HÅNDVÆRK bookazine english edition the textile issue

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INTERVIEWS • FEATURES • INSPIRATION HÅNDVÆRK bookazine no. 2 – the textile issue

The difficult second issue? No, the very special second issue.

Special because textile is an indispensable part of our life, from cradle to grave. We are born, swaddled and dressed. We sleep and sit on textile, and many different kinds of textile shield us from the cold, sun and dark. And when we go on our final journey, we wear our Sunday best!

Textile products have traditionally been produced at home and/or in small local production fa- cilities. As a result, most people in the past had easy access to knowledge and understanding related to materials and manufacturing methods. Today, we are in a very different place. Most of the textiles we use now are made far away, and the experience that was once passed down from generation to generation will disappear unless we remain vigilant and insistent!

And yet! In ‘the textile issue’ you will encounter artisans, craft makers and designers who work with textiles in a variety of contexts, from the artistic to the functional, in new and old local Scandinavian companies and in small workshops and studios. People who both keep this cultural heritage alive and renew it. Many of them work with interior solutions, others in fashion. I am 2 also going to take you on a visit to a folk high school to delve into embroidery. 3

Another factor that makes this second issue special is that due to my – now fairly distant – past in the fashion industry, I have hands that routinely register quality and a trained eye that is able to sort the wheat from the chaff, particularly when it comes to textile. Apropos of fashion, fashion and consumerism have never been more untrendy. By now, it is common knowledge that the clothing industry is one of the most polluting industries in the world, second only to the oil in- dustries. That knowledge is making consumers uncomfortable, causing some to opt for #buyless, while others aim for #buynothing – and I often find myself drawn to ‘pre-loved’ items.

For this issue I have gone through my own closets and share some pre-loved Rigetta Klint along with clothing and accessories from small companies that, each in their way, have taken consum- ers’ call for quality over quantity to heart.

Modern consumers prefer manufacturers that take responsibility for the environment while still producing beautiful, well-made, well-fitting clothes in durable quality that ages well. Clothes that maintain their capacity for reenchantment. Clothes for everyone who only likes what they see in the mirror if they can dress with a clear conscience.

I hope that you will enjoy the textile issue and find it inspiring.

All backgrounds in this bookazine are painted with paint from FLÜGGER’s style history colour chart • The Dania Step Ladder stool was designed by Designit for SKAGERAK Rigetta Klint, designer, writer, photographer

bookazine no. 2 HÅNDVÆRK 006–007 008–017 018–021 022–033 078–087 088–097 098–107 108–113

INTRO ISLAND LIVING BASIC KNOWLEDGE PRE-LOVED EELGRASS DREAM FACTORY HERE AND THERE THE HATTER

About the value of good conver- In the kitchen at Hotel The Mon- The textile designer Marie-­ Enjoyable fashion, guilt-free Or to Kentucky and back, about Where craftsmanship goes hand Textile from morning to night, Workshop visit with one of the sations and a strong network ica we meet Monica Konradsen Louise Rosholm guides you fashion, let’s go to Brussels the textile designer Lærke Lille- in hand with large-scale produc- from room to room, from func- few remaining Danish hatters and the weaver Dorthe Rejkjær safely through the fibre jungle lund, who works with eelgrass tion and a personal touch tion to function

4 5 034–043 044–053 054–067 068–077 114–123 124–135 136–141 142–155

UNE PARISIENNE EXTINCTION OR … NEIGHBOURS BLUE HANDS THE STAGE IS SET LEARNING STITCHES LIBRARY

Artistic work and commercial Development was the answer In a small town in Jutland, Vegetable dyeing 3.0 is gaining At the iconic Bellevue Theatre A day, a week, a few months? Iben Høj is a knit designer; meet Alphabetical list of contribu- textile design thriving side by for Århus Possementfabrik, two textile companies are momentum – see dyeing with we meet actress Maj-Britt The folk high school tradition her and Line Rix of Kit Couture tors and featured makers and side let’s visit almost rubbing shoulders indigo and woad Mathiesen in her wardrobe has something for everyone companies

