Congratulations to Professor Maja Gunn and the Department of Crafts!

Photo: Patrick Miller

Gunn is the only one to receive this grant and the six-year project will mean a lot to the research environment at and to Konstfack in general. Textile heritage – artistic research on textiles in relation to heritage, culture and community asks questions such as: What is hidden in museums' textile collections? What artistry, stories and artistic expressions can we find there? In what time and in what context were the textile works made, and how can we, with the help of artistic research, explore, understand, shape and actualize these collections?

The aim is to build knowledge about the historical and contemporary role of textiles; make textile experiences visible; and establish a research environment that contributes to the exchange of knowledge between different institutions and with the surrounding community.

Textile heritage – artistic research on textiles in relation to heritage, culture and community (2025-2030) The collaboration will connect researchers from universities, cultural organizations and museums to 1) build knowledge about the historical and contemporary role of textiles based on the research environment thematic demarcations; 2) make visible, develop and articulate textile experiences; and 3) establish a research environment which contributes to the exchange of knowledge between different institutions and society at large.

The research questions are:
a) How can the textile cultural heritage be actualized through artistic research?
b) How can we explore tangible and intangible cultural heritage through artistic research?
c) How are cultural and bodily textile experiences conveyed?
d) How can we collaborate and do joint research on textile cultural heritage across institutions?

The research will be conducted through dialogue and engagement with project partners, their collections, and exhibitions. It will develop and apply methods through which textile craft heritage can be activated and reinterpreted in dialogue with contemporary art practice, thereby making it more visible and relevant. Textile heritage is important because it engages with issues of sustainability, gender, class, postcolonial perspectives, democracy, and cultural policy. This research conducted will therefore have greater social and political implications and is highly topical in our time.

In addition to being a Professor of Textiles at Konstfack, Maja Gunn is also an artist, designer, curator, writer and Ph.D. in design with specialization in fashion.