Knitted in time
Textile artist Yu Mei Huang reflects on her encounters with natural dyeing and weaving traditions in Vietnam.
London-based, Taiwan-born artist Yu Mei Huang has always been open to exploring. Her sculptural knitting practice reflects a keen curiosity, tempered with fragility and a deep care for the earth. She was chosen as the winner of the TextileSeekers x The Everywoman 2025 creative fellowship to be part of a recent TextileSeekers trip to Vietnam, where a group of creatives were immersed in traditional methods of weaving and dyeing out of materials like silk, hemp, indigo, and bamboo. “Watching each step, cultivating mulberry, fermenting indigo, harvesting hemp, made me reflect more deeply on sourcing in my own studio and the full life cycle of the pieces I create,” she says, of the time she spent so close to the artisans, dyers and craftspeople of the region. It made her more aware of how she could use materials in innovative ways. “I saw banana leaves used as food wrappers, bamboo turned into trays, and hemp or linen crafted into baskets,” she says.
Yu Mei was already working with natural dyes before the trip, and had experimented with alternative weaves in her practice, but seeing the natural forms of its constituent elements in person expanded her vision: how papaya can be used to soften raw silk, or the care it takes to feed mulberry leaves to silkworms, or reel cocoons by hand. “Learning directly from communities that have preserved these crafts for generations felt essential.”
“Learning directly from communities that have preserved these crafts for generations felt essential.”
Once back in London, Yu Mei set to work creating her next collection. “I brought back raw hemp yarn and hand-spun silk, then knitted, knotted, twined, and coil-basketed them into contemporary tableware,” she explains. “My aim was to reimagine these materials into everyday objects with a modern aesthetic, while still honoring their origins and the hands that shaped them.”
Below, see the images of her trip — and the artwork that emerged out of it.
“At Ms. Trang’s family farm, we fed silkworms mulberry leaves, reeled cocoons by hand, spun the yarn, and wove it into fabric. The experience underscored the importance of preserving and honoring traditional knowledge.”
“Each region had its own materials and techniques shaped directly by the environment and different tribes. Fibres, drying methods, and dye ingredients all depended on what the land provided. Even local architecture adapted to suit the climate and culture. It reinforced for me how closely craft is tied to place, and how important it is to work in harmony with nature.”
“Meeting makers in their homes, spinning silk on verandas, drawing batik lines by wood stoves showed me how deeply craft is woven into everyday life.”
“In my own practice, heritage and tradition often appear in subtle ways, through material choices or making processes.”
“Each day was full of new sights, stories, and techniques. Trying to absorb it all while also being present was sometimes overwhelming, but in a good way.”
See more of Yu Mei’s work at www.yumei-huang.com
Find out more about the TextileSeekers March 2026 6-day creative immersion trip and enjoy an exclusive 10% discount for The Everywoman readers with code TS010TEM at www.textileseekers.com
