Joya: AiR / Yun-Jung Hsieh / TWN

‘I took this chance to do a project based on the idea of locality-focused via natural dyeing and weaving following previous interests and the concept of my thesis — Into the Skin (2021). During my one-week stay, I did a few walking to the surrounding area, picked up different natural resources, for example, soil and plant as dyeing material, and dyed the yarn into several color shades. As I planned to keep the process simple due to time limitations, I skipped the proper process for extracting dye baths and mordanting, so the final results were probably not the best in terms of the binding between fiber and colorants.

And, one thing very different from what I thought it would be was the final presentation of the dyed yarn. Instead of making several small samples with my little frame loom, I built up a loom, which I need to squat and bend my back to use due to lack of function, and made a larger wall-hanging piece out of it. Though many details could still be improved, this was my first time trying to set up the loom and warp by myself, and was very pleased with this mixed-media installation I made within a day.

My stay during the residency in short was experiencing unexpected things, including the weather, lifestyle, and my way of work. I felt the rainy days here in June (which was not supposed to happen), witnessed the huge double rainbow, and patted the gentlest dog (Frida) I‘ve met in my life so far. The organic creating flow ran through my brain and hands, enabling me to release my stress and just focus on the making of the textile itself’.

Yun-Jung Hsieh

Yun-Jung graduated from Aalto University with her master's thesis -- Into the Skin, research on sustainability and locality with a textile production sponsored by a local natural dye company published in 2021. Her work was then displayed in the co-exhibition -- Kinship (2022) with Praejeen Kunawong in Helsinki, and the group exhibition -- Dialogues (2023) curated by aaltotextiles in Espoo. Besides, the textile production from her thesis work was brought to the FutureBase international textile competition (2022) held by ITHIB in Turkey. The onion-dyed textiles she designed were re-produced on an industrial scale by a local mill and were made into garments by a local fashion house, which later got showcased during the final night in Istanbul.