Image: Gabriela Martínez Ortiz.

We are excited to announce the first four virtual workshops in the Selvedge World Fair programme. Gabriela Martínez Ortiz (Mexico) will teach Hand Stitched Clothing, Rita Soto (Chile) will teach Micro basketry, Rokozeno Chaya (India) will teach how to Make a Nettle Fibre Bag and Christine Mayer (Germany) will teach Upcycling and Draping. The Selvedge World Fair is a three-day virtual event (3 - 5 September) celebrating the work of master artisans, bringing together varied - and in some cases endangered - textile traditions from around the world. Visitors will be able to buy handmade treasures, take part in online workshops and watch and participate in talks on textile-related themes. The full workshop and talks programme will be announced soon.

Gabriela Martínez, designer and textile artist, is creator of Ofelia & Antelmo, a textile art project that studies hand embroidery. Ofelia represents community, the work of a cooperative of women to make handmade garments designed to be one-size-fits-all, reversible and timeless. Rita Soto is a Chilean jewellery artist who learnt her craft of jewellery from her father. In 2012 she formed the LAJOIA Jewellery School in Santiago de Chile. Between 2014-2018, she held the position of President of JOYABRAVA, the Association of Contemporary Chilean Jewellers.

Image: Microparasite brooch by Rita Soto. Photographer Pablo Mehana.

Rokozeno Chaya is a young designer from the Angami tribe of Nagaland, India. She learnt traditional back-strap loom weaving from her grandmother, who inspired her to research and design Naga textiles. She has trained in textiles weaving and dyeing techniques at the National Institute of Fashion Technology, India. She is associated with the Artisans' Centre. Christine Mayer is a Berlin-based fashion designer has built a fashion career on re-purposing clothing and breathing new life into old garments. She is a pioneer of three-dimensional free draping with fabric, an art form she has adapted and developed from her studies in classical Japanese drapery.

Image: Christine Mayer, photography (c) Billy & Hells.

Tickets to Selvedge World Fair include access to talks, shopping, demonstrations, articles and interviews as well as a quiz with prizes. Workshops are ticketed separately. To find out more visit selvedge.org.