Artists Merge Thread Painting With the Japanese Art of Kintsugi on Vintage Plates

Kintsugi Embroider by Katerina Marchenko and Artashes Sardarian

When artists with two different styles come together, magic can happen. That is certainly the case with the collaboration between embroidery artist Katerina Marchenko and mixed-media artist Artashes Sardarian. They've merged Marchenko's embroidery on tulle with Sardarian's kintsugi to great effect.

The pair worked together using vintage plates, tulle, embroidery thread, and gold. The results are delicate mixed-media pieces where Marchenko's embroidered eyes and hands peer out from holes in the punctured ceramics. The fragmented plates are used as frames, with Sardarian fusing the broken pieces together with gold.

“From brokenness to beauty: just like these plates, even shattered souls can be mended with the gold of kindness,” writes Sardarian. Marchenko expands on the concept behind this collection on Instagram, explaining how the work can be seen as a metaphor for breathing new life into something considered old and forgotten. Her thread painting brings depth to the pieces and activates them as portals into a new world. “The branches surrounding symbolize change and new possibilities as if breaking through the boundaries of time,” she adds.

Scroll down to see more images from this dynamic collaboration, and follow Marchenko and Sardarian to see more of their work.

Artists Katerina Marchenko and Artashes Sardarian collaborated on a fascinating new series of art.

Kintsugi Embroider by Katerina Marchenko and Artashes Sardarian

They combined Marchenko's delicate thread painting with Sardarian's kintsugi using vintage plates.

Kintsugi Embroider by Katerina Marchenko and Artashes Sardarian

Kintsugi Embroider by Katerina Marchenko and Artashes Sardarian

The pieces can be seen as a metaphor for how something past its prime can have new life breathed into it.

Kintsugi Embroider by Katerina Marchenko and Artashes Sardarian

Kintsugi Embroider by Katerina Marchenko and Artashes Sardarian

“From brokenness to beauty: just like these plates, even shattered souls can be mended with the gold of kindness.”

Kintsugi Embroider by Katerina Marchenko and Artashes Sardarian

Kintsugi Embroider by Katerina Marchenko and Artashes Sardarian

Katerina Marchenko: Website | Instagram 
Artashes Sardarian: Saatchi | Instagram

All images via Katerina Marchenko and Artashes Sardarian.

Related Articles:

Long Colorful Strands of Yarn Are Woven into Stunning Portraits

Resin Crystal Trays Preserve Real Flowers Inside Their Glossy Surfaces

Ethereal Embroideries Stitched on Transparent Tulle Float In Wooden Hoops

Kintsugi-Inspired Tableware Fuses Broken Dishes With 24-Karat Gold “Glue”

Jessica Stewart

Jessica Stewart is a Staff Editor and Digital Media Specialist for My Modern Met, as well as a curator and art historian. Since 2020, she is also one of the co-hosts of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. She earned her MA in Renaissance Studies from University College London and now lives in Rome, Italy. She cultivated expertise in street art which led to the purchase of her photographic archive by the Treccani Italian Encyclopedia in 2014. When she’s not spending time with her three dogs, she also manages the studio of a successful street artist. In 2013, she authored the book "Street Art Stories Roma" and most recently contributed to "Crossroads: A Glimpse Into the Life of Alice Pasquini." You can follow her adventures online at @romephotoblog.
Become a
My Modern Met Member
As a member, you'll join us in our effort to support the arts.
Become a Member
Explore member benefits

Sponsored Content