Textile Society of America

Donate

Programs Texture

Home / Our Programs / Featured TSA Programs

Featured TSA Programs

Watch this space for other one-time or ongoing programs that explore various aspects of textile study, creation and preservation.

2025 Film Screening + Conversation

bftn x TSA Present: Woven From Nature
 A Virtual Film Screening + Conversation

Program Description:

Join the Textile Society of America in collaboration with the Black Fiber & Textile Network (bftn) for a virtual honoring Black fiber heritage, artistry, and sustainable practice. This special event will feature a screening of Woven From Nature, a short documentary film produced by bftn, followed by a live panel discussion with Lauren Baccus, Deandra Eubanks, Teju Adisa-Farrar, and Mahdiyyah Muhammad.

Woven From Nature offers an intimate look at the stories and practices of Black fiber producers, natural dyers, and textile artists who work at the intersection of craft, community, and climate justice. The film celebrates ancestral knowledge, earth-based production, and collective healing, centering sustainability, environmental justice, and cultural memory.

Following the screening, hear directly from members of the Black Fiber & Textile Network in a panel discussion exploring the power of Black-led fiber work, land stewardship, and community-driven systems of care. A live audience Q&A will close the hour-long program.

Loading…

Your contribution helps compensate our panelists for their valuable time and expertise.

Featured Panelists:

Teju Adisa-Farrar (she/her)

Teju is the founder and ecosystems director of the Black Fiber & Textile Network (bftn). She is the creator and host of Black Material Geographies podcast. Teju helped to develop and was inaugural Co-Managing Director of the Fibers Fund. She now serves as a member of the Advisory Council. Teju has worked with diverse institutions including with the Smithsonian’s Cooper Hewitt Museum, the United States Embassy of Botswana, national environmental nonprofits such as Earthjustice and Fibershed, as well as a member of the United Nations Conscious Fashion and Lifestyle Network. Teju has spoken at several colleges including: Princeton University, the Rhode Island School of Design, and the University of Oregon. Her work supports the creation of regenerative fiber systems and climate resilient strategies for Black folks, Indigenous communities and people of the global majority. Teju uses a global lens focusing on local and regional strategies that produce alternative economies at community-scale. She provides opportunities and advocacy for Black folks to connect with plants, nature and our ecosystems of survival. A multihyphenate, Teju is currently based on Mvskoke Land (Atlanta) and goes wherever else she is called. She loves water, dancing, soccer, hiking and reading books.

Mahdiyyah Muhammad (she/her)

Mahdiyyah is a multidisciplinary Upcycle Textile Artist and Regenerative Fashion Educator blending ancestral African diasporic traditions with modern sustainability. She transforms textile waste into wearable art, leads workshops nationwide, and founded the platforms Upcycle Web Directory and Build Your Own Paid Workshop, empowering artists and Black upcyclers. Her work has been featured in Vogue, Forbes, and WWD.

Deandra Eubanks (he/they)

Deandra Eubanks is a multi-dimensional artist and has been the Co-Founder, Chief Marketing Officer, and Director of Farm Programs at Seed2Shirt since 2019. Seed2Shirt is the first black-woman-owned vertically integrated apparel manufacturing company and global cotton merchant in the U.S. Seed2Shirt’s work is centered on fostering circular, value-driven relationships between the Black Diaspora, the land, its stewards, and the materials we create, contributing to an equitable, just and regenerative future.

Lauren Baccus (she/her)

Lauren Baccus is a textile artist, educator and independent researcher whose work centers around the construction of Caribbean identity through textile, costume and craft. Her ongoing project, Salt and Aloes, is a digital resource for art, design and material culture of the Caribbean. She is currently based in Miami, FL

About the Black Fiber & Textile Network (bftn)
The Black Fiber & Textile Network is a global network of over 50 members, including farmers, fiber processors, natural dyers, designers, upcyclers, and artists. Working with plant-based fibers and dyes, bftn members engage in sustainable and regenerative practices that address climate change, social and racial justice, environmental healing, and community wealth creation. Through workshops, events, and co-learning spaces, bftn uplifts the role of Black fiber producers and cultivates systems rooted in equity and ecological balance.

Interested in Sponsoring this program?

We welcome conversations about customized sponsorship packages and cross-promotional opportunities. Let’s work together to celebrate and uplift Black fiber arts, sustainable design, and community care.

Email us at sponsor@textilesocietyofamerica.org.

TSA x Ai Kijima
21-Day Textile Study Tour to Rajasthan & Gujarat
January 3–24, 2026

Registration Information
Registration Opens: September 26, 2025
Registration Closes: December 12, 2025

Join the Textile Society of America for a 21-day textile study tour exploring the rich cultural landscapes of Rajasthan and Gujarat, India. This immersive journey guided by artist Ai Kijima and local guides Chiman Dangi (Udaipur–Jodhpur) and Shokat Ali (Jaisalmer–Ahmedabad), offers rare access to artisans, villages, and institutions where centuries-old traditions are still alive.

Participants will experience weaving, dyeing, block printing, quilting, and embroidery through hands-on workshops, community collaborations, and guided visits. With a balance of cultural immersion and academic depth, this program offers a unique opportunity to understand textiles in their living contexts. TSA  is committed to ensuring fair wages and ethical exchange. All artisans, guides, and cultural partners involved in this 21-day study tour have set their own rates; TSA does not dictate or reduce their payment.

