Photos: Re Rag Rug project archives
“We gave ourselves 12 months to explore and experiment with textiles, sustainability, craft, design and see what would come out of it. The result is sensational!” – said Katarina Brieditis and Katarina Evans, who have been working together on their innovative Re Rag Rug project since 2012. During 12 months there were 12 unique rugs developed to give us a closer look into the ecological side of material waste and re-cycling. Today this experimental art project may be seen in the biggest cities of the world as a travelling exhibition.
The team of Re Rag Rug consists of two people and it would be fair to say these two talented ladies have gone through a long path together – having worked together off and on since 2002 they have already cooperated for quite a few projects. “Do Redo” was the first cooperation of Brieditis and Evans which concerned recycling and handicrafts. Designers, product developers, teachers in knitting, design and embroidery – these are the works that have been explored by both of them. Katarina Brieditis makes designs for textiles, table wares and products for IKEA and Linum, as well as designs for Swedish Handicraft Society and clothes for Swedish brand Gudrun Sjoden. Katarina Evans has embroidery as her special skill and she also teaches in the craft as well as works with unique pieces of textile art and conservation of antique textiles. “We are constantly experimenting across techniques and materials in order to find new expressions. There was a moment we felt we wanted to use all our collected knowledge in a creative way so we decided to start a company where we would combine our experiences in design, crafts, product development, production and textile re-cycling. The only thing we needed was the form of expression and rug seemed to be a perfect choice.”
12 unique rugs were created by hand using the materials considered worthless (e.g. unwanted T-shirts or scraps from the textile industry) and applying a wide range of different techniques of knitting, cutting, sewing, crocheting, macramé, applique, embroidery, three dimensionality, and a variety of ways of dyeing. The rug is an essential part of interior in any house – it connects the furniture into one group, makes your feet feel warm and serves as a piece of interior design. “During our project we spent an average of one month per rug – that was the deadline we gave ourselves. That timeframe consists not only of actual creating of the rug, but also of exploring the waste generation, refining and then makings rugs. All these processes are special and give us the fulfillment but of course the brainstorming and letting the ideas go wild gives a rush that is a great pleasure. Mostly, we get inspiration from textiles and crafts, but also from nature, architecture and travel.”
At first, the experimental project of Brieditis and Evans has been shared online – each rug has been given a name and has had its own story – Tailor, Kasuri, Pepita, Archipelago, Milky Way, Rosengång, Aquarelle, Off Pist, Re Orient, Squeeze, Nomad and Confetti today are travelling all over the world as an outstanding exhibition. “We have exhibited Re Rag Rug since October 2013. Our first show was at Fargfabriken in Stockholm. Then we were invited to Landskrona Museum as well as Murgerbet Museum, both in Sweden in 2014. The exhibition then travelled to Hong Kong where we had been invited to HKDI (Hong Kong Design Institute) from October 2014 to March 2015. This is the furthest destination we have travelled with our works so far and we had actually been there for three times to not only show our project, but also to give lectures and workshops to local design students. Then the 12 rugs flew back to Sweden for an exhibition at Textile and Fashion Centre last summer. At the moment the rugs are in Institut Suedois in Paris that we are really proud of. It is such a privilege to be able to travel with your art!”
Both designers admit creating the art that raises people awareness of textile waste and ways of re-using it is a great pleasure: “We are very, very happy! Seeing that the rugs are of interest to so many people from different parts of the world and being able to share our environmentally-friendly idea is absolutely rewarding.”
