I am an award-winning textile designer and weaver working under the name Maria Sigma, the professional name of Maria Stavropoulou. Working between London and Athens, my practice spans wall-based works, functional objects, and site-specific commissions.

My work is grounded in a material-led approach to weaving, combining traditional techniques with a contemporary perspective. I focus on natural fibres, often working with undyed, hand-spun, and surplus materials, exploring how structure, texture, and process shape the final form.

I studied at Chelsea College of Art & Design and have developed my practice through a combination of studio work, research, and teaching. I am the recipient of the Cockpit Arts | Clothworkers Award and the author of Weaving: The Art of Sustainable Textile Creation. Alongside my studio practice, I teach weaving through workshops and as an instructor with Create Academy, and have taught at the University for the Creative Arts in Farnham and most recently at the University of West Attica in Athens.

 

My work centres on the transformation of exceptional natural fibres into textiles that emphasise structure, tactility, and longevity. I have collaborated with interior designers, architects, brands, and galleries including MAKE Hauser & Wirth Somerset, Flow Gallery, Soho House, Selfridges, TOAST, COS, The New Craftmaker, Jonathan Tuckey Design, Conran Design, and Rockwell Group.

My work is held in private collections and has been acquired by collectors, award-winning designers, and leading hospitality spaces. Installations include MANNA Arcadia, Athens Capital Suites, The London Victoria and Mandarin Costa Navarino, where the work engages directly with architectural context and landscape.

I am influenced by my Greek heritage and a strong affinity for mathematics and material logic. I reinterpret traditional weaving structures through processes of deconstruction and experimentation, deliberately moving away from rigid symmetry and restrictive techniques. Instead, I allow space for variation, irregularity, and responsiveness within the loom.

 

Sustainability is integral to my methodology. Through zero-waste design and slow-making craftsmanship, I work exclusively with high-quality natural fibres, creating textiles that prioritise material integrity and longevity. My visual language is defined by natural tones, subtle colour relationships, and shifts in texture achieved through weave structure and yarn weight.

For me, weaving is both a discipline and a way of thinking, a means of bringing order to complexity and transforming raw material into something precise, tactile, and quietly expressive. I see textiles as fundamental to how we experience space: they shape our environments, mediate our relationship with the natural world, and carry a sense of familiarity, comfort, and permanence.

Textiles with a ‘feeling at home’ - a sense of place and identity; functional or not, they reflect our daily rituals and become part of our personal collections and timeless heirlooms.

Please do reach out if you wish to work together or commission work.

 
 
"As part of the British Craft Pavilion this weekend at the Old Truman Brewery weaver Maria Sigma shows her homeware textiles. In the Elements Issue, she speaks about her zero waste philosophy, her love for wool as a material and how her work connects back to the earth…" WORDS: VILMA PAASIVAARA VIDEO: PELLE CREPIN ALL RIGHTS: HOLE & CORNER MAGAZINE FULL INTERVIEW TEXT: https://www.holeandcorner.com/selects/hole-corner-selects-maria-sigma
 

EXHIBITIONS:

COLLABORATIONS:

  • The New Craftmaker, UK

  • Rockwell Group, USA

  • Hauser & Wirth Gallery, UK

  • F. J. Hakimian, USA

  • Hole & Corner Magazine, UK

  • J.M. Szymanski | New York, USA

  • Mandarin Costa Navarino, Greece

  • HAMREI, Portugal

  • Soho House, UK

  • MANNA Arcadia Hotel, Greece

  • Jonathan Tuckey Design, UK

  • Selfridges, UK

  • London Craft Week, UK

  • Mouki Mou, London

  • The July Hotel, UK

  • ABASK, UK

  • WLLW, USA

  • Flow Gallery, UK

  • The Garnered, UK

  • COS, UK

  • TOAST, UK

  • Mare Studio, Greece

  • Mouki Mou London, UK

  • Conran Design Group, UK

  • Susie Atkinson Design Studio, UK

  • Lang Architecture, USA

  • The Greek Foundation, Greece

  • Studio Noam, UK

  • Studio Reed, UK

  • Navy Grey, UK

  • The New Craftsmen, UK