The Black Von Scrolls

This morning I went on a WEF “artist walk” to check out Claudy Jongstra’s art from the Netherlands. Her work is hanging through out the conference center.

These are the reasons she is RAD and expands beyond the norm:

• Claudy raises 17th century Drenthe Heath sheep (almost extinct) that provide the wool for her materials.
• She and her team make dyes from a vast garden, almost every single element of her art is sourced from her sustainable farm. They preserve historic breeds of plants which contribute to rare dye processes.
• Her art combines old craft to make contemporary tapestries and abstract works of woven wool, felt and silk.
• Her studio consists of 8 women from the local village. She is passing down former textile skills rarely used today.
• The team work on one project at a time so that each piece is given a singular focus. There are no cell phones aloud in the studio.
• Claudy has chosen not to have gallery representation so she can keep the costs lower and sell her tapestries to public spaces. She works directly with architects and curators, but not galleries. Although she has outsourced smaller design items to MOSS.

Here’s her piece which was at Cooper-Hewitt Design museum a few years back. I don’t know much about textile design, but her unique impact and old school process is not found elsewhere. Claudy has won sustainability awards and has work through out Europe and the US. Look for her next installation at the Barnes Foundation. And do check out the website.