bookazine no. 2 HÅNDVÆRK out of their meeting. I have known Synne since she lesson on how we can produce, sell and buy clothes INTRO was born. During the 1980s, her parents and I lived with storytelling and the personal touch as part of the in the same building in Odense. We became friends. equation. Later, they and their children moved west, and I moved east, but our friendship endured. When Synne was 15 years old, and needed to do a work-experience Apropos of lessons ... traineeship for school, she spent a week in my design Last year I was contacted by Signe Rosenkrands firm in . She was spotted by the owner of and Trine Clod Præstholm, both students at a modelling agency, and soon she was travelling the University. They were writing their master’s thesis, world on photo shoots. She was one of my favourite titled Håndværk som vidensform (Crafts as Knowl- models for fashion campaigns and walked many of edge Form). They asked whether I might be available my fashion shows. Whenever Synne’s travels took for an interview, and I agreed. They also wondered her to Copenhagen she would stay in my guest room, if they might use some of my many photos of craft and whenever our paths crossed in or London process as illustrations in their thesis. Of course they we would meet. Synne no longer models – today she could. When I launched the HÅNDVÆRK bookazine is a diplomat – but she was kind enough to agree to be no. 1 in October 2019, Signe and Trine kindly agreed photographed with her young daughter, Alice Ellen, to help out and welcome the guests at the reception. in the family’s home in Brussels. In the meantime, they have both graduated and are on But why does the writer have to be friends their way into working life. with all her sources? Synne’s mother comes from the Danish island of This question was raised by a Danish critic in an Ærø. Last summer, when Synne was married, the cer- ‘Our thesis really motivated me to teach creative other­wise very positive review of HÅNDVÆRK emony took place on Ærø. On my recommendation, subjects,’ says Signe when I take their photos after bookazine no. 1. And that gave me food for thought. Synne and her husband-to-be stayed at Hotel The the reception. ‘The aim of our thesis was to examine Monica, which is owned an run by Monica Conrad- how the encounter with a craft impacts us through the 7 Must I be friends with all my sources? sen. I wrote about Hotel The Monica in spring 2018, bodily experience, and what the characteristics are when it had only been open a few months. I had heard of this embodied learning,’ they explain. ‘During the Not necessarily. But often, that is how it turns out. about the exclusive little boutique hotel from cerami- process, I was pleasantly surprised to see the broad The conversations I have in connection with my work cist Hanne Bertelsen. theoretical basis we could draw on,’ says Signe, and Left: Signe Rosenkrands and Trine Clod Præstholm, whose are always conversations with people who are pas- Trine adds, ‘– and how strong a case we can now ac- master’s thesis is titled ‘Hånd- sionate, and who are therefore personally invested in I first met Hanne Bertelsen in 1994 and soon began to tually make for the huge potential of craft practices.’ værk som vidensform’ (Craft as what they do. The conversations go beyond what may sell her beautiful ceramic flower pots from my shop I look forward to seeing their future contributions. knowledge form). be the marketing department’s agenda or what can in Copenhagen. Hanne and Monica have also known be conveyed in a press release. I too am personally each other for many years. Hanne designed the table- Right: Photo of tools from the Long live the power of new encounters! ‘Made in workshops’, invested in the topic, because it involves both ethics ware for Monica’s hotel, and Monica sells Hanne’s one of the photos that were and aesthetics, and because I am passionate about dis- ceramics from the shop attached to the hotel. Inciden- Will I be able to maintain a critical perspective if used as illustrations in Signe cussing and highlighting the link between craftsman- tally, Monica is also a former model. I am on friendly terms with my sources? I have no and Trine’s thesis. ship, applied art and design. Such a meeting often doubt that I can still determine whether my source gives rise to good relations, respect and sometimes Recently, I got a phone call from Monica. I was well has a story worth telling. I am also fairly sure that I friendships. into the process of preparing the present ‘textile is- can assess the quality of their product. That said, I am sue’. Monica spoke enthusiastically about the weaver also convinced that everything and everybody appear Moreover, I thrive on the exchange of ideas and expe- Dorthe Rejkjær, whom she had begun to work with. more beautiful, more insightful and more relevant if a riences and enjoy connecting people. Dorthe weaves bespoke coats and jackets from lo- relationship is allowed to emerge. cally sourced wool. The coats are sold from ­Monica’s Years ago, Synne Espensen (see pp. 22–33) said to me, hotel shop. Would I like to come to Ærø to learn That is how it is, how it has always been, and how it ‘You and I both have networking as a hobby’. That is more about this? Absolutely! It sounded like a great will always be. probably true; I love it when people get together, of- project, and I am convinced that the way forward in- ten around my dinner table. Love it when they leave cludes reclaiming a relationship to the way in which together, enriched and with new possibilities arising our clothes are made and from what. The project is a

