participation of the viewer. Her pieces have movement and unfold as if they were beautiful pop-up books.

Ipnot
Ipnot
https://www.instagram.com/ipnot/
https://www.instagram.com/ipnot/

Han Cao

Han is a self-taught artist who currently lives in California. She creates new narratives applying embroidery on photos and postcards found at flea markets. She thinks this work connects her, through the fibers, with unknown people and places.

Han Cao
Han Cao
Han Cao
Han Cao

L'abu

Estela Botello is a designer and carpenter from Madrid who lives in Barcelona. Her creations arise from her childhood memories. She gives a modern twist to embroidery using wood as the base while celebrating the environment with each of her creations.

L'abu
L'abu
L'abu
L'abu

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