Artisans
Behind every garment is a human being.
02 doesn't see craftsmanship as perfection, we see it as emotion, curiosity, and patience.
The artisan in this picture started hand embroidery at the age of 12. It has been 13 years since then, and through years of repetition, patience, and discipline, his artistry has become something truly special.
The image shows the artisan carefully preparing a design pattern before it is printed onto the fabric.
Once the design pattern is ready, the artisans print it onto the fabric. The design pattern outline acts as a guide before the hand embroidery process begins. However, before embroidering onto the final fabric, we create a few samples to refine the piece and understand how the embroidery naturally flows.
Just a few samples in this picture.
Before the artisans begin embroidering onto the final piece, the fabric must first be carefully stretched onto wooden frames and tightened with threads. This process keeps the fabric stable and properly tensioned for the hand embroidery work. Preparing a single piece can take up to 30 minutes before the embroidery process even begins.
As you can see in the picture, the strings attached to the wooden frame keep the fabric stretched and prepared for the hand embroidery process.
The Artisans in this picture have been working for 30+ years.
After the fabric is framed and the outline is printed, the hand embroidery process begins. In this image, the sleeve is being hand embroidered. This piece is halfway complete, once the artisans finish the garment, they carefully clean away all the chalk marks and design outlines.
The outline of the jeans can clearly be seen, helping the artisans embroider with precision. Some complex garments first go to the tailor to be marked. In this case, the tailor outlined the shape of the pants along with the pocket placements, allowing the artisans to understand exactly where the embroidery should sit and how the design will naturally flow across the garment.
Once the garment is complete, the artisans carefully remove the chalk markings and printed design guides, leaving behind only the embroidery and the final garment outline.
Spending two months with the artisans showed me how demanding this entire process truly is. From start to finish, a single piece can take a minimum of 20 hours of hand embroidery. There are days where they sit for 10+ hours straight, focused entirely on the work. The level of patience, discipline, and dedication each artisan carries is incredible.