bookazine no. 2 HÅNDVÆRK ISLAND LIVING

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bookazine no. 2 HÅNDVÆRK When I checked out after my first stay at the luxury boutique AT MONICA’S hotel The Monica on the Danish island of Ærø in 2018, Monica said, ‘I usually ask my guests to mention one thing they really liked and one thing that I could improve. It would be a big help for me if you would do the same.’ After giving it some thought, I had to say, ‘I love everything, I enjoyed being your guest, and I can’t think of a single thing I would change. I feel the way I do when I’ve stayed with friends; I don’t consider whether they might do anything to optimize their home for my sake. I accept the hospitality that I am met with, and I appreciate enjoying their particular version of hospitality.’

Entering Hotel The Monica in at no. 16, Brogade, in Ærøs- købing is like entering one of my favourite magazines, The World of Interiors: an eclectic mix of colours, wallpapers, textiles, ceramics, glass, antiquities, modern design, tra- vel mementos and books.

The Monica, which has two – soon to be four – double rooms as well as a living room, garden and kitchen, is Monica Con- radsen. A masterpiece; a demonstration of everything that she has trained and perfected throughout her life. A display of her personal collection, her own personal version of warm and wel- 10 coming luxury that she generously and gracefully shares with her guests. ISLAND LIVING

Their shared interest in crafts, applied art, design and Friendship art makes common ground, and although they had Fifty-three-year-old Monica Conradsen has travelled not known each other long at the time, Dorthe invited the world and lived in numerous countries. Initially, Monica to join her on a trip to London. Dorthe wanted during her youth, as a model, later as a wife and the to visit the Tate Gallery and the large Anni Albers ex- mother of four children. She has created one home hibition. (The weaver Anni Albers (1899–1994) was after another – renovating, decorating, running the one of the few female students to be admitted into the household, cooking and welcoming old and new prestigious Bauhaus School in Germany, where she friends. She excels at home-making and brings a cos- enrolled in 1922. She chose weaving because it was mopolitan atmosphere to both the hotel and the small the only option available to her as a female student). hotel shop with its wide selection of hand-selected Monica, who lived in London and whose youngest Danish and international luxury items, including daughter lives there had no hesitation about accepting craft objects, all of it selected with the same exquisite the invitation. ‘We are good travel mates. It was a sense of unique character as the hotel interior. great trip,’ says Dorthe, and Monica adds, ‘We had the same shopping pace – in, quick look around, out International but also personal and warm. Monica – and it was really rewarding to hear Dorthe’s profes- personally welcomes the guests, makes the beds, sional perspectives on the Albers show.’ Back home, launders and rolls the linen, does the dusting, brings Monica began to push to be allowed to see Dorthe’s her guests coffee in bed, prepares breakfast and din- weaving. ner, bakes the cookies, arranges the flowers, selects the products for the shop and sells them to enthusi- astic shoppers. Unfailing style ‘I really admire Monica’s grasp of style,’ says Dorthe, When I recently returned, it was to talk to her about ‘and I was frankly a little reluctant to show her my a line of unique hand-woven coats she carries in her work. Finally, hard pushed, I brought a couple of 12 shop. I had arranged to meet Dorthe Rejkjær, who jackets over, which Monica loved and saw a potential 13 designs, weaves and sews the coats, at Monica’s for in for her shop.’ a chat about their collaboration. We met around the long table in Monica’s kitchen, which is also where ‘And of course, I can never keep my mouth shut,’ says the hotel