Profile

Katarzyna Schmidt-Przewoźna graduated with honors from the Eugeniusz Geppert Academy of Art and Design in Wrocław, where she specialized in interior design and textiles. For 12 years, she served as the artistic director of “Cepelia,” a prominent Polish cooperative of folk artisans active from 1949 to 1990, and created numerous well-known fabric collections during her tenure.

In 1993, she founded the Natural Dyeing Studio “Sztuka naturalna” ("Natural Art") at the Institute of Natural Fibres and Medicinal Plants in Poznań. She authored or co-authored around 100 scientific publications on natural dyeing, textiles, art, and traditional crafts. She organizes workshops promoting historical and original textile technologies.

Schmidt-Przewoźna exhibited her works in over 70 individual and group shows and curated 20 museum exhibitions. She presented at over 80 international scientific conferences and contributed to 10 grant-funded research projects, often as the principal investigator or project lead.

She received 15 awards and distinctions, including a Silver Medal at the 2008 EUREKA World Exhibition of Innovation in Brussels, a Bronze Medal at KIWE 2009 in Seoul, a Gold Medal at IWIS in Warsaw, and Poland’s Gold and Silver Cross of Merit (Krzyż Zasługi)—a state decoration awarded for outstanding service. In 2002 and 2003, she received the Sybilla Prize from the Polish Minister of Culture and National Heritage for her contributions to museum exhibitions.

She is a member of the Scientific Committee of the Journal of Natural Fibers (USA). In 2006, she was a visiting lecturer at the National Institute of Fashion Technology in New Delhi, India.