Highlights at a Glance

  • Ralli quilt workshops with Sindhi women in Jaisalmer
  • Ajrakh block printing in Barmer and Ajrakhpur
  • Tie-dye (bandhani) demonstrations in Jodhpur
  • Visits to the Calico Museum of Textiles and Living & Learning Design Centre (LLDC)
  • Artisan-led sessions in charpai weaving, woodblock carving, embroidery, and brocade weaving
  • Collaborative project with Bhil tribal children in Badanga
  • Exploration of historic forts, palaces, temples, and vibrant textile markets

Overview

Week 1: Rajasthan — Udaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Barmer

  • Cultural immersion with Bhil tribal communities at the Art Junction Residency in Badanga
  • Charpai weaving, satsang gatherings, and collaborative workshops with local children
  • Visits to Udaipur’s temples, museums, and markets
  • Bandhani (tie-dye) workshops in Jodhpur, plus a traditional saree party
  • Ralli quilt workshops in Sindhi villages around Jaisalmer
  • Camel safari and desert sunset experience

Week 2: Gujarat — Bhachau & Bhuj Region

  • Visits to villages practicing embroidery, pottery, weaving, and block printing
  • Ajrakhpur artisan tours with natural dye and block printing demonstrations
  • LLDC Museum and Bhujodi weaving village
  • Kala Raksha embroidery center and artisan home visits in Hodka and Ludiya
  • Time to explore Bhuj’s museums, markets, and private collections

Week 3: Gujarat — Ahmedabad & Gandhinagar

Program Details

Included:

  • Lodging throughout the tour
  • Group meals
  • Museum admissions and workshop/studio fees
  • Activity fees
  • Private coach travel to most locations

Not included:

  • Airfare
  • Airport transfers
  • Travel insurance

Capacity: Limited to 12 participants to ensure intimate exchange and meaningful access.

Registration opens soon. Stay tuned for details.

New Professionals Convening 2019: Envisioning Textiles Futures

Click anywhere on the image above to begin listening.

This is a recording of the panel conversation from Textile Society of America’s New Professionals Convening: Envisioning Textiles Futures, held on July 27, 2019 at the Fabric Workshop and Museum in Philadelphia.

Panelists include Joy Davis, Regan de Loggans, Lynnette Miranda and Karen Hampton. The panel was moderated and organized by Caroline Hayes Charuk.

Program Description:

At the Fabric Workshop and Museum in Philadelphia, TSA presented a panel discussion devoted to envisioning a field that approaches cultural production with justice and equity, and to examine the ways that structures within museums, universities, and informal spaces can support or hinder movement towards a vibrant future in line with these goals.

This program was intended for TSA members and curious prospective members who are embedded in institutions and systems as makers, researchers, teachers and curators. Attendees were invited to bring experiences within their own institutions to the discussion, in hopes that they find new knowledge and connections to take back to their practices.

The half-day program began with a panel discussion. All panel participants come from backgrounds in making and/or the study of textiles and direct a portion of their professional efforts towards interfacing with institutions related to art, craft, textiles, and other aspects of material culture as it relates to supporting people of color from divergent backgrounds.

The second part of the day included a tour of Monumental Cloth, The Flag We Should Know, Sonya Clark’s  exhibition at the FWM, and a behind-the-scenes look at archival boxes from previous artists in residence.

Panelists:

Karen Hampton has shown her woven and stitched narrative artwork nationally since 1994 and has been teaching college since 2008. Her specialties are surface design, embroidery, weaving and courses that address Art and the African Diaspora. Karen is currently an Assistant Professor of Fiber at MassArt, and a board member of the Textile Society of America.
Pronouns: she/her

Regan de Loggans  (Mississippi Choctaw/ Ki’Che’ Maya) is an art historian, curator, and educator based in Brooklyn on Lenape land. Their work relates to decolonizing, indigenizing, and queering institutions and curatorial practices. They are also one of the founders of the Indigenous Womxn’s Collective: NYC.
Pronouns: they/themme

Lynnette Miranda’s ongoing research focuses on the social and cultural impact of contemporary art and media, critically examining social practice, contemporary craft, performance, new media and video work. She is passionate about centering artists and practitioners of color, not only through representation, but through building support systems and redistributing resources. Lynnette is currently the Program Manager at United States Artists in Chicago. She has worked at leading arts institutions including Creative Time, ART21, and the Art Institute of Chicago.
Pronouns: she/her

Joy Davis is an independent scholar of fashion and cultural studies. She has B.A.s in History and Media Theory from University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC). She is a pending Masters candidate at FIT’s Fashion Studies program. In 2016 she joined Unravel Podcast as a host and producer. In 2018 she launched her own contemporary gallery in Baltimore, MD that has a majority focus on artists of color. She writes about subject matter that is underdeveloped in academia and with the public.  Her work transcends many fields of study which includes: fashion, history, art, media, and performance among people of color through history. Her current research focuses on fashion and race analysis in Spanish colonial paintings.

www.wallergallery.com
www.unravelpodcast.com

Moderator:

Caroline Hayes Charuk approaches sculpture, printmaking and video from a background in textiles, ceramics, and hobbyist craft materials. She is a former member of CTRL+SHFT Collective in Oakland, CA, a studio and exhibition space focused on supporting women, nonbinary and trans-spectrum artists. She has taught workshops at the Berkeley Arts Museum, the De Young Museum, Richmond Art Center, and numerous other community arts organizations. She is currently the General Manager of the Textile Society of America.
Pronouns: she/her

This program was made possible by support from the Teitelbaum Foundation.