Dvojina/Dual and Nina Vastl Štefe (SI)

Creative lead: Nina Vastl Štefe

DVOJINA / DUAL is a social textile project that fosters openness, dialogue, collaborative manual labor, and individual expression. Two individuals collaborate on a textile project and create something beautiful and useful together. The project provides an opportunity to form a new connection with someone they already know or to meet someone new through creative work. Each team’s task is to sew a piece of fabric using simple stitches and patterns within a set time frame. Participants can help each other, talk, and cooperate throughout the process. In the end, the two pieces of fabric are assembled and sewn into a decorative pillow.

The workshop was first created and commissioned for BIEN 2025. Nina Vastl Štefe joined:

• Kindergarten children from Jesenice and dr. France Bergelj Senior Home Jesenice
• Fairytale Hearth children and the Kranj Seniors’ Club
• Škofja Loka Kindergarten children and users of the Centre for the Blind, Visually Impaired and Elderly

Thanks to: Slovenian railways; the project was supported with fabric by the company Gramatex d.o.o.

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BIEN focuses on diverse audiences and promotes the positive impacts of textile crafting on individuals. Architect and textile designer Nina Vastl Štefe conceived and led a series of workshops titled Dvojina (the Dual) from March to May 2025, where each cushion was created in tandem by a senior and a kindergarten child.

The cushions were exhibited in public spaces as part of the biennial:

→ Railway station Jesenice

→ Pr’Pepet Inn Škofja Loka

→ Layer Café Kranj