## Breadcrumb 1. [Home](/index%2Ephp/) 2. [Overview](/index%2Ephp/academics) 3. [Faculty Members](/index%2Ephp/academics/explore-faculty) 4. [Nithikul Nimkulrat](/index%2Ephp/markdownify/node/3982) # Nithikul Nimkulrat ![](https://ultima7-its.ocadu.ca/bios/nnimkulrat/portrait) nnimkulrat@ocadu.ca Faculty Information Professor, Tenured Faculty of Design Areas of Expertisecraft research Digital Fabrication embodiment experiential knowledge textiles Dr. Nithikul Nimkulrat is a textile artist, design researcher, and Full Professor in the Faculty of Design at OCAD University, Toronto, where she teaches in the Material Art & Design program and was Acting Chair of the program in 2020–2023. She holds a Bachelor of Industrial Design from Chulalongkorn University (Thailand), an MA in Textile Art and Design, and a Doctor of Arts in Design from Aalto University (Finland). Nithikul has held full-time academic appointments at Aalto University (2004–2010), Loughborough University (2011–2013), and Estonian Academy of Arts (2013–2018), where she served as Professor and Head of Textile Design. She joined OCAD U in 2018 as Tenured Associate Professor and, since 2024, has been Full Professor. During her 2024–2025 sabbatical, she was Visiting Professor at Politecnico di Milano, contributing to interdisciplinary research on prototyping and experiential knowledge. Her research integrates creative practice with scholarly inquiry, focusing on materiality, experiential knowledge, and craft as a method of thinking. She is the Convener of the Design Research Society’s Special Interest Group on Experiential Knowledge (EKSIG) (2013–present) and formerly chaired the Cumulus Fashion and Textiles Working Group (2016–2023). Her scholarly contributions include one single-authored book, five edited volumes, and over 60 peer-reviewed publications. Recent titles include Craft and Design Practice from an Embodied Perspective (Routledge, 2024) and Prototyping and Experiential Knowledge (FrancoAngeli, 2025). She also contributes chapters to major reference works such as the Bloomsbury Encyclopedia of Textiles and Springer’s Handbook of the Mathematics of the Arts and Sciences. Her textile artworks have been exhibited internationally, most recently in the solo exhibition Remembered & Forgotten (2025), which explores memory and loss through knotted paper sculptures, at Craft Ontario. In recognition of her research excellence, Dr. Nimkulrat received the OCAD University Award for Distinguished Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity in 2022–2023. She actively mentors emerging scholars and has supervised and examined numerous PhD projects in design and related fields, fostering innovative research across international institutions. ### Works #### Participation through Designing Relations with People, Materials, and Place Published: December 31st 2026 [View Article »](https://doi.org/10.1145/3789492.3796426) #### Prairie Interlace: Weaving, Modernisms, and the Expanded Frame, 1960–2000, Michele Hardy, Timothy Long and Julia Krueger (eds) (2023) Craft Research Published: December 31st 2024 [View Article »](https://doi.org/10.1386/crre_00139_5) #### Craft and Design Practice from an Embodied Perspective Routledge Published: December 31st 2024 [View Article »](http://dx.doi.org/10.4324/9781003328018) #### Crafting Novel Knotted Textiles with Mathematics The Textile Museum Journal Published: December 31st 2022 #### Squeaky/Pain: Articulating the Felt Experience of Pain for Somaesthetic Interactions Temes de Disseny Published: December 31st 2022 [View Article »](https://doi.org/10.46467/TdD38.2022.162-178) #### Embodiment and Experiential Knowledge Proceedings of DRS Published: December 31st 2022 [View Article »](http://dx.doi.org/10.21606/drs.2022.1073) #### “Squeaky/Pain”: Cultivating Disturbing Experiences and Perspective Transition for Somaesthetic Interactions Diseña Published: December 31st 2022 [View Article »](https://doi.org/10.7764/disena.20.Article.2) #### Mathematical Design for Knotted Textiles Handbook of the Mathematics of the Arts and Sciences Published: December 7th 2021 #### Decoloniality of knowing and being: Artistic research through collaborative craft practice Arts-Based Methods for Decolonising Participatory Research Published: October 7th 2021 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85110989723&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### Editorial track 6.a Materiality in the Digital Age FormAkademisk - forskningstidsskrift for design og designdidaktikk Published: October 7th 2021 #### Experiential craft: knowing through analog and digital materials experience Materials Experience 2 Published: October 7th 2021 [View Article »](http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/b978-0-12-819244-3.00026-0) #### Editorial EKSIG 2013: Knowing Inside Out - Experiential Knowledge, Expertise and Connoisseurship - International Conference 2013 of the Design Research Society Special Interest Group on Experiential Knowledge, Conference Proceedings Published: October 7th 2020 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85088355630&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### Knowing together–experiential knowledge and collaboration CoDesign Published: October 7th 2020 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85096916533&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### Translational craft: Handmade and gestural knowledge in analogue–digital material