Textile Art Workshop to Inspire & Delight

2026 is kicking off our workshop year hosting the internationally famous Eszter Bornemisza with her fabulous experience in combining textiles and paper in interesting ways in art works.

Her workshop coincides at Moonah Arts Centre with the Third International Art Textile Biennale!

There are more workshops scheduled later in the year so check back soon!

Who this Textile Arts Workshop is For

This workshop is designed for participants at all levels.

Eszter’s gift lies in being able to facilitate every student’s journey of exploration, ultimately creating pieces that express ideas in new ways, combining materials in ways perhaps not encountered previously.

With participants collecting an exciting kit of paints, fabrics, papers and other components, there is wonderful opportunity for highly personal work to be created using fabric and paper in ways I am certain many of us have never considered!

Eszter has been a fulltime practising artist for over 25 years, an amazing about turn from her previous academic career.

We have asked her to focus on combining paper and textile, and you will find very inspiring examples in her portfolio.

An Textile Art Workshop to Inspire

Participating in a workshop by Eszter opened my eyes to the tension of the contemporary patterns on the land overlaying past historical patters made by those who have preceded me.

Eszter prompts us to understand and explore those layers and interpret them in print, paint, dye and stitch on paper and textile.

We will experiment with various types of paper—including tissue paper, mulberry paper, newsprint, computer prints and paper pulp — and apply them to fabrics with different textures.

Through cutting, tearing, and stitching into grids, we will begin to develop our own visual language.

The focus will be on creating open, translucent samples by manipulating meshes and using everyday, off-the-shelf materials, allowing us to repurpose and revitalise old or discarded artworks.

Layering Fabric and Fragments

Participants are encouraged to bring their own prints and sketches to create sample pieces.

These fragments will be layered and assembled into expressive collages that reflect personal associations and feelings about the living environment.

We will experiment with various types of paper—including tissue paper, mulberry paper, newsprint, computer prints and paper pulp—and apply them to fabrics with different textures.

Through cutting, tearing, and stitching into grids, we will begin to develop our own visual language.

The focus will be on creating open, translucent samples by manipulating meshes and using everyday, off-the-shelf materials, allowing us to repurpose and revitalize old or discarded artworks.

Participants are encouraged to bring their own prints and sketches to create sample pieces.

These fragments will be layered and assembled into expressive collages that reflect personal associations and feelings about the living environment.

About Eszter Bornemisza

Eszter Bornemisza is a fiber artist based in Budapest, Hungary, with a background as a mathematician. Holding a PhD in mathematical statistics, she worked as a researcher for two decades before transitioning to fiber arts in the mid-1990s. Eszter’s artistic practice is defined by the creation of large-scale, transparent fiber works, 3D objects, and installations, often crafted from everyday materials like waste newspaper and cloth. Her primary technique involves machine stitching with elements of printing, dyeing, and painting.

She often creates large sized, unwearable garments by reconstructing vintage, disassembled clothing, reimagining them as new, cohesive entities that carry altered messages and evoke fresh interpretations.

Central to Eszter’s work is the exploration of urban life, with a particular focus on city maps and their representation of both physical and spiritual spaces. For over twenty years, she has been captivated by the structure of urban plans, distorting, layering, and reinterpreting them as a way to explore the complex relationship between individuals and the cities they inhabit. Eszter’s fragmented, often distorted city maps are absorbed with traces of the past and present, blending ancient pathways with modern grids of highways, metro lines, and streets. These works reflect the tension between personal identity and the often-overwhelming forces of urban existence. For her, the city maps serve as metaphors for a journey of self-discovery, with labyrinthine layouts and dead-ends symbolizing the search for mental and spiritual balance.

Experimentation and research are central to her creative process, and the resulting pieces evoke both the complexity and challenges of navigating contemporary life.

Eszter’s work has been exhibited extensively across Europe, the Americas, Australia, China, and Japan, in both solo and juried shows. She has received multiple awards for her innovative approach to fiber art, establishing herself as a significant figure in the international art community.