If you’d like to see photos of the textiles and contact information for the tessitrici artigianali, please see the individual pages for the artists featured on the Meet the Artists page. You can also see The Art of Handweaving page and the various articles in the News and Events section for photos.
Sardinian Arts no longer places photos on this Showcase page, and does not offer a click-and-buy catalog of items. Instead, I arrange trunk shows and exhibitions, as well as speaking engagements, where textiles are offered for viewing and purchase.
Why?
To better support the weavers, their traditions, and maintain the integrity of their art and livelihood.
As you know from reading other pages here, fine handwoven Sardinian textiles are made one at a time by the hands of women weavers who put their heart into each row and fiber of every weaving. This care and attention imparts a tangible energy into each weaving — and it’s this indescribable quality of love that makes the textiles so special, even beyond the museum-quality refinement of the craftsmanship apparent in each.
This essence, this quality is rare in the modern world.
I want to honor this uniqueness in the textiles, in the tessitrici artigianali, in you who seek to increase and cultivate these qualities in your life and your home.
If you’re interested in acquiring Sardinian weavings, I want you to have an understanding of the textiles and the weavers who make them. If you’d like to purchase a weaving — if you’d like a connection to the integral spirit and beauty found in the traditional Sardinian handweavings — I’d like to help you find the right textile to treasure.
I’ve found that meeting or talking with people one-on-one or in small groups the best way to convey the unique, exquisite nature of the weavings and to ensure the weavers, artwork, and more are honored and protected—and that you find the right weaving.
Push-button online ordering breaks the connections. It commoditizes the weavings, annihilates the presence and individuality of the women weavers, and turns you into a nameless consumer.
I don’t want to do that. The beautiful handwoven textiles of Sardinia offer a portal to a connection we all seek, and I honor this. Since long before they were buzzwords, I have valued fair trade, sustainable practices, and what I consider courtesy, common sense, and good business.
Yes, photos are on the website, on the pages with the information about the weavers and their art. This placement helps connect the weaving to the weaver. You see the face, the hands, the studio of the women who create these wonderful textiles.
When photos of textiles are displayed without photos of their weavers, it’s too easy for most people to see handwoven textiles as independent of a maker. It’s too easy for some people to commoditize a weaving and the weaver. And, it’s too easy to copy a design — and I’ve found that too many people merely seek to copy Sardinian designs, to the detriment of the tessitrici artigianali.
If you’re interested in seeing the textiles in person, hosting a screening of my documentary about the weavers , or a trunk show, please contact me. I’m happy to talk or email. And yes, I’m even happy help you talk with or contact weavers directly!
Please visit the FAQs page or the About page to learn more about why I work this way.
~ Kelly Manjula Koza
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