Unravel - The Power and Politics of Textiles in Art - Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam September 24
I learn so much from examining other artists work, their process and meaning. When most inspired I make notes during & after my visits to exhibitions, not only as an aide-memoir, but because reflecting back offers up thoughts, ideas and further routes of inspiration, that all inform my work.
The following notes gather together photos and online resources that best encapsulate my experience of the exhibition 'Unravel'. I was fortunate enough to see in Amsterdam. I loved it - the variety, the skill, inventiveness and most of all the tool of textile to convey historic and contemporary injustices.
Please be aware thta my notes aren't polished - they're not meant to be, otherwise they'd never happen.
If you've been to this exhibition, let me know what you thought, and if it lead you anywhere new? If you haven't seen it, then I hope this gives you an enjoyable glimpse into what was an amazing experinece.
This video is an introduction from the Barbican co-curator Lotte Johnson. The lay out in Amsterdam was different, with I suspect fewer pieces from what I can see. No matter the video gives a background to the collections and offers an insight into the categories and scale of the pieces.
The following are my photos of some of the works along with the exhibition notes, they're not in any particular order and do not include all the artists, so the video does provide a context that may photos may not.
A huge and powerful piece, this quilt plays into my love of reusing. Lewis explains more about her use and reuse of fabrics in this video.
The history of Indigo & denim featured in a couple of the exhibits, linked to the slave trade and associated with horrifically short life spans of 7 years!
This was a really disconcerting exhibit. Certainly 'ghost like' and the sound effects were very confusing. It took me a while to understand that the noises I was hearing were relayed from other parts of the museum, including two dogs barking outside, which I had heard earlier, as I entered! The eerie sounds and visual gave me thoughts of women's suffering in in the Middle East and Afghanistan atm. Not sure that was the intention, just my POV.
I'm interested in this process of preserving memories and the memory of someone in art, so I've dug out a little more info on Georgina to pursue - here is a short video about her process and a more recent a longer one.
I love this piece - the idea of secrecy, unknown treasured pieces beneath and part of the binding structure. Sheila Hicks is definitely one artist I need to know more about. This is a short video where she explains about her piece - Pillar of Inquiry.
She has a zest for using new materials and talks of the grid of life and weaving. But more importantly divergance from the grid..... I like this idea of art misbehaving.
This quilt was made by Lorraine Pettway, one of the Gee's Bend quilt makers. The story of the Gee's Bend women and their quilts is a bitter sweet one. Told, in part here.
Love Judy Chigago - a trail blazer!! Here's a great podcast with her & Katy Hessel
By Jeffrey Gibson
I love the detail and impact of these works by Adams, who has a show at the Hepworth Wakefield until 3rd November 24 - gutted I could not make it, but here's the promo for the show.
One artist whose work I did not manage to photograph was Teresa Margolles. Her work was incredibly moving for reasons explained in this article.
Well done if you've made it this far! You can stop now!
What follows is literally my rambling thoughts that occur as I'm reviewing the exhibition and digging a little deeper into some of the artists. It's a brain fart so don't expect it to make much sense!!
I'm surprised by my response to this exhibition and the connection I have felt to some of the artists and their work - maybe because the majority are women, or maybe because I'm familiar and comfortable with stitching, weaving, tapestry. It's in my creative ancestry.
I think it could also be because many are or have been suppressed and oppressed and art has been their vehicle to rebel, heal and educate. It's powerful stuff - the messages are loud and clear - maybe more overt than some painting?
I'm drawn to the reusing of materials that have personal meaning, and the creation of new materials through the processes of creativity. Too many creatives!
That stitching has medatitive and prayer like properties, as I would imagine a rosary has. That phrase 'stitched with love' comes to mind - the very nature of painstakingly stitiching by hand like Georgina Maxim does, how can there not be a little of the creator, time and history in those stitches?
I'm also thinking about sacrifice that's not only depicted in many of the pieces, but sacrifice to make them, from the artist and on the community as in the 'Shrouds' of gun crime - Teresa Margolles.
Story telling is so strong in these works - more so than in painting it feels. I wonder why? Is it made clearer?
I am working through the concept of tangle to tapestry. Here it reoccurs, for obvious reasons but for deeper reasons I think. I'm pondering the way tapestry is ordered, most traditional stitching is. Weaving, embroidery, knitting - all tidy, neat and in pattern, obeying the grid. Traditional stitching does not portray life's tangles and complexities. These pieces are subversive in their creation- they don't follow strict rules, they break out of them, the take the tangle of life and portray it in stitch. Must check out Sheila Hicks for her rebellion against the grid!
There is energy and emotion in the stitches and sculptures. Even in the subtle colours of the Gee's Bend quilt, when you look closer at the faded fabric and patches wear, they tell a powerful story, a nod to history and also a reflection of today.
Most are sad and I find that difficult. but there are others like the Namaqua embroideries, although coming form tragic horrors of apparthied restriction, the clouds are of dust as the people perform their tradional whirling dance, and therefore feel joyful. I love these and want to wrap my home in a mass of beaded wire!!!
How do I get my story into my work with the same power? The memory of and memorial to.
How do I get the subversive energy of life - represent the tangle?
How am I and my work dictated to by the formal grid of expectation and tradition? Sheila Hicks talks about the grid of life.
Meaning, purpose and story is so strong in this exhibion maybe that's why I've connected with it. Maybe that's what I'm striving for?
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