I am a textile artist, designer, and professional teddy bear killer. I am known for my unique approach, which involves dismantling stuffed animals to create unconventional interior designs and sustainable art. Through my art and design practice, I aim to raise awareness about the post-consumer waste generated by the toy industry.
My work often explores the emotional value we attach to our toys, even after we outgrow them, and examines their repurposing possibilities. My creations are a testament to my commitment to sustainable living. They represent a unique combination of creativity, innovation, and environmental awareness that challenges traditional notions of art and design.
Practice: Discarded textiles, art, design
Areas of interest: Textile, Design, Upcycling, Co-creation, Sculpture
Why are you a part of Magic Carpets: Magic Carpet offers a unique opportunity to work with communities I wouldn’t otherwise have the chance to engage with. They also provide an amazing opportunity to develop a project across nationalities, social, and artistic fields. I am honored to be a part of this program and am very much looking forward to it.
Magic Carpets project
Discarded textiles & Memories – workshop with Dainava District (working title)
I will be undertaking a project with the community of Dainava, centered around three workshops. The initial plan is to integrate my textile practice into a workshop setting, where we will work with discarded materials, specifically old toys and textiles. From there, we will explore the significance of the Dainava district and create textile collages from these materials. This is the preliminary idea, but the project’s direction may evolve. I hope that the final outcome will be a co-created artwork or work process.
Past projects
Southern Sweden Design Days, 2024
Type: Teddy Bear Killer workshop
The Teddy Bear Killer workshop at Southern Sweden Design Days has been a creative platform that I have been running since 2023. Here, I invite adults and children to experience what it’s like to be a Teddy Bear Killer. In this particular workshop, I provide participants with discarded, semi-deconstructed teddy bears and tools to create their own works of art or new teddy bears.
Where is your Teddy?, Interactive teddy room, 2023
Type: Installation
In 2023, I had the opportunity to realize a textile dream: a room filled entirely with orbs made from discarded teddy bears. Visitors to the exhibition were invited to interact with the forms in their own way and encouraged to see if they could recognize any old friends.
This installation was a part of my solo exhibition titled “Where is Your Teddy?”
What inspires you as an artist? People, memories, and secondhand shops.
When I have time, I often take strolls through my local secondhand shops. It is here that I find materials and objects that inspire me to create new work. These inspirations may come from their texture, form, pattern, or color, or from the stories that accompany the objects. You might notice a tear in a corner and wonder, what happened? You see a name on the tag and ask, who is this? Who owned it last, and how can I make them want to own it again? Can I use my creative textile capabilities to repair this object and give it new life?
What do you think is the purpose of art? The purpose of art is simple yet profound — it can mean everything or nothing at all. This shows how art is special because it means different things to different people. Art is also a way to express feelings and thoughts when words aren’t enough. Basically, art is important because it lets us share and understand deep emotions and ideas in our own unique ways.
Contacts
Email: [email protected] | feliciahansenstudio.com | Instagram