Macramé
Clementina Brescianino

Objects for the home and necklaces which blend contemporary style and tradition in a sumptuous profusion of witty simplicity and harmonious elegance

Hand-crafted artefacts in macramé

• - home furnishings: hand-crafted curtains, braids, accessories for curtains (tassels and cords), screens and room dividers.
• - light fittings in macramé: woven appliqués, various types of woven light shades and woven ceiling lamps.
• - jewellery and macramé: macramé necklaces, bracelets in macramé, earrings in macramé

These are just a few examples of the possible creations with macramé and this is my collection!

I began about ten years ago but had difficulty finding the right materials for my creations. Then by a stroke of good luck, or maybe chance, I learned of a factory in my own region of Tuscany which to this day supplies me with string in linen or cotton. They have a scent of bread and the country (something I can't explain!) and come in soft shades of beige, with its timeless elegance. With a simply delightful touch and even smell.

After a long period as a painter, I have now turned my hands to sculptures in string with threads and constantly changing shapes. My paintings expressed my passion for colour but the beauty of these "colourless" creations is truly ...breathtaking!

Here we have veils used as curtains (photo 1) or wall hangings (photo 2), headboard (photo 3) or room dividers (photo 4); lamps (photo 5) to create exclusive, cosy corners, chandeliers (photo 10) and charming bed canopies (as in photo 6). There are rhythmical, modular patterns in addition to free-hand designs. In some items sheer luxury lies in stark contrast to the "poor" materials used, allowing these excessively sumptuous items of jewellery to be worn "casually" (photo 11). Creating these highly intricate patterns is complicated and it gives me a great deal of satisfaction to see them slowly develop as I go on, letting my creativity run wild! As every craftsman knows, in fact, this sense of satisfaction is gained not only in the finished object but in the artistry itself,

and as I work the air is filled with pleasant homely aromas, a feeling of intimacy and warmth.

These macramé items should not be simply tucked away in the bottom drawer, otherwise they will go to waste! It should live with and around us. It is there to be used, to project fantastic patterns on our walls (photo 7), becoming a sculpture in its own right once the lights have been switched off (photo 8) ...

I'm keen to I'm keen to convey all these ideas to anyone who wants to learn to create and love this craft

  also to men, who are often amazed and enthralled when they see how the knot, which has always been intrinsically associated with its technical function and has been of prime importance in the history of all civilizations, takes on a purely aesthetic, narrative value of joy and elegance.

What I aim to do is re-propose the great traditional art of macramé in hand-crafted items with a contemporary air of elegance, not just shapeless furnishings (photo 9), but animated by the threads which hang freely to create necklaces "which blend contemporary style and tradition in a sumptuous profusion of witty simplicity and harmonious elegance".

Here are my (rather ambitious) intentions:
in my macramé I aim to switch
from lace to sculpture,
from antique to modern,
from East to West,
from triangular to circular,
from shape to colour,
from cotton to metal,
from simple to intricate,
from light to shadow,
in a magical place where opposites come together... in Harmony.