Leni Zooks
Tangata Tiriti
Leni is a textile artist working with natural dye and quilting. They began delving into these crafts as a way to find connection and belonging, as their family has a strong history in textile arts. Their process begins by searching for pre-loved natural fibre fabrics. Their garden provides colour in through the flowers they grow, and food scraps such as onion skins. After new colourful life is given to the second-hand fabrics through various natural dye processes, Leni stitches them into quilts by hand. Alongside sustainable, patient practice, community, transparency and accessibility live at the core of their teaching.
Monica Dix
Tangata Tiriti, American
Monica/Mo is an interdisciplinary folk artist passionate about gathering to create things alongside each other. They believe in shared craft that builds communities and brings life to spaces. Mo is an immigrant to Aotearoa from Minowaking, Turtle Island (Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA) with ancestors from eastern Europe. Their workshops draw on connecting with these identities through craft, in ways that honour the tikanga and whenua of Aotearoa. Through their practice and workshops Mo cultivates joy, connection and care, empowering us to face uncertain futures.
Achille Segard
Tangata Tiriti, French
Achille is a creature of curiosity and crepes, having spent the last 14 years skulking around the capital publishing “woke leftist paper” as a founder of 5ever books. He has conquered our hearts, minds, and the specialty cheese departments of the local supermarkets. Achille is a master of chain maille now teaching his craft to those willing to take up the challenge. In his seven week course students learn the ins and outs of chain maille, completing the learning having created a wearable item or other object designed and crafted by themselves. A few small items made by Achille are available on the Micro Mill store, alongside some of his readable creations.
Aisha Michaela
Pākehā Tangata Tiriti
Aisha is a multidisciplinary artist devoted to creating experiences of gentle flow, and empowerment. Her work transports us to worlds of whimsy and nature devotional symbolism. These realms remind us we are no more or less important than the shells we find on the beach, and carry no less magic than a four leafed clover.
This whimsical woman brings her many talents to us at the Mill through the mending club. When it comes to the clothes we love, she believes every rip, stain, and imperfection is an opportunity for agency, expression, and showing the garment truly how much we appreciate it's existence. Each month she has a new technique to share, empowering everyone who attends to take mending matters into their own hands.
In her practice, Aisha creates beautiful worlds with many mediums, soon to be available as prints. She is also a practiced stick and poke tattoo artist working out of her welcoming home studio. Head to the link below for her portfolio and contact details.
Photo by April Brimer
Genevieve Rae
Pākehā Tangata Tiriti
Genevieve is a facilitator and artist working with textiles, nature, community, and exploring how these interconnect. The Micro Mill was born out of the intersection of these passions, where artists and crafts people can feel supported, live in their values, grow in their practices, and as teachers of their crafts.
While being the driving momentum behind the Mill, Genevieve continues to develop her own art practice. Multispecies philosophy guides her work as she creates textiles alongside spiders, bugs, fungi, and other non-human organisms. Spiders make their own tapestries alongside Genevieve, while bugs lay eggs on the yarns, adorning them like jewels. Genevieve’s work invites a sense of connection to smaller beings in our ecosystems who are often overlooked. Smaller beings who we can often learn from, and who we can learn to honour.
As someone who sees the abundance of materials that surround us, she can't stop herself from making clothing out of the many textiles that cross her path.
Materials move through my fingers like my cells will one day move through soil.