Singapore-based illustrator Teresa Lim puts a contemporary spin on the traditional craft of embroidery. “I majored in textile design when I was in university,” she shared with Create Magazine. “We had to go through a short course in basic embroidery, and that was the start of my embroidery journey. I started by working on samplers that were part of the course work, but I got so addicted to the process that I found myself hoping the course would never end!”
Having graduated from Lasalle College of the Arts, majoring in Fashion Textile Design, Lim has been working on anything textile related ever since. Her intricate embroidery works have been commissioned by brands as big as Gucci, Changi Airport, and Swarovski to name a few; and she’s also showcased her work in various countries and in publications both locally and internationally.
“Because of my background and training in textile and fashion design, I am always thinking of application onto women’s (I majored in womenswear) bodies,” she notes. “Being exposed to this made me think more frequently about the female body and how we view it in society. This, in turn, also led me to ponder a lot more on gender issues, body issues, stereotypes and archetypes of women. At the end of my degree, I found myself being not so interested in the superficiality of design but in using it as a medium to highlight issues and tell stories.”
Her work is mostly inspired by the people and things around her, including literature and music. Lim is also a trained classical violinist who has studied music for almost all her life. To her, music and visual art work hand in hand, with each informing the other. Here are some highlights from her Instagram page:
