Gandhi called on people to spin every day. A spinning wheel in every home. Daily spinning, so that all might weave their own fabric from their own thread—and from that fabric, make their own clothes. Self-sufficiency and independence grows from daily effort.
In that same spirit: what if we each tended a sheep, or sowed a field with hemp? We’d shear the sheep ourselves, feed it with food we’d grown. We could throw a celebration when the wool finally comes loose. With the fleece in our hands, we’d step into a great bath of color—a splashy mix of joy and labor.
And we wouldn’t even need a spinning wheel to do it. This daily practice of making clothes can go another way. Wool doesn’t have to be spun. We could use the felting technique of master Kadir Karcı. Huseyin Umaysiz knows it. Together, we’d make it a weekly happening—pounding wool onto our chests and each other’s until it’s solid enough to become a vest.
Huseyin is truly diving into felt. He watched Feltmaster Karcı work in Kurdish Turkey with a choreographic eye. From that memory, a new piece is emerging: Keche (felt). And soon, you’ll be able to see it.
From August 2 to 9, Huseyin and Alan Ciwan are in a research residency at Expedition Metropolis Theater in Berlin.
From August 11 to 17—or maybe 18 to 24—Huseyin will be working with felt textile during a residency at Monty, in Antwerp. There, he’ll prepare for a presentation at the Image Generator Festival, taking place on September 25 and 26 at Kunsthal Extra City, Antwerp.