Danielle Clough
Danielle Clough (b. 1988), also known by her moniker Fiancé Knowles, is an embroidery artist celebrated for her work that bridges craft, pop culture, and contemporary art. Born and raised in Cape Town, South Africa, Clough’s artistic journey began with design and photography before pivoting to embroidery in her mid-20s.
Initially Clough used embroidery as a therapeutic outlet, drawn to its tactile, meditative process. What began as a hobby soon evolved into her vocation when her embroidered tennis racket series 'What a Racket' went viral in 2016. These pieces—lush florals stitched onto the strings of secondhand rackets—captured international attention, showcasing her ability to transform everyday objects into vibrant works.
Clough’s work is deeply influenced by her background in photography, evident in her use of colour and composition. She stitches intricate, larger-than-life depictions of flora, fauna, and portraiture. Her pieces balance traditional techniques with contemporary edge, employing unconventional materials such as vintage fabrics, upcycled sports equipment, and salvaged metals.
A champion of collaboration, Clough has partnered with brands like Gucci, Nike, Adobe, and Instagram, embedding her craft into fashion, tech, and digital spaces. These projects amplify her belief in embroidery’s relevance to modern storytelling while connecting us to our own nostalgia. Her work has been featured in exhibitions around South Africa and worldwide, including shows in London, Russia and across the United States, as well as in publications like Vogue, The New York Times, and The Creative Independent.
Beyond her studio practice, Clough is an advocate for democratizing art. Through her Instagram platform, online classes, mentorships and travelling workshops she shares her creative process openly, inviting followers into her world of slow, intentional making. This transparency has cultivated a loyal audience, inspiring a new generation of fiber artists.
Today, Clough continues to work as a full-time embroiderer from her Cape Town studio. Her craft remains a testament to patience, resilience, and the enduring magic of thread as a medium for human connection.
Artist Statement for Head Under Water
At 19, I fell in love with a broken camera: a Lomography Holga, its plastic body held together by tape. Light leaks bled into every frame, and misfires felt like secret messages. Over two decades of playing with film, I found that expired film, chemical ghosts, and cross-processing accidents - these warped memories - taught me to see beauty in the mishaps.
For this body of work, I referenced these so-called mistakes, the grainy slips of color and shadows that hint at half-told stories. This collection reimagines accidental moments captured in film photography as tactile embroidered landscapes. By translating these ‘errors’ into thread, I explore how imperfections can become an intentional narrative. A shape becomes a figure, a light leak maps a mood. These traces on celluloid guide my needle and thread.
The series In Her Wake are photo sized captures, stitched out of the studio and in between the everyday moments. They were company during late nights alone or rhythmic entertainment during everyday duties.Inherent in these works are the memories captured in their making, and much like the film-faults, they begin to tell a new story through colour and texture.
A World of What's Left, holds all the leftover fragments from creating the work for Head Under Water. This piece collects the traces and off-cuts and recurates it into a new moment, inviting you to explore its details. The entire body of work is contained here, and no thread goes unloved.
This body of work is an ode to process and memory. By embroidering these film-faults into abstract compositions, I give them permanence and reverence. Each stitch is a conversation between chaos and control. Like my Holga, I’ve learned to embrace the journey over the destination. Here, imperfections are amplified and honoured. The result is an invitation to linger in the liminal.
