About

Niki Copi is a project of handcrafted silk scarves, a unique and original idea (and recipe) cooked in France by
Vivien Le Jeune Durhin: artist, graphic designer, and silkscreen printer based in Paris. Niki Copi’s pieces are designed, drawn and printed in a collective workshop space in La Chapelle, a neighborhood in the north of Paris.
Both pieces of art and everyday objects, they are — from thread to ink, including printing — the result of a local and manual creative process.

The silkscreen printing method impregnates each scarf with bright, deep colors, in the same way as fine art prints. This is a process is similar to the traditional technique known as
“à la Lyonnaise”. The inks and colors are therefore meticulously prepared, one by one. Each color is then printed, using a framed silk screen, onto the fabric, one after the other. This treatment of materials and resources is radically different from industrial printing techniques — inkjet, for example — in that it respects the finesse of the chosen colors, to enliven the contrasts and their subtlety.

Niki Copi silk scarves are made from French silk, woven in
a “twill” style in Isère, a region in the South-East of France,
by a company which specializes in the manufacturing of quality fabrics. This technique gives the fabric a soft, supple and shiny finish, which reflects the light as much as possible and allows for a true representation of the rich colors specially created for these pieces. The printed scarves are then washed and rinsed with water from the Vosges mountains, one after the other. Then, they are manually rolled “à la française” and packed in a hand-printed box, one by one. Because it is a complex and time-consuming manufacturing method, Niki Copi pieces are only produced in small series — 1 to 20 pieces, maximum. Through motions and expertise, each printed copy expresses itself, and enriches its character with its irregularities, giving these pieces a rare and unique touch.