practice Craft Research Published: October 7th 2020 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85094913966&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### Alive. Active. Adaptive: Experiential knowledge and emerging materials International Journal of Design Published: October 7th 2019 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85073365311&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### Collaborative craft through digital fabrication and virtual reality Figshare Published: October 7th 2019 This paper examines the collaborative practice between an analogue and a digital craft practitioner. It aims to illuminate ways in which digital tools can be used to translate handcrafted objects in collaborative craft practice and to address the following questions: 1) What forms of knowing and meaning making evolve in collaborative research through design practice? 2) What does it mean to explore material in Computer Aided Design (CAD) through Virtual Reality (VR)? Originating with a hand-knotted artifact, the study begins with the transformation of an analogue form into digital format using a range of techniques. These activities act as both a review of digital fabrication capabilities and an exploration of new thinking mechanisms offered by this emerging hybrid practice. The study broadens our understanding of the maker’s role within the capabilities and limitations of digital tools. Each iteration of digitally-fabricated objects was documented and reflected upon. This collaborative practice acts as a catalyst for established disciplines within art and design to collide and interact. Outcomes include mapping workflows within digital and analogue material practice, and reflection on how the materials and methods used in digital fabrication have the potential to expand the meanings connected to the things that are produced. [View Article »](https://figshare.com/articles/Collaborative_craft_through_digital_fabrication_and_virtual_reality/7855781/1) #### Track 6.a Introduction: Materiality in the Digital Age Conference Proceedings of the Academy for Design Innovation Management Published: October 7th 2019 #### Mathematical Design for Knotted Textiles Handbook of the Mathematics of the Arts and Sciences Published: December 7th 2018 #### Knot Designs Based on Rhombille Tiling Notations Bridges 2018: Mathematics, Music, Art, Architecture, Education, Culture Published: December 7th 2018 [View Article »](http://archive.bridgesmathart.org/2018/bridges2018-507.pdf) #### Editorial: Experiential Knowledge in Collaborative Interdisciplinary Design Research DRS2018: Catalyst Published: December 31st 2018 [View Article »](http://dx.doi.org/10.21606/drs.2018.012) #### ‘Conversing WITH Materials’ -How do we converse with materials and other beings to co-design equitably? DRS2018: Catalyst Published: December 31st 2018 [View Article »](http://dx.doi.org/10.21606/drs.2018.711) #### Documentation as a practice-led research tool for reflection on experiential knowledge FormAkademisk Published: October 7th 2018 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85055052940&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### Storytelling Through Interactive Screens Estonian Art Published: December 31st 2017 Art and technology in the twenty-first century are no longer segregated, as they were in the past. The increase in artistic activities using computers, the Internet and other areas of technological interest shows the impossibility of understanding the future of the arts without attending to technology. Such activities are apparent in Estonia, as can be seen in creative works by a number of artists and designers who attempt to bridge the physical and virtual worlds. These worlds are where humans have always lived, for example through two of the oldest art forms: storytelling and myth. Storytelling helps us understand our environment and personal experience... The craftsmanship of storytelling is an aspect present in all of the creative projects discussed in this article. The three projects are: Kärt Ojavee’s and Johanna Ulfsak’s Live Streams (2016), Varvara Guljajeva’s and Mar Canet’s Chameleon (2016), and Kristi Kuusk’s Textales (2015). These projects deal with the creation of interactive screens and tell particular stories about our environment, national identity, and imaginative world, using storytelling as a strategy for connecting physical material and technology with the meaning of the creation. A position shared among these projects’ designers is their aim of making the spectator and/or user understand the surrounding environment and generating personal experience with their work. An artifact that tells a particular story seems to possess a power to captivate and maintain the attention of its viewer and/or user for a long time. The term “interactive screens” in this article refers not only to digital screens such as computers, tablets and mobiles, but also physical screens that are specifically designed and created for particular purposes. The traces of the designers who are the storytellers of the three projects are present in both the physical and the virtual screens. [View Article »](http://www.estonianart.ee/design/storytelling-through-interactive-screens/) #### Tiling Notation as Design Tool for Textile Knotting Proceedings of Bridges 2017: Mathematics, Music, Art, Architecture, Culture Published: December 31st 2017 A textile practitioner and two mathematicians with an