Talking to Mary-Ann from Illu Stration

Mary-Ann Williams, the creator behind Illu Stration, was born 1965 in Cape Town, South Africa, studied Fashion-Design, Pattern-Design, Textile-Design, Interior-Design, Interior-Architecture und Hat-Design in Cape Town and Germany and decided to stay in Germany because of Apartheid. In 1984 she started using felts (felting) for fashion and hats. After starting with her own fashion and hats collection she later specialized in the development of textile products in the HIGH END section of interior design. She creates home accessories, bowls, lights, table accessories, kitchen accessories, living accessories, greeting cards, bags, carpets, hats and fashion and she is advising in interior design solutions. Her innovative designs find international interest. She brings structures and 3-dimensionality into the so far known 2-dimensionality.

I went talking to her,

Coxi: What was the biggest influence in your work untill today?

M-Ann: South Africa: You can learn of poor people collecting waste and making something new out of it.

Coxi: Tell me a little bit about your artistic path.

M-Ann:It was stony: I took all obstacles that were laid in my way to build a bridge, my way to success.

Coxi: Were do you get inspiration?

M-Ann: It’s a combination of hard work and what’s happening around me in the world of fashion, art, architecture and everyday living – and a good sense of humor.

Coxi: Designers/Artists you admire?

M-Ann: My Dad, he was real.

Coxi: How is your work environment?

M-Ann: Almost everything is white. Large windows with a nice view all over the town. 40km of forest starting behind my house. Naturally green.

Coxi: What is your favourite piece of art that you have at home? Old or recently bought…

M-Ann: My son – always good for a surprise. You never know what comes next!!

Coxi: Do you think these days people can talk about a global design culture?

M-Ann: There does exist a global design culture. Internet and all the digitalisation of images was a big step towards globalisation. The blogs do the rest.

Coxi: Are you living your ideal lifestyle?

M-Ann: I`m always looking for a new challenge.

Coxi: How would you describe your style of work?

M-Ann: The simple, sensual and poetry of my work makes it more than textile – it`s a state-of-art design that has its own purity of form.

Coxi: Do you have any other job?

M-Ann: My jobs: Fashion – hats – accessories – furniture textiles – interior design – interior decorating – colour planning .