Zannah is a textile artist, designer and facilitator based in London. Currently she is developing work around themes inspired by traditions of repair, such as those exemplified in the Japanese craft of Boro, involving stitching together and mending remnants to extend the lifespan of cloth. In re-using discarded fabric, Zannah is also exploring the craft of Kintsugi. Usually denoting a way of piecing broken pottery back together with gold, Zannah is applying a similar principle to textile repair, giving cloth a higher value and new life. She is inspired by the term ‘palimpsest’, used to refer to an object that has layers of meaning that build on each other. Her current work incorporates this idea of stitching together layers of cloth to tell a story of renewal.

She studied Textiles in Bath, and on graduating received commissions from the National Museum of the Royal Navy, the retailer Anthropologie, and others. Later, Zannah studied for an MA in Material Futures at Central Saint Martins. Her research explored how design can improve wellbeing in healthcare environments. After graduating she volunteered with Central Saint Martin’s Design Against Crime research lab and was then employed to teach textiles at HMP Thameside prison. While at HMP Thameside, Zannah developed a project aimed at reducing violence and increasing empathy, in which prisoners made fidget quilts for individuals with dementia and weighted blankets for children with autism.