The distinct and authentic style of Brooklyn-based artist, Katie Merz, captured the attention of Valdese Weavers as they were trying to find a meaningful way to share their passion for sustainability with their customers, community and associates. Katie is best known for her large-scale contemporary mural artworks that can be found on building exteriors in cities like New York and Austin, but also in smaller urban neighborhoods across the United States.
Katie focuses on a specific theme and then makes glyphs using words, icons and shapes. The glyphs are densely spaced in wild orientations, making them echo the look of traditional graffiti. Valdese Weavers employees worked together to compile a long list of words that relate to sustainability within the textile industry and shared them with Katie to help her translate the company’s environmental story into a visually captivating piece of art. The talented design team at Valdese Weavers has since transformed Katie’s art into a jacquard fabric that will be shown during Interwoven in November 2022.
“Authentic inspiration is highly sought after. The gestural drawings and images that Katie created made our sustainability story feel more youthful and accessible. It isn’t easy to draw “energy” or “waste” in an attractive way, particularly on a fabric that will live in a retail environment and she did it. We are excited to see what kind of collaborations come out of this new partnership,” says Laura Levinson, Chief Creative Officer at Valdese Weavers.
Katie came to Valdese Weavers in the spring of 2022 to make the 8 ft. tall, 12 ft. wide paneled mural, giving employees and visitors the opportunity to watch this special installation come to life. The mural is currently on display at the Valdese Weavers showroom at 311 North Hamilton Street in High Point, NC and will eventually be permanently live at their facility in Valdese, NC.
