Organizer/Anthropologist

Sofia is a Guatemalan-born anthropologist currently living in Munich, Germany. She recently obtained a Master's degree in Anthropology and Development Studies at Radboud University in the Netherlands. Sofia has more than eight years of work experience in the field of social research. Her areas of specialization are indigenous rights, gender studies, community-based economic alternatives, sustainable economic systems, among others. In addition to social research, Sofia has a strong passion for community outreach through art, photography and video, an example of this is the creation of a virtual art gallery exhibition called “Taking Spaces”, and her participation in the making of the film NOWTOPIA. 

​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j8xGtCb7vrg&t=318s

Organizer/Artist

As a multidisciplinary artist, Doro Seror works internationally in the fields of interactive objects, fibre art, staging and installations, performance, directing, dance, curating, lectures, workshops and much more. She studied fine arts at the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich and was trained in dance and body therapy. Her work is shown worldwide. The topoi of her artistic work are sustainability and recycling of materials, including her own art, so that it is subject to a constant process of renewal. As part of the Joy of Weaving project, she transforms used clothing into works of art and connects artists and craftspeople worldwide who deal with weaving, braiding and knotting. JOY OF WEAVING - WWWOW (World Wide Weaving of Women).

www.dorotheaseror.de

www.joy-of-weaving-wwwow.com

Artist/Activist

Angelina is a Mayan woman from the Kaqchikel ethnic group, committed to the struggle for the rights of indigenous peoples. She is currently the coordinator of the National Movement of Mayan Weavers of Guatemala. She has a degree in legal and social sciences from the USAC University, and is an expert on indigenous intellectual property rights. From an early age, Angelina showed a passion for ancestral Mayan textiles, especially for defending the artistic, spiritual and cultural process behind the making of a textile. Angelina is now a recognised activist in Latin America and as part of her artistic training, she specialises in the creation and combination of colour palettes for textile use, obtained from nature. 

Artist/Activist

Estela is a master weaver, who specialises in preserving the ancestral Mayan clothing of the Santo Domingo Xenacoj region. From the age of six, she learned to use the backstrap loom, and began her apprenticeship with the treadle loom. Over time she has mastered complex weaving and embroidery techniques. Gloria Estela is currently the leader of the weavers' council of Santo Domingo Xenacoj, in which more than 300 indigenous women are involved to defend their textile art from plagiarism and cultural appropriation by the fashion industry. 

Artist/Activist

María Elena is a Mayan woman born in Comalapa, Guatemala. From a very young age she learned to weave on a backstrap loom, but developed a strong interest in painting as her father and grandfather were renowned artists in Comalapa. Maria Elena has participated in numerous art exhibitions nationally and internationally, presenting her work in the United States, Europe and China. In 2014 she received the Medal of Recognition for her artistic contributions from the Guatemalan Ministry of Culture. María Elena is currently an art teacher in Comalapa, a weaver and writes scripts for short films and documentaries.

Artist

Sylvia is a professional hand weaver. After classical training, she earned her master's degree at the master's school in Sindelfingen. In her own workshop in Munich, she specialized in fabrics using the damask and jacquard techniques. On handlooms, she produces artistic fabrics that are both wall hangings and textile pictures stretched on frames. She reweaves historical fabrics true to the original for museums and historical associations. It is important to Sylvia Wiechmann to preserve hand weaving and so she continuously conveys her passion for weaving in courses for individuals. She has passed this skill on to about 300 people over the past 20 years. She is a member of GEDOK Munich. https://damasthandweberei.de/

Artist

Wally was born in Munich in 1968. After graduating from high school and completing a social year, she completed her apprenticeship at the Christoph Erhardt hand weaving mill in Munich. During her apprenticeship she worked in various hand weaving mills in Germany, England and Switzerland and made her hand weaving master's degree in 1996, for which she received the master price of the IHK for Munich and Upper Bavaria. In 1999 she was recognized as an artist by the Academy of Fine Arts in Munich. From 2001 to 2009 she worked as a costume painter and craftswoman at the Bavarian State Opera parallel to her own weaving studio, which she opened in 1999. Since 2011 she has ventured into full independence as a textile artist and costume painter. In the international competition "RecyclingDesignPrize" in Germany in 2012 it won 3rd place. From September 2013 to June 2014 she successfully attended the Further training “Shuttle course – innovative weaving” at the University of Art and Design Linz in Austria. She runs one with three other artisans Shop and workshop community, the Werkraum Pesenbach, in Munich.

www.wally-huber-kunststoff.de

Artist

In her creative process as a multidisciplinary artist, Kim tries to find out how art can open new resonance spaces that lead to a new or still inexperienced understanding of nature. She is primarily concerned with the structures of nature, ecological issues, and what role humans play in this complex earth system in which they live. In this context, she is interested in scientific, socio-ecological as well as indigenous and intercultural practices and approaches related to nature. Her work ranges from installations to sculptural works, to performance art and workshops.

Before studying fine arts and art education, she learned fashion design for a several years. The materials used in her works are diverse. In addition to wood, natural rubber, bone and the like, a part of her current artistic fieldwork includes natural fibers, fabrics and organic dyeing processes.

Kim has participated in several symposiums in different European countries and has been featured in international exhibitions.

 www.instagram.com/kim.rathnau.art/