Chemnitz, 9–10 July 2022
On the invitation of the Nova Gorica–Gorizia European Capital of Culture 2025 team I took part in Makers United in Chemnitz. As Chemnitz will share the ECoC title with Nova Gorica–Gorizia in 2025, the participation of two Slovenian exhibitors aimed to present a slice of our creativity and innovation and to build new ties between the cities. Alongside my lace, visitors could also see stone-and-wood designs by Luka Boltar.
The fair showcases creative and innovative technological solutions across fields, with a strong focus on contemporary tech—so it’s no surprise that the most interest went to my “smart” lace necklace with LED lighting, driven by an embedded microcontroller, created in collaboration with Gregor Grajzar (Infotronika) and first shown at last year’s exhibition in Idrija.
Visitors were especially intrigued by the dialogue between technology and traditional bobbin lace, a craft well known in the Erzgebirge/Czech Ore Mountains region—one of Europe’s historic lacemaking centres. We made several promising contacts; we may return to Chemnitz in the near future.