ecilia Ceccherini (b.1991, Pisa, lives and works in Turin, IT) was awarded the 2020 Mahler & LeWitt Studios and University of the Arts London ‘Art for the Environment’ (AER) residency opportunity. Her practice intersects design with conceptual art. The following question focusses her research: “How can we design more sustainable futures and change our current relations with materials, resources and modes of production?” In 2019 she completed an MA in Textile Design at the Chelsea College of Arts, London UK, where she specialised in weaving – as everyday objects which also have sculptural and pictorial qualities, textiles and tapestries effectively combine her aesthetic and scientific approaches. During her residency in Spoleto, as her report on this page describes, Cecilia worked with a number of local experts including Alessandro Butta (Accademia di belle arti di Roma) and Glenda Giampaoli (Museo della Canapa, Sant’Anatolia di Narco). She researched the agricultural production and processing of yarn and natural dyes and developed new work – textiles, sculptures and wall drawings – which she presented in an exhibition, titled Mountains are lost oceans, at the close of her residency (see the image carousel below).