US Debut of Work by Innovative Indian Textile Studio Morii Design
Curated by Suchi Reddy at Salon Design this September
Titled Crafting Topographies, the exhibition features traditions of Indian craftsmanship and its stewardship by women across the continent, highlighting hand-embroidered wall art from Brinda Dudhat’s Morii Design that bridges craft, meaning, and aesthetic excellence.
Public Exhibition Dates: September 20 - November 1, 2024
New York, NY (August 26, 2024) -- his September, Salon Design will feature the US debut of innovative Indian textile studio, Morii Design, with a selection of works from the studio curated by leading architect and designer Suchi Reddy to highlight the profound beauty and meaning of the historic Indian craft of embroidery. Founded in 2019 in Gujarat, India by Brinda Dudhat, Morii is a dynamic design studio born from a reverence for Indian craft, especially textile techniques that have been stewarded by women for generations. This exhibition at Salon Design presents 25 works using Rabari, Jat and Sujni embroidery techniques and Vankar hand weaving from Sarli - techniques dating back centuries - alongside raw materials, presenting the innovative practice to US audiences for the first time while teasing out the inspirations and nuances of the studio’s work, which unites traditional craftsmanship and a refined contemporary aesthetic.
Focused on textile design, Morii subscribes to a slow, meditative process anchored in the strength of an unwavering relationship with its artisans. Spread across the rural expanse of India, Morii works with over eighty female artisans. This exhibition presents the wall art of Morii, which features different types of weaving, stitching, dying, and embroidery to form abstract topographies that contain the knowledge and touch of generations. Indian crafts people are often enlisted by designers from the Western world to produce works of art and design. Rarely is the history of their craft incorporated into their story. Morii aims to change that by elevating centuries old Indian craft techniques through its contemporary expressions of art and design.
“Morii Design represents a transformative approach to Indian craftsmanship, bringing to light the extraordinary depth and beauty of traditional embroidery,” noted the exhibition’s curator, Suchi Reddy. “The studio’s commitment to preserving and showcasing age-old techniques—especially those rooted in the wisdom and artistry of Indian women—creates a powerful dialogue between past and present. This exhibition is not just about textiles; it’s about the stories, skills, and soul embedded within every thread, celebrating and honoring the essence of Indian craftsmanship through a contemporary lens.”
Morii is leading the field in creating works of art hand in hand with artisans in India, prioritizing sustainability and intentionality in partnerships with local creators. From locally sourced raw materials to azo free dyes, Morii strives to include ethical and local processes at every step of creation. The studio pays artisan collaborators fair wages for their work and creates designs in true collaboration with them, honoring their inspirations, knowledge, and advice to create works that respect the traditions they engage with.
The exhibition is complemented by new and recently debuted design objects and lighting from ELOA, Studio Waah, and Creators of Objects selected by gallery founder Amanda Pratt.
About Salon Design
Salon Design is a New York based contemporary design gallery dedicated to promoting and supporting new and innovative work by emerging and established creators internationally, ranging from leading rug makers in Paris and India to experimental lighting designers in New York and textile innovators in the Netherlands. Bringing together works in a salon-style presentation that prioritizes cohesive vignettes and intriguing collaborations, the quarterly exhibitions at Salon Design showcase new series alongside existing work from artists and makers pushing the boundaries of material exploration while creating high-quality collectible design. With a gallery roster comprised of 80% women, Salon Design also aims to flip the gender dynamics of the art and design worlds, supporting the creative practices of women internationally.
Salon Design has been located in Tribeca since 2022 and presents projects internationally. Founded by interior designer and art advisor Amanda Pratt, the gallery is focused on presenting works that are intuitively collectible, resonant, and beautiful.
About Morii Design
Founded by textile designer Brinda Dudhat in 2019, Morii is a collaborative design studio based in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. With a vision to redefine the intersection of art and design, Morii’s artisans create unique works that are an amalgamation of the future with the past. Morii presents hand embroidered textiles as stories. They are the legacy of the current generation of Indian craftspeople. A heritage birthed anew, evolved into a language of today.
Each work is an artistic interpretation of age-old legacies, an erudite conversation in the fading language of embroidery. Today, Morii works with over eighty women from seven villages. Step-by-step, stitch-by-stitch, Morii builds their community of artisans. Starting with a deep dive within the craft, Brinda and her team build trusting relationships amongst the community. Through workshops, they bring women together to celebrate and further develop their skills.
About Suchi Reddy
Suchi Reddy is an architect, designer, and artist based in NYC. In 2002, she founded Reddymade, which focuses on public art installations, large-scale commercial spaces, and residential projects ranging from single-family homes to interiors and prefab architecture. Guided by her mantra “form follows feeling,” Reddy’s architectural and artistic practice is informed by her research on neuroaesthetics, which examines the impact our environments have on the brain and body.
Reddymade’s most celebrated projects include the first flagship Google retail space in New York, rated LEED Platinum; “me+you,” an interactive AI and light sculpture currently on display at Michigan Central Station in Detroit and first unveiled in 2021 at the Smithsonian Arts + Industries Building in DC for the Futures exhibit; a minimalist home in Salt Point, New York, with artist Ai Weiwei; “Look Here,” a solo exhibition at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C.; X, a temporary sculpture in the center of Times Square; “A Space For Being,” a collaboration with Google, Johns Hopkins, and Muuto during Salone del Mobile measuring the impacts of neuroaesthetics; an award-winning hybrid prefab home in Los Angeles; and The Connective Project in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, featuring 7,000 yellow pinwheels carrying messages and images from the surrounding communities.
Reddy has presented and lectured on the firm’s work at numerous venues including Bloomberg’s CityLab 2023, The Salk Institute for the Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture’s annual conference, the WSJ Future of Everything Festival, the Aspen Ideas Festival, the University of Illinois, and the University of Wisconsin.
Reddy teaches at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation and serves on several boards, including the Design Trust for Public Space and Storefront for Art and Architecture.
Media contact
Sara Griffin
+1-917-656-6348