Remembered & Forgotten

In Remembered & Forgotten, textile artist Nithikul Nimkulrat transforms deeply personal memories into intricate knotted paper sculptures. Working with black and white paper string, Nithikul draws on a decade-long exploration of knotting patterns developed through a collaborative research project with mathematicians, merging craft traditions with mathematical tiling theory.

The work conceptually reflects on the artist’s relationship with her father as he lived with Alzheimer’s disease. As his memory fades and recognition slips away, Nithikul confronts the inevitability of her own forgetting. She turns to the ordinary objects that once connected them—briefcase, ice cream cone, pen—as vessels for memory. Each is recreated at life scale through thousands of hand-tied knots, their fragile yet enduring structures embodying both the persistence and fragility of recollection.

The works’ monochrome palette heightens their graphic clarity, while the repetitive knotting process echoes the cyclical nature of remembering and forgetting. Through this meditative process, 'Remembered & Forgotten' offers a tactile record of memory’s textures. It invites viewers to consider how personal histories are shaped, held, and inevitably altered over time. Nithikul’s knotted forms speak to the quiet beauty of everyday objects and the emotional resonance they carry—reminders of what we cherish, even as time works to unravel the ties.

All pieces featured in the exhibition are from the series of the same title – Rememembered & Forgotten – created between 2024 and 2025.

See Craft Ontario website for more information about the exhibition.