Mae Engelgeer

Mae Engelgeer is a Dutch textile designer who began her journey in Amsterdam and now lives and works in Kyoto, Japan. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Textile Design from the Amsterdam Fashion Institute in 2004 and later completed a Master’s degree in Applied Arts at the renowned Sandberg Institute. Since 2013, she has been shaping and sharing her distinctive voice with the world.
Her practice inhabits the space between tradition and innovation. She creates objects and environments that are tactile, atmospheric, and quietly transformative. With a deep reverence for textile heritage, she reimagines tradition—threading new possibilities through subtle shifts in perception. Through unexpected uses of color, scale, and materials, she brings new perspectives to traditional practices.
Her work lends a contemporary resonance to centuries-old techniques, transforming textiles into vessels of memory, mood, and imagination. While currently based in Japan, Engelgeer collaborates on projects across the globe, ranging from product design and public art to installations and textile collections.
“My work is driven by intuition and the desire to create. While I consider myself to be a dreamer in the creation of new atmospheres, I am able to quickly translate those ideas into tangible works using the right textures, materials and colors. When asked for my vision in collaborations, I feel a certain sense of freedom to explore a multitude of possibilities.”