At the Textile Center in Blönduós, Iceland, education and innovation go hand in hand. In addition to running an international art residency program, Textile Centre also welcomes student groups and field schools from Iceland and around the world throughout the year. From exploring traditional handcraft techniques to learning about the possibilities of digital fabrication, students are invited to learn, experiment, and connect.
In the TextileLab - an open-access makerspace for makers, artists and designers - students engage directly with state-of-the-art equipment and digital technology. There are also facilities and tools for traditional handcrafts in the centre.
Whether they’re weaving, embroidering, felting, or experimenting with natural dyes, the Textile Center offers students and makers a great opportunity to play around with different techniques and materials and bring ideas to life.
The centre’s programme also includes workshops for students led by expert craftspeople. These sessions deepen the understanding of the cultural and historical roots of Iceland’s rich textile traditions, while also introducing contemporary practices like digital weaving.
Last year was full of student visits – here are some highlights:
KP University College (Denmark): Two students explored embroidery on the Vatnsdæla Tapestry with sheep farmer and handcraft expert guidance for three weeks.
Höfðaskóli (Iceland): Local elementary students experimented with needle felting and spinning in the TextileLab.
Iceland University of the Arts & Reykjavík School of Visual Arts: Multiple groups of fashion design students and the students of the textile department visited in spring and autumn, engaging with both traditional methods and digital equipment. Activities included weaving, felting, embroidery, and visits to local wool facilities. The TC2 digital loom, needle-felting machine, tufting guns, Kniterate, and digital embroidery machine were explored.
College of the North Atlantic (Canada): Final-year textile students deepened their craft through knitting and spinning workshops and cultural excursions to a sheep farm, the Ístex wool washery, and the Textile Museum.
Textile Center Minneapolis (USA): Members received instruction in Icelandic textile traditions and visited a natural dye studio, local sheep farms, a tannery, and the Ístex wool washing facilities.
Concordia University’s Iceland Field School (Canada): Fifteen students spent a month in residence, culminating in a multimedia exhibition titled "Love Letter to Blönduós" featuring textiles, handcrafted objects, cyanotypes, photography, sound, videos, and installations.
Such visits not only enrich the students’ learning experiences but also help Textile Centre gather valuable insights into textile education, backgrounds, needs and aspirations - information used to develop new activities and programs.
The commitment to fostering creativity, cultural exchange and heritage preservation, and community connection makes the Textile Center a vital hub for the future of textile education in Iceland and beyond.