Artist & Designer

Antoinette Twagirayezu is a Rwandan artist working in what she calls thread painting — a fine embroidery practice that transforms her original drawings into richly detailed works in thread. Her relationship with the craft began at home, learning traditional Rwandan embroidery techniques from her mother, but over time she made it entirely her own: using the delicacy of fine needlework to bring her own designs to life in a way that is both rooted in tradition and wholly original.

Her process begins in her sketchbook, where each composition takes shape as a drawing. She then transfers that drawing directly onto canvas at the scale she envisions for the final work — and from there, she hands the canvas to a dedicated group of women who execute the embroidery. It is a collaborative act, one that honors the collective tradition at the heart of the craft while keeping Antoinette's original vision at the center of every piece.

Her creative instincts are intuitive. She rarely starts with a fixed idea, letting her mind guide her and only naming a piece once it's finished and its meaning reveals itself. Inspiration comes from nature, everyday life, and the small details most people overlook.

Four years into sharing her work with the world, Antoinette is a collector favorite whose art is finding its way to audiences across the globe — and she is only getting started.