After its initial launch in the fall of 2024 at FABER Timișoara, the exhibition “Woven Secrets” is presented from May 16–25 at the National Museum of Art of Romania (MNAR) in Bucharest, as part of RDW Exhibitions, a new format of Romanian Design Week.
“Woven Secrets” is part of Design Signals, a research program initiated by FABER and curated by Martina Muzi, which investigates the connections between design, industry and technology in the context of the ever-changing industrial landscape of Timișoara. The exhibition explores the textile industry as a territory of collective memory, but also of the possible future – an industry still active, but often invisible in the contemporary economic landscape.
Curated by Martina Muzi – designer and lecturer at Design Academy Eindhoven – the exhibition brings together works by a selection of Romanian designers: Mihaela Vișovan, Andreea Pleșa, Dinu Bodiciu, Amalia Săftoiu, Gabriela Rada, Maria Dombrov, Lavinia Ghimbășan, Alesia Cîdă, Răzvan Zamfira and Studio Interrobang, Alex Todirică, as well as collective contributions by students and former industry workers. They worked in collaboration with factories in Timișoara and the surrounding area, such as Cottontex, Pasmatex, LanaTerm, IMP Romania, EcoCinix, and UTT, but also with experts and sociologists, such as Norbert Petrovici and his research team at Babeș-Bolyai University, authors of the report “Changes in Global Textile Markets: Romania’s Role in the Global Value Chain between 1962 and 2022”.
“Woven Secrets” is not only a retrospective on the textile industry of Timișoara, but also a curatorial vision of how design can shape its future. Through our collective efforts—involving students, designers, workers, researchers, and the local community—the project and its iterations become a space to reimagine what textiles can mean today and tomorrow. This project embodies the potential of design to observe, question, and transform, offering a blueprint for integrating cultural heritage into sustainable practices.” – Martina Muzi, curator
The exhibition “Woven Secrets” can be visited at the National Museum of Art of Romania, from May 16 to 25, from Wednesday to Friday between 10:00 and 18:00, and on Saturday and Sunday between 11:00 and 19:00. On Monday and Tuesday, the museum is closed.
During the RDW, the public will also be able to participate in guided tours supported by the Da’ De Ce Association, scheduled as follows: Sunday, May 18, from 2:00 PM and 5:00 PM, Wednesday, May 21, from 4:30 PM, Thursday, May 22, from 4:30 PM, and Sunday, May 25, from 2:00 PM and 5:00 PM. And families with children are invited to participate in an interactive workshop on May 24, from 11:30 AM, about the journey that an article of clothing takes from its origin to its disappearance or to the beginning of a new life, in another form.
Access to the exhibition is based on the museum’s visiting ticket, which can be purchased on site (20 lei for adults / 5 lei for children and students / 10 lei for pensioners). Registration for the workshop is done by email at office@asociatiadadece.ro.
