Twenty years ago, Signe Emdal A company set up that focused on making unique textile objects and clothing, based on its background in Jacquard, printing fabrics and a series of other techniques. By 2021, however, she felt enclosed and longed for a way to express herself through a more intuitive, less functional creative direction.
“It was time to free myself from a frame that I no longer make and a new one,” she tells Colossal. “I had no idea what the new frame would look like, but I trusted that life would bring me something better if I said goodbye to an setup that no longer brought me joy.”
A self -described ‘textile composer’, Emdal regards the loom as a window where Warp and Inweft interact to make storage ships for memories. It is also deeply influenced by exploring new locations. “With art I can travel in a completely new way because I get in a creation process while I spend time with or (are) in other cultures,” she says. Many works she makes on the spot, influenced by her environment.
Process is central to Emdal’s artistic education and remains the primary influence in its practice. “Everything is process and everything always changes,” she says. “Nothing will ever be ready!” She shares that through textile she learned to sharpen her concentration at both physical and metaphysical levels, and found that the meditative methodology of weaving echoes how they make art and watch life wider.
Emdal’s related series To touch And Loop Include sculptural, loom woven wool in lively colors. From the rays of vibrating pebbles from vibrating color to elegant, draping details, her pieces are inspired by science fiction, feminism, art history and music. “The sculptures are layers of delicate memories,” she says, who embody vulnerability, resilience, refinement and joy.
Emdal’s work will be included in the Textile art biennial SloveniaIt runs in five cities from 31 May to 14 August. Find more about Emdal’s website And Instagram.
