Textiles: Open Letter & Textile Theorien der Moderne & Bauhaus Weaving Theory @ MISS READ

Location:
MISS READ STAGE
Akademie der Künste
Hanseatenweg 10, Halle 2
10557 Berlin
Joint Book Launch & Panel Discussion
Friday, June 26, 2015, 7.30 pm
Textiles: Open Letter & Textile Theorien der Moderne & Bauhaus Weaving Theory
Textile Theorien der Moderne. Alois Riegl in der Kunstkritik
Bauhaus Weaving Theory. From Feminine Craft to Mode of Design
with presentations by Sabeth Buchmann, Rike Frank, T’ai Smith, Grant Watson moderated by Susanne Leeb
Textiles: Open Letter
The increased presence of textile procedures and materials in recent art and exhibition practices raises a number of issues concerning their past and present roles. From a current perspective, textiles—and the history of movements like fiber art—are exemplary in the way they call into question the traditional boundaries of a genre whose mechanisms of inclusion and exclusion have shaped modern art (history)— be it gender-specific attributions, a favoring of optical over tactile principles, a hierarchy of materials and media, or the divide between discourse and craft. While this reappraisal highlights various interrelations between the different fields—especially regarding textiles’ exhibition history—the above-mentioned oppositions have (almost) ceased to provide a source of tension for contemporary productions.
How has the way we look at textiles shifted? And what functions do textiles have in contemporary artistic practice?
»Textiles: Open Letter« examines the referential and analytical qualities of textiles through both contemporary and historical works and references. The publication includes contributions by Elissa Auther, Sabeth Buchmann, Rike Frank, Florian Pumhösl, Judith Raum, Seth Siegelaub, T’ai Smith, Georg Vasold, Leire Vergara, and Grant Watson, and is edited by Rike Frank and Grant Watson in collaboration with Sabine Folie, Georgia Holz, and Susanne Titz for the Generali Foundation, Vienna, and Museum Abteiberg, Mönchengladbach. Designed by Martha Stutteregger, »Textiles: Open Letter« is published by Sternberg Press, Berlin, 2015.
Textile Theorien der Moderne: Alois Riegl in der Kunstkritik
Textiles play a decisive role in the founding of modern art history and art criticism. Beginning with Alois Riegl’s examination of Gottfried Semper, the reassessment of historical debate on textiles allowed formalism to be interpreted as (among others) a socio-aesthetic and/or politico-economic positioning of art. The publication includes essays by Elke Gaugele, Hanne Loreck, Katrin Mayer, Regine Prange, T’ai Smith, and Georg Vasold. »Textile Theorien der Moderne« is edited by Sabeth Buchmann and Rike Frank, designed by HIT, Berlin, based on a design by Michael Dreyer, and published in the PoLYpeN series by b_books, Berlin 2015.
T’ai Smith: Bauhaus Weaving Theory. From Feminine Craft to Mode of Design
In the first careful examination of the writings of Bauhaus weavers, including Anni Albers, Gunta Stözl, and Otti Berger, Smith reframes the Bauhaus weaving workshop as central to theoretical inquiry at the school. As they harnessed the vocabulary of other disciplines like painting, architecture, and photography, Smith argues, the weavers resisted modernist thinking about distinct media and challenged assumptions about the feminine nature of their craft. In parsing texts about tapestries and functional textiles, the vital role of these women in debates about medium in the twentieth century and a nuanced history of the Bauhaus come to light. »Bauhaus Weaving Theory. From Feminine Craft to Mode of Design« by T’ai Smith published by University of