guests have breakfast and dinner. Monica with a laugh as she explains how she pro- posed some variations and minor adjustments. ‘Mon- Monica and Dorthe both moved to Ærø from ica is amazing, she has such an eye for what it takes Copenhagen about three years ago. ‘Our colla­ to make the product spot-on, and she knows how it boration is based both on friendship and a should be styled to sell – she spellbinds her custom- Dorthe Rejkjær (left), Monica Konradsen (right), Monica’s daughter Anna Conradsen (middle). ­shared passion,’ they agree. ‘Our friendship ers,’ says Dorthe. ‘It’s Dorthe’s product, of course,’ Anna is a model and lives in London but is home for the holidays. All wearing woollen garments from Dorthe Rejkjær. developed very quickly, probably because we Monica points out, ‘I’m just living out something I were both newcomers to Ærø, and we were enjoy, and because I have previously worked with both open and looking to establish a local net­ personal styling, I understand the customers’ needs. Several of the hotel guests have already fallen in love with the idea of a hand-woven coat – and when they do, Monica I show them how they can wear the coats and com- rings up Dorthe, who drives in from the countryside, bringing her yarns, colour charts and tape measures. She takes work,’ Monica adds. bine them with other items from the shop. I even once measurements, the two determine the yarn and colourway, and once the coat is ready, if possible, Dorthe delivers it ‘When did we met?’ they reflect – and determine called Louise Rahbek, who has the vintage shop Else personally, packed in a beautiful handmade box. ‘In my mind,’ says Dorthe, ‘the coat comes with a sort of life-time that they first ran into each other at a mutual friend’s Schneider in the nearby town of Ærøskøbing, because guarantee, or at least, I’d be happy to assist if the customer wants alterations, or if it is worn and requires repairs.’ house, and then Monica soon invited Dorthe and her I knew she had some vintage brooches that would husband, Chris Hammeken, the island’s tourism and make a perfect accessory.’ ‘When you have a personal style,’ Monica points out, ‘it’s easy to invest for life. I basically have the same taste I had business director, to a dinner party at the long table. when I was 16, and many of my clothes are quite old. If something no longer fits me, my daughters will wear it, and From that point, they soon grew close. ‘If you didn’t have the approach you have, I would I’m certain that my grandchildren will love the idea of inheriting the coats I have from Dorthe.’ have kept looking for other sales channels,’ says ‘Dorthe offered her help one day when I needed a Dorthe, ‘but I feel that I’m in such good hands, with Monica always has new ideas and sees new possibilities. ‘I have some gorgeous cushions in the shop that Dorthe hand with ironing,’ says Monica. ‘WHAT! I thought, our collaboration, I couldn’t possibly do better my- made,’ she says, ‘we should make them in a wider range of colours.’ ‘So, that’s the challenge in our collaboration,’ overwhelmed by her helpfulness. You also helped self. Your involvement gives me the freedom to focus says Dorthe with a laugh, ‘sometimes I have to call a time-out in order to be able to keep up at the loom.’ ‘But I’ve make the flower arrangements for my eldest daugh- on design and weaving.’ seen that you’ve made some beautiful cushions for yourself,’ says Monica, ‘maybe I could have those for the shop? ter’s wedding, I recall,’ she says to Dorthe. And by the way, I am really looking forward to you getting started on the rugs!’

bookazine no. 2 HÅNDVÆRK ISLAND LIVING

IT ALL SPRINGS FROM NATURE Together with another local sheep farmer, Cecilie Siø, I am involved in an initiative to encourage the island’s sheep farmers to switch to a breed that ac- commodates both needs, to minimize waste. We are also looking into the possibility of establishing a mi- cro-spinning mill, modelled on the ones they have in Scotland.’

