Miranda Horsten, assembly associate
Miranda Horsten is an all-rounder with an eye for detail. This makes her the perfect choice for a job that involves putting the finishing touches to the works of art produced in the lab. She has been a fixture in the assembly department since 2015. In that time, she has figured out a range of ways to make her work as invisible as possible. Initially, Miranda was responsible for finishing our own ‘by TextielMuseum’ products sold in the museum shop. She now mainly works on woven tapestries made by a diverse group of artists, from Kustaa Saksi and Anke Land to Ishola Akpo and Otobong Nkanga. She advises all these makers on possible finishes and hanging systems. Is Velcro, twill tape or a blind hem the best way to go? After correcting any errors, the work is made ‘exhibition ready’ in the large new atelier on the ground floor. Almost 80 per cent of the work is done by hand, making it even more beautiful – while being largely invisible.

Liesbet van Gestel, assembly associate
After a long career in education, Liesbet van Gestel turned her hobby into her job. She has been working in the assembly atelier since December 2023, finishing the woven and knitted tapestries made in the lab. This involves hanging systems, hems, fringes and more. The first pieces she finished were Otobong Nkanga’s gigantic tapestry ‘Tied to the Other Side’ and Erez Nevi Pana’s ‘Life as it appears from Space is down to Earth’. She also sewed together the three panels of Ishola Akpo’s ‘Traces of a Queen’, and with colleague Miranda Horsten, attached the central figure – Akpo’s queen – to the fabric. One of the special things about the assembly department is that the team sees the works that have been developed in the lab when they are almost finished. Many beautiful items pass through their hands. Liesbet is constantly fascinated by the life contained in a woven work of art. As an intern supervisor, she also loves sharing her knowledge and passion for making with the interns.