TUFTING BERLIN/CL STUDIO
HAPPENING Tufting Berlin / CL Studio is a creative studio independently led by artists Sungeun Claire Choi and Wonek Lee who became captivated by the tactile immediacy and expansive creative possibilities of tufting.
Tufting Berlin is a Berlin-based tufting studio founded in 2021 and run by artists Sungeun Claire Choi and Wonek Lee under the name CL Studio.
Both artists studied Photography and Media Installation at HFBK Hamburg and continue to develop their individual artistic practices alongside their collaborative work at Tufting Berlin.
Their approach to tufting is rooted in contemporary art, image-making, and material experimentation. Rather than treating tufting solely as a craft technique, they use it as a tactile and spatial medium through which drawings, colours, everyday observations, and organic forms are transformed into textured textile objects.
Their work often begins with a simple visual idea that gradually changes through the physical process of tufting. The movement of the tufting gun, the density of the yarn, and the resistance of the material all influence the final form, allowing unexpected surfaces and details to emerge.
Alongside their broader artistic practice, Claire and Wonek also reinterpret elements of Korean cultural tradition through their own visual language. One example is their series of fish-shaped rugs inspired by bokbugeo, a traditional Korean object associated with protection and good fortune. By translating this familiar symbol into contemporary textile works, they carry its cultural meaning into a new context while giving it a playful and personal form.
Alongside their own artistic work and individually produced textile pieces, Claire and Wonek offer workshops and participatory formats for beginners, private groups, and companies. Their aim is to make the tufting process accessible without reducing it to a purely technical activity.
Through Tufting Berlin, they have created a space where contemporary art, textile practice, cultural memory, experimentation, and shared making come together.
