Here, porcelain becomes a canvas for embroidery, much like composing a living landscape.

This workshop invites participants to imagine a unique tapestry made of hand-shaped beads inspired by the living world. Assembled on a canvas and connected by metal wire, these beads interact and overlap to form a dense composition, rich in relief and texture. Gradually, the whole evokes an abstract living wall, both organic and sculptural.

This project brings together the principles of ceramics and textiles, exploring the concepts of modules, assembly, and surface composition.

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Understand porcelain and its interaction with fibrous substrates
• Explore techniques for modeling miniature elements and bead tapestry
• Create organic reliefs in porcelain and terracotta
• Develop a sensitive and experimental approach to sculpture at the intersection of two mediums: ceramics and textiles
• Design a unique piece combining porcelain and a flexible substrate

Inspired by the forms of living things, this workshop focuses on creating a tapestry made from hand-shaped porcelain beads.

Seeds, succulent leaves, conifer needles: the plant world becomes the source of a vocabulary of forms that each bead translates in a sensitive way. After firing at 1260 °C, the porcelain vitrifies and takes on a matte, soft, and mineral-like appearance.

Fixed onto a tapestry canvas and assembled with metal wire, these beads form a dense, vibrant, three-dimensional surface, evoking the richness of a living wall.

This experimental project creates a dialogue between ceramics and textile arts, blending modeling, embroidery, and surface construction.

Process

Day 1

Afternoon

• Exploration of porcelain bead shapes based on visual references of tree seeds and wild plants
• Continuation of formal research on porcelain beads
• Introduction to and first attempts at modeling the beads

Day 2

Morning

• Development of porcelain bead modeling

Afternoon

• Preparation and loading of the kiln
• Starting the first firing
• Continuation of bead modeling

Day 3

Morning

• Continuing to shape the porcelain beads

Afternoon

• Continuation of shaping and refining the forms

Day 4

Morning

• Unloading the fired pieces
• Preparation and start of a second firing
• Assembling porcelain beads onto tapestry canvas using metal wire

Afternoon

• Continuing the assembly on canvas and constructing the relief surface

Day 5

Morning

• Unloading the fired pieces
• Finalizing the assembly of the beads on the canvas
• Cutting and adjusting the final piece, defining the edges, and attaching the lining

Katia Terpigoreva

Born in Moscow, Katia Terpigoreva began her career in journalism, spending nearly fifteen years working in the fields of design, architecture and contemporary art. At the age of 35, she made a radical change of direction and chose to devote herself to the visual arts. Following a spell in Italy, she settled in Aveyron, where she has lived and worked since 2010.
As a ceramicist and textile artist, Katia has developed a free, intuitive and organic practice, outside academic frameworks. Her approach explores the tactile qualities of a variety of materials: porcelain, stoneware, wool, fabric, cement, burnt wood and more – which she assembles, transforms or repurposes. She favours repetitive gestures and allows natural processes (drying, firing, the tension of fibres, etc.) to influence the final form of her works.

A member of the Homo Faber Guide, selected by the Michelangelo Foundation for her commitment to European craftsmanship excellence, Katia Terpigoreva embodies a renewal of contemporary creation rooted in gesture, material and innovation.

Katia Terpigoreva regularly takes part in biennials and international competitions in ceramics and contemporary textile art. In 2023, she received the Special Prize at the Cheongju International Craft Competition 2023 (South Korea), and in 2025, the National Prize at the Ateliers d’Art de France competition. The following year, her works represented France in a number of prestigious competitions: the Jingdezhen Prize at the Taoxichuan Porcelain Museum, the 13th International Textile Arts Biennale ‘From Lausanne to Beijing’ organised by the Academy of Arts and Design at Tsinghua University, and the 4th Blanc de Chine International Ceramic Art Award in China.

• Classroom, multipurpose room, workshops with professional equipment
• Supply of materials
• Individual and collaborative work
• Workshop-based work
• Active participation and experimentation by participants are encouraged

• Group and personalized progress tracking, regular updates
• Self-assessment of technical skills
• Group presentation
• Attendance sheet for each half-day
• Certificate of completion issued by Campus MaNa