Background Dorthe, who is 52 years of age, has had weaving as a hobby ever since she was around 14 years old. Her mother also wove, and both her sisters work with tex- tile professionally. She had initially intended to study architecture, but due to chance events or the influence of a boyfriend, she ended up studying constructional engineering instead. This led to a years-long career in the Danish Agency for Data Supply and Efficiency, where her latest area of responsibility was mapping Leaving the city the Faroe Islands and Greenland. All the while, how- Dorthe and Monica are not the only creatives who are ever, her interest in weaving only intensified. currently moving from the cities into the countryside. It is an international trend. At a trend seminar in au- Just over three years ago, Dorthe and her husband, tumn 2019, the Dutch trend forecaster Li Edelkoort Chris, bought a renovated farmhouse in Skelhave said that as the cities are losing their enchantment, 15 near Søby on Ærø. At the time, they intended to use trend-setters are moving to the countryside. Her pres- it as a holiday cottage and perhaps eventually as their entation was accompanied by a series of photos of the permanent home. Soon, however, they decided they pleasures of modern country living and of craftspeo- wanted to move to Ærø as soon as possible. A deci- ple and craft producers. sion that included a change of profession for Dorthe, who was keen to test the feasibility of weaving full- Dorthe explains that there is currently a strong influx time. When her husband got the job as Ærø’s business of people moving to Ærø. Back in the 2000s, there and tourism director, they seized the opportunity. was great concern, as the population was both rapidly ageing and shrinking. Now, the tide is turning. Many The lower cost of living in the countryside gives of the newcomers are thriving young families who Dorthe the freedom to build her business. This in- seek the benefits of less stressful island living. Some cludes travelling to attend the three-year-long mod- of them set up businesses on the island, others free- ular professional training programme in the use of lance in businesses where location or distance is not the foot-powered loom offered by Dansk Tekstillaug important. And, of course, some newcomers find jobs (Danish Textile Guild). in existing public- and private-sector workplaces.

Dorthe Rejkjær lives in the countryside, 15 km from Ærøskøbing. ‘When you’ve finished your breakfast with lovely Dorthe has received support from the so-called LAG It is easy to resettle on Ærø; for anyone with a Monica, all in your own time, come out to my place. I’m thinking we could go out to the sheep and take a few photos programme to establish her workshop, and her clear slightly open attitude, the possibilities are legion. there. They graze on one of the most beautiful hills on Ærø. Nature and the rural landscape are a key influence on my purpose is to develop a viable business. (The LAG I am speaking with Louise Rahbek, whom Monica work,’ Dorthe writes in the email she sends me as we sort out the practical details of my visit to her workshop during programme, which is managed by the Danish Minis- told me about. She runs a vintage clothing shop in my trip to Ærø. try of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs, pro- Ærøskøbing and on Instagram. She explains that the vides funding to projects aimed at promoting growth less stressful everyday life gives her the energy to get ‘I hope that I can gradually become self-sufficient in wool,’ says Dorthe, as we stand on the hill among the sheep. and new jobs in selected rural districts and improving involved, and that there is plenty to get involved in: ‘Currently, I buy my wool locally on Ærø and from Denmark’s only spinning mill, Hjelholt, on the Danish island of Fu- the general conditions in these districts, particularly there are 180 private and volunteer associations for nen.’ ‘My sheep are Spelsaus, which have soft, long-fibred wool that is very well suited for spinning. The sheep that are with a view to promoting permanent settlement). the island population of 6,000. raised for meat, which you see over there, have wool with much shorter fibres, and that wool is typically thrown out.

HÅNDVÆRK ISLAND LIVING

All experience counts In the corridor leading to Dorthe’s high-ceilinged workshop I pass her bulletin board, which is sys- tematically divided into columns titled TO DO, IN PROCESS, DONE and NEXT – each one covered in post-it notes, which are moved around as the projects progress. I ask whether experiences and routines from her previous job are a benefit to her now. She says they are and mentions both design thinking methods and analytical skills. Even though her work at the loom is driven by her desire to be creative and ex- press herself and thus constitutes an artistic project, she engages in a constant, rewarding dialogue with the world around her aimed at developing and opti- mizing her product. In the book, Harper argues that aesthetics is the key to achieving optimal sustainability by virtue of emo- tional values that appeal to a nourish the user. This requires designers to shift their focus from designing for built-in obsolescence to creating products that can be repaired and updated and which contain durable aesthetic value.

