Yulia Schutterop

More than three years ago, I went through a major change in my life. I moved from Saint Petersburg (Russia) to the beautiful Ameland, a small island in the North Sea (Netherlands).

I was born and raised in Saint Petersburg and completed a degree in art history there. After my education, I happily worked for a little over 10 years at several large museums in the city.

Since my childhood, I have enjoyed making things myself. I have tried many different things: drawing, knitting, crocheting, felting, painting on silk (batik). Weaving also started as a hobby but eventually became a true passion.

Nowadays, I use various small table looms for my work. As materials, I use different yarns – (Ameland) wool, cotton, synthetic, and recycled yarns. Sometimes I need something with a special structure or color, and then I use thin fabric strips, which I make myself from old jeans or small fabric scraps.

Where do I find inspiration for my work? It certainly comes from the unique Ameland nature. Every day looks different, no day is the same, and I never get bored.

Now, after living on Ameland for three years, I can no longer imagine my life elsewhere. Every day I think: how lucky I am to live here. I now work for the Ameland museums, usually at the lighthouse in Hollum.

Last year, my works were exhibited at 4 group exhibitions of Ameland artists and 1 solo exhibition from July to October 2023 in one of the Ameland museums. During the exhibition, 7 works were sold.