Engagement with textile crafts holds great importance. These crafts are rooted in social participation, knowledge sharing, and the production of authentic objects rich in cultural meaning. In recent years, there has been renewed interest in craft both as a driver for commercial growth and as a source of traditional knowledge for industrial and design innovation. However, over the past decades, the number of artisans has declined rapidly due to global trade and the rise of fast-fashion culture. Along with them, unique local and cultural knowledge is being lost.

Technique-based mapping has been understudied in the context of textile crafts. This project addresses this gap by focusing on how such knowledge can be documented, structured, and disseminated beyond its original context. This research defines a new methodology for documenting textile crafts by dividing the process into four distinct stages. It separates anthropological meaning from technical knowledge, allowing a focus on the technical
intelligence embedded in the craft.

The stages include studying the craft from traditional, anthropological, and cultural perspectives, and researching its historical, cultural, and social context. Learning the craft through observation and verbal instruction from an experienced practitioner. Through interviews and hands-on collaboration, a practical understanding of the technique and its applications is developed. Recreating the knowledge in an accessible digital format through video documentation and technical tutorials, with an emphasis on clear, application-oriented processes. The final stage is translating the acquired technical knowledge into technological
potential. Design is used as a research tool to generate new knowledge. The goal is to enable other researchers, designers, and engineers to access this knowledge, respond to it in diverse ways, and create their own technological innovations.

This project was initiated during an introductory conversation with my colleague and advisor, Professor Veronika Kapsali, from the London College of Fashion, UAL. In that conversation, we introduced a variety of research topics we were working on, seeking a bridge between our practices. As we concluded, we agreed that what we enjoy most is being left alone in our studios to practice our craft. Understanding and connecting with the place that crafts hold for
practitioners and users was the project’s starting point.

This digital archive is the outcome of three years of research, documentation, meetings, practice, and filming. It provides a respectful, lasting place for these crafts while also showing how design innovation can emerge from this technical knowledge. This database is also a starting point for exploring more crafts, collaborating with other groups, and forming international connections around textile practices shaped by migration.

Another important collaborator is Yonit Krystal, a non-academic researcher with long-term expertise in local crafts. I met Yonit during a wool yarn-making workshop she gave at a friend’s house. As a researcher, practitioner, and teacher, she generously shared her insights and connections. She introduced us to craftspeople and remained involved, offering feedback based on her experience.

As a lecturer in the master’s design program, I teach a design research studio that introduces current textile innovations. In this course, I introduced the project to the students who became research assistants on it. Their interest in textile-based crafts, motivation, and maturity enabled them to conduct the research and produce meaningful results.

I would like to thank Shenkar’s Research Innovation Authority for its support, which made it possible to lead this project and bring this archive to life.

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Ori Topaz