interest in textile knotting carried out collaborative work to analyze textile knot practice and create novel knot pattern designs using mathematical tiling methods, in particular the Wang tiles. This paper shows how tiling notation was used to design knot diagrams and visualize novel patterns and structures. [View Article »](http://archive.bridgesmathart.org/2017/bridges2017-491.pdf) #### Ways of being strands: Cross-disciplinary collaboration using craft and mathematics Design Issues Published: October 7th 2017 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-85030638601&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### Novel Textile Knot Designs through Mathematical Knot Diagrams Proceedings of Bridges 2016: Mathematics, Music, Art, Architecture, Culture: Bridges 2016: Mathematics, Music, Art, Architecture, Culture Published: December 31st 2016 [View Article »](http://archive.bridgesmathart.org/2016/bridges2016-477.pdf) #### Introduction: Experiential Knowledge DRS2016: Future-Focused Thinking Published: December 31st 2016 [View Article »](http://dx.doi.org/10.21606/drs.2016.607) #### Crafting Textiles in the Digital Age Bloomsbury Published: October 7th 2016 #### Crafting Textiles in the Digital Age Published: October 7th 2016 #### Introduction Crafting Textiles in the Digital Age Published: October 7th 2016 #### Paperness: Expressive Material in Textile Art from an Artist's Viewpoint, Nithikul Nimkulrat TEXTILE Published: December 7th 2015 #### On understanding expertise, connoisseurship, and experiential knowledge in professional practice Journal of Research Practice Published: October 7th 2015 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84955117447&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### RTD2015 14 Ways of Being Strands: Exploration of Textile Craft Knots by Hand and Mathematics Published: October 7th 2015 #### Research through design as a discursive dissemination platform Constructivist Foundations Published: October 7th 2015 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84947447302&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### ornaMENTAALNE Journal of Textile Design Research and Practice Published: December 31st 2014 #### From Mathematical Diagrams to Knotted Textiles Proceedings of Bridges Seoul 2014: Mathematics, Music, Art, Architecture, Culture Published: December 7th 2014 [View Article »](http://archive.bridgesmathart.org/2014/bridges2014-219.html) #### Conference review Craft Research Published: October 7th 2014 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84928569151&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### Drawing as a Research Tool Studies in Material Thinking Published: October 7th 2014 [View Article »](https://www.materialthinking.org/sites/default/files/papers/SMT_V10_00_Editorial_0.pdf) #### Fabrication of fabric based Frequency Selective Surfaces (FSS) 8th European Conference on Antennas and Propagation, EuCAP 2014 Published: October 7th 2014 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84908609061&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### From Mathematical Diagrams to Knotted Textiles Proceedings of Bridges Seoul 2014: Mathematics, Music, Art, Architecture, Culture Published: October 7th 2014 [View Article »](http://archive.bridgesmathart.org/2014/bridges2014-219.html) #### I Wondered Stimulus Respond Published: October 7th 2014 [View Article »](http://issuu.com/stimulusrespond/docs/wonder/1?e=1037503/6737826) #### Review of the 5th International Congress of International Association of Societies of Design Research (IASDR 2013) Craft Research Published: October 7th 2014 #### Role of research and professional practice in teaching art and design Global Journal of Arts Education Published: October 7th 2014 #### Situating Creative Artifacts in Art and Design Research FORMakademisk Published: December 31st 2013 #### Fabric based frequency selective surfaces using weaving and screen printing Electronics Letters Published: October 7th 2013 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84890012275&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### Mathematical textiles: the use of knot theory to inform the design of knotted textiles Published: October 7th 2013 #### Hands-on intellect: Integrating craft practice into design research International Journal of Design Published: October 7th 2012 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84871972682&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### Voice of material in transforming meaning of artefacts Published: October 7th 2012 #### On reflecting and making in artistic research Journal of Research Practice Published: October 7th 2011 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-84856286128&partnerID=MN8TOARS) #### Problems of practice-based doctorates in art and design: A viewpoint from Finland Published: October 7th 2011 #### Reflection and documentation in practice-led design research Nordes Published: October 7th 2011 #### Material inspiration: From practice-led research to craft art education Craft Research Published: December 7th 2010 #### Creation of Artifacts as a Vehicle for Design Research Nordes 2009: Engaging Artifacts Published: December 7th 2009 #### Craft designer as researcher: theorising design from practical perspectives Published: October 7th 2009 #### Creation of artifacts as a vehicle for design research Nordes Published: October 7th 2009 #### Material Inspiration: The Practice-led