2024-04-16
In response to ubiquitous mass production, traditional crafts are experiencing a renaissance. One artist who has decided to reinterpret craft textiles is Jakub Święcicki. His unique KNOT collection, is a close to nature, homage to tradition.
Jakub Święcicki and his macramé
Jakub Święcicki, a designer of functional textiles and computer embroidery, on a daily basis associated with the Institute of Design in Kielce, in his artisanal collection KNOT, returns to the craft and creates carpets realised with the ribbed macramé technique. The large-format carpets with unique finishes are the result of several months of work by the artist. To make them, he used a thicker diameter cotton wick from a Polish manufacturer. The largest rug is 2 metres by 3 metres and was made in the workshop in Kielce for three months. It has about 25,000 knots and the material consumption is estimated at 3.5 km. The most time-consuming part of the whole creative process, is the 'building' of the macramé. The wick, or knot in English, is also the building unit of the fabric. On a vertically hanging rod, we place vertically cut strings and connect them, with basic knots. KNOT rugs, are braided with a rib knot. The method of knotting we choose affects the final result, so it is strongly individual.
- "Something that is handmade makes the products more individual and expresses you." - says Jakub Swiecicki.
In tune with nature
An important element for the artist is that his designs are dyed naturally. As he himself admits- "I don't use chemical dyes to be close to nature."
The basic colour of the series is a light beige - the natural shade of the cords. The other colours introduced into the collection were achieved through traditional dyeing. To dye the cotton weaves, tannin-rich raw materials from the immediate environment were used, including spruce cones, acacia sumac fruiting bodies and onion skins.
Macramé rediscovered
The KNOT collection, sheds new light on the macramé technique, hitherto associated with decorative motifs. By using only one type of knot, a minimalist and unique effect has been achieved.
The name of the collection is a so-called false friend. To Polish speakers, it suggests the material from which the carpets were made, while to English speakers it suggests the technique in which the designs were made (the word knot means knot).
The collection of macramé carpets won the international Green Concept Award 2021 (Handicraft category) by the decision of the jury.
In February/March 2021 at the Institute of Design in Kielce, the collection was presented at the author's monographic exhibition entitled. "Knot".
In December 2022, the project was included in the finals of the Peru Design Biennial (Social design category), and in January/February 2023, his designs were included in the main exhibition.
