Freedom in felted creations
- Ia creates entirely new textiles that carry a Georgian spirit
- She developed her own signature felt style that includes eco-printing, shibori and batik
- Her creations are made solely through felting, without any sewing
Ia Gulisashvili transforms wool, silk and cotton into sculptural felt garments that unite softness with precision. Trained as an architect, she has long nurtured a passion for clothing design, even staging a fashion show in Tbilisi’s Tea House in the 1990s. "My encounter with felt at an exhibition in 2002 was transformative. I was captivated by its expressive freedom," Ia says. She developed her own signature felting technique that merges nuno-felting, eco-printing, as well as shibori and batik dyeing to result in a unique sculptural style. Since 2015, she has created wearable art for theatre, film and private collections. Recognised at Ethnofest 2018 and featured in Belle Armoire 2018, her works reimagine the Georgian spirit in contemporary form.
Interview
- What first drew you to felt art?
- When I first encountered felt, it was like finding a language I had always searched for. I loved designing clothes, but fabrics were limited. I found freedom in felt, which is a soft yet strong material. It shapes itself into whatever idea I wish to materialise.
- How does your background in architecture help?
- Architecture trained my eye for proportion, space and balance. When I design a garment, I treat it like a structure that is functional yet expressive. I build it with precision, allowing it to move, breathe and reveal its character on the body.
- Which techniques define your work?
- I combine wet-felting and nuno-felting, often blending merino wool with silk or cotton. To enrich textures and surfaces, I explore eco-printing, shibori and batik, creating garments that are both sculpturally soft and functionally poetic.
- What makes your felt work unique?
- My felt work is sculptural and wearable at once, as it is shaped by the body as much as it is by my hands. Each piece is alive, soft and strong. Clothes turn into moving art that reflects both individuality and poetic freedom.
Ia Gulisashvili is an expert artisan: she began her career in 2014
Works
Where
Ia Gulisashvili
