Frances V.H Mohair is a women-led textile studio based in Prince Albert. Frances van Hasselt is a designer and entrepreneur focusing on developing mohair textiles in South Africa. Raised on a mohair farm in the Karoo desert, Van Hasselt has a deep affinity for this natural fibre. She collaborates with a team of craftwork women in the Karoo, weaving stories about the origins of this textile, simultaneously allowing the natural environment to inform every aspect of their design and creative process.

The Prince Albert Community Trust (PACT) invited the studio to be the featured artist for the 2024 Journey to Jazz Festival. The festival provides funds for PACT to broaden its ambit and positive impact on the communities of Prince Albert, Leeu-Gamka and Klaarstroom. The studio decided to create a body of work that encapsulated the feeling and spirit of “home” and how that looks and feels for everyone in the community.

The women who create these textile works utilise the distinctive and special natural fibre to pay tribute to the plants, the cracks, the colours and the people who make up the soundtrack to daily happenings. Captured in their creations and the textile is something of how the Karoo smells, sounds and feels.

The PACT Centre is situated in Botterblom Steet in Noordeinde, where most residents of the town live and where the music stems. It is also home to most of the craftwork women.

A tapestry is created for each home in Botterblom Street. The Botterblom Collection captures the everyday experiences and precious moments that make a house, a home.