Unlike many others who attribute durability to neu- tral, basic products, Harper operates with the span be- 16 tween ‘the pleasure of the familiar’ and ‘the pleasure 17 ‘One of those will take about a week’s concentrated In addition to the coat project with Hotel The Mon- of the unfamiliar’, the span between ‘the beautiful’ work,’ she replies. ica, Dorthe currently has a second main project. She and ‘the sublime’. The beautiful is exactly so harmo- has a large carpet loom in her workshop that once nious, minimalistic and accessible that we never tire belonged to Vibeke Klint (1927–2019) and, before of it. Sublime objects, on the other hand, are ones that her, to Gerda Henning (1891–1951). Klint graduated are so complex that we can continue to explore them, from the School of Arts and Crafts in Copenhagen and rather than subordinating themselves to their sur- in 1949. Following her graduation she apprenticed roundings, they stand out. with the weaver Gerda Henning, and after Henning’s death she took over her workshop. In 2019, several of I could not agree more, and I add that the relationship Klint’s iconic rugs were relaunched, with the family’s between the designer and the maker/manufacturer approval, by the Nordic Modern company. and between the maker/manufacturer, the vendor and the buyer can be crucial for the user’s emotional at- ‘It is with a profound sense of humility that I work tachment to any product. at that loom, weaving myself into the history of the profession,’ says Dorthe. Dorthe spends many hours in her workshop every day, varying between examining and exploring, preparing ‘My previous career was not a waste of time,’ she and concluding projects and the monotonous labour at reflects. ‘It was interesting and challenging in itself, the loom – ‘Don’t ask me what I think about during and in addition, I learned a lot that I can use now, those long hours at the loom,’ she says. ‘It’s a flow that but in a sense, I think that textiles and clothing were I can’t put into words; I typically weave for three to always in the cards for me. Now, as it happens, my four hours at a time, then I’m interrupted, either by my vision is a perfect match for the spirit of the times. own thoughts or because the dog needs to go outside.’ Many of us are looking for the durable and unique, some place between the beautiful and the sublime,’ ‘How long does it take to make one of the long she concludes, with a reference to the terms from Kristine Harper: Aesthetic Sustainability – Product Design coats, complete with the shorter inside coat?’ I ask. Kristine Harper’s 2017 book Aesthetic Sustainability. and Sustainable Usage, Routledge, 2017.

bookazine no. 2 HÅNDVÆRK SUBSCRIPTION

HÅNDVÆRK bookazine is a semi-annual ad-free bookazine.

Have the bookazine delivered to your door fresh from the press to get a front-row seat to knowledge and inspiration in the field of crafts and design.

The perspective is Scandinavian, the outlook global. HÅNDVÆRK covers food, fashion and interior objects and design.

Each issue revolves around a single theme. No. 1, released in October 2019, titled ‘at the table with’. No. 2, released in March 2020, titled ‘the textile issue’. No. 3 will be released in September 2020, titled ‘the home issue’.

Published in a Danish and an international version (the latter with text in English).

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Rigetta Klint with jacket from ITEM STUDIO • cloth cap CECILIAS MINDE • FACEBOOK: HÅNDVÆRKbookazine • INSTAGRAM: @rigetta_klint • WEB: Haandvaerkbookazine.com fabrics SILKEBORG ULDSPINDERI and KJELLERUP VÆVERI HÅNDVÆRK bookazine no. 2 focuses on textile – the soft features in our home and the stuff of fashion. Step inside and meet an outstanding group of talented, dedicated, passionate craftspeople, makers, artisans, designers and communi- cators. Join us on a visit to Århus Possementfabrik, which makes the rope for Weg- ner’s Flag Halyard Chair. Explore the textile artist Vibeke Rohland’s fascinating world, and take part in an indigo workshop with Japanese BUAISOU. Meet the textile designer Lærke Lillelund, who uses eelgrasss furniture stuffing at A. Petersen Collection & Craft i København, and hear about the high-quality stuf- fing and excellent craftsmanship that go into a Hästens bed. In Brussels, we visit the former model, now diplomat, Synne Espensen, who has agreed to model a fashion series with equal parts pre-loved and new, and on the Danish island of Ærø you can meet another former model, who now runs a hotel.

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