Textil.ZIP

Textil.ZIP was an activation exploring the correlation between textiles and computational technology. The project considered new and speculative ways of encoding information through fibers, investigating the materiality and role of textiles throughout history - considering textiles themselves as a technology of their own.

Textiles are objects that have witnessed the passage of time and history itself; within them, one can find part of the human story. They hold information about not only the cosmology of a culture, but also represent the changes in a world shaped by fast fashion and the growing distance between those who produce clothing and those who wear them. Computational technology shares a common history with textiles - the Jacquard loom is a clear example. It was from the information storage of this machine that binary code, the foundation of computational technology, became possible.

This weeklong activation comprised of a lecture series, studio space for participating artists, and culminated in an open studio visit showcasing the artists' work. A zine documenting the project was also produced. Throughout, the project addressed questions of memory, social fabric, and the future of textiles:

• How do textiles function as cultural containers of knowledge, memory, and history?
• How does the textile industry interact with cultural practices?
• What can textiles, as an analog technology, teach us as we navigate the technology of the future?
• How can we collectively capture textile traditions while establishing new spaces for coexistence?
• What is the social fabric?
• How can we reimagine textiles as a concept, material, and metaphor for our communities?

Photos