Happy New Year to You All !
Community, Kindness and Healing- these are my three essential areas of focus
in 2022.
I couldn't pick a better person than
Agustin @anewcross to
write about at the start of this year. I've featured his stunning slow brand
several times on my
Plumes and Feathers instagram page, but how grateful I am to share his work using Fique Fibre with an
international audience passionate about textiles in the latest issue of
@selvedgemagazine. "It is no secret that slow stitching is a meditative
activity, and in this context it is also one of regeneration. In a country
marked by intense conflict and war trauma with deep collective scars, sewing
helps repair. Many of A New Cross’s artisans or their families have been victims
of violence, expropriation of land, forced displacement or new forms of
colonialism; they all have wounds to heal. Every fiber becomes a life, lines of
lives, maybe crossing paths for a while; some continuous, others broken, loose
or barely there. Gaps are part of memory too. Rivero’s artisans have free rein
to thread their own line story onto his clothes, because “repair is an exercise
that is done from the inside and reflects on the outside. Every fiber
contributes to the construction of a strong thread and every thread helps to
forge a resilient fabric,” he says. Through intimate and complex collections
such as “Everything I Did Not Weave”. Rivero is giving a voice to all the
artisan hands involved in everyone of the designs he creates. Essentially, his
textiles are a form of expression and empowerment for craftspeople and
vulnerable communities in Colombia. In turn, those who appreciate his endeavour
will feel empowered and honoured to wear soulful clothes imbued with memory and
identity. A New Cross’s aesthetic is minimal, unisex and trans-seasonal, fusing
materials, culture and geography to celebrate the richness and diversity of its
country. Respectful, sustainable and slow by definition, his garments are
proudly labelled “Handcrafted in Colombia” whilst opening new horizons for
generations to come." Stitch by stitch, strand by strand, lines and lines of
lives slowly coming together to shape a beautiful restorative landscape,
strengths, scars and all.
