Iota - Auction 2026
Iota is a design studio specializing in contemporary homeware products. Founded in 2014 by Tal Zur and Shula Mozes, Iota began with a vision to preserve the craft of crochet while redefining its shapes and proportions to create a new aesthetic. Crochet serves as a powerful tool for social change: Iota’s pieces are hand made by women working from their homes. As a social business, it is committed to both environmental and social sustainability, working within under-resourced communities, offering training and fair pay while fostering a sense of empowerment and belonging. The swing was the first piece Iota designed, and it became the heart of the studio. It invites you to fall in love: rich textures, intricate techniques, and three-dimensional forms that move with you as you swing.
‘Who are you?
My name is Tal Zur. I’m married to Guy, a mother of three, and I was born and raised in Tel Aviv. I studied curatorship and patisserie, and last year I completed a social leadership program. I’m an industrial designer and a senior design lecturer.
Twelve years ago, I met my partner, Shula Mozes, and together we founded iota, a social design brand. Since then, I’ve been trying to create social impact through design—combining my love for craft, skill, and aesthetics with responsibility and activism.
What is your creative area of expertise?
At iota, we teach women to crochet and knit, providing them with fair-trade employment. So the obvious answer would be crochet, knitting, textiles, and craft.
But the more I think about it, the more I realize that my real expertise lies elsewhere: taking crafts that are often perceived as outdated or irrelevant, and transforming them into objects that feel contemporary, desirable, and meaningful today.
Main inspiration?
I don’t think I have one main source of inspiration—it changes all the time. Often, inspiration comes from people I meet, materials I discover (sometimes simply because I suddenly have access to a lot of them), a craft I stumble upon, or a pattern that captures my attention.If I had to name one constant, it would probably be curiosity.
Tell us a little bit about the work you chose to share
The swing is the very first product we ever designed at iota. It holds a special place for us, not only because it marked the beginning of the brand, but because it already contained many of the questions we continue to explore today—movement, comfort, playfulness, and the tension between softness and strength.
The swing is entirely handmade, crocheted using our custom-developed textile, and designed to function both as an object and as an experience. Over the years, it has become almost iconic for iota.
What is your work process?
The process usually begins with translating inspiration into knitted or crocheted surfaces and volumes. From there, a product starts to emerge.
We then develop the correct textile for our vision, and the exact technique, teach the craft to the women we work with, and slowly tie everything together—design, material, production, and community—into one coherent object.
One special moment that happened to you this year
This year, we returned to work with Bedouin women in Lakia, where iota’s journey first began. At the same time, we managed to create something new with our yarns and collaborate with an additional community.
For me, this moment symbolized both returning to our roots and stretching our boundaries—looking back and forward at the same time.
A piece of honest advice?
I’ll go with clichés, because they’re usually true.
Keep doing the things you truly love. Keep dreaming—because dreaming is often the only way to move forward. And maybe most importantly, dare to take risks.
What’s next?
Continuing to work on new ideas, developing collaborations, and creating new collections—always through the dialogue between craft, design, and social impact.’