Research of a Craft Artist C & C 09: Proceedings of the 2009 Acm Sigchi Conference on Creativity and Cognition Published: October 7th 2009 [View Article »](http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcAuth=ORCID&SrcApp=OrcidOrg&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=WOS_CPL&KeyUT=WOS:000281245100105&KeyUID=WOS:000281245100105) #### Material inspiration the practice-led research of a craft artist Proceeding of the seventh ACM conference on Creativity and cognition - C&C '09 Published: October 7th 2009 #### Materialness: expressive qualities of a physical material in textile design creativity Published: October 7th 2009 #### Paperness: expressive material in textile art from an artist's viewpoint Published: October 7th 2009 #### Reflections and Connections: On the Relationship between Creative Production and Academic Research Published: October 7th 2009 #### Meaningful objects: complementary research documentation of experiential qualities in art and design Published: October 7th 2007 #### Seeing the Seeing Paper: Looking at personal artistic experience through artefacts Published: October 7th 2007 #### The role of documentation in practice-led research Journal of Research Practice Published: October 7th 2007 [View Article »](http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?eid=2-s2.0-76649107897&partnerID=MN8TOARS) ### Education #### Doctor of Arts **Type:** Department of Design Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture #### Master of Arts **Type:** Department of Fashion and Textiles Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture #### Bachelor of Industrial Design **Type:** Department of Industrial Design Chulalongkorn University ### Qualifications #### Fellowship (FHEA) The UK Higher Education Academy / Advance HE ### Services #### Cult 2 Expert Panel Member Fonds Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek ### Employment #### Professor **Type:** Faculty of Design OCAD University #### Associate Professor **Type:** Faculty of Design OCAD University #### Acting Chair, Material Art & Design program **Type:** Faculty of Design OCAD University #### Professor / Head **Type:** Department of Textile Design Estonian Acedemy of Arts #### Lecturer in Textiles **Type:** School of the Arts Loughborough University #### Postdoctoral Researcher **Type:** Department of Design Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture #### Doctoral Researcher **Type:** Department of Design Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture ### Funding #### Cross-Disciplinary Collaboration as a Research Approach – Intersection of Textiles and Technology/Science **Type:** Grant This research project aims to examine cross-disciplinary collaboration as a design research approach for exploring the intersection between textile design and advanced technologies and/or materials. Four case studies will be conducted during my research stay at Weißensee Academy of Art Berlin. The first three cases will be based on my observation and interview with stakeholders working on interdisciplinary design research projects in three research clusters at Weißensee, including eLAB, greenlab and smart³. The fourth case will be based on my textile experimentation in collaboration with technologists and/or material scientists in one of the three research clusters. The project is expected to result in a clearer understanding of collaboration as a cross-disciplinary research method from which researchers from design and science disciplines learn to collaborate, communicate and exchange knowledge. This will be disseminated as peer-reviewed publications and a research exhibition featuring material artefacts created during the research stay. #### Methods for Producing Electromagnetic Arrays in Fabrics **Type:** Grant The project investigates a range of textile production techniques applicable to the creation of fabric screens for controlling ingress of electromagnetic waves within portions of buildings. The main work packages are: (1) the exploration of ways of producing fabrics with conducting elements that are aesthetically pleasing and of good enough quality to be used in wireless systems and (2) the evaluation of the demonstrators produced. The experiential design approach was utilised in the design process to put people using the outcomes at the heart of the experience. Textile techniques such as embroidery and weaving were used to create a variety of structures that allow the integration of conductive materials. This project bridges the gap between the high technology of wireless communications and the ‘traditional’ technology of textile making. Also, being introduced in a form of textiles – a common commodity in people’s everyday life, the high-tech product can reach people in society more easily. ### Memberships #### Elected Council Member (2013–2019), General Member (2020–present) Design Research Society ### Invited Positions #### Visiting Professor **Type:** Department of Design Politecnico di Milano #### Affiliate Professor Estonian Academy of Arts #### DAAD Visiting Professor **Type:** Textiles Kunsthochschule Berlin-Weißensee #### Designer in Residence **Type:** Material Matters Research Centre Emily Carr University of Art and Design ### Distinctions #### Distinguished Research, Scholarship and Creative Activity, 2022/2023 Ontario College of Art and Design #### Medal in recognition of contribution as an expert panel member Research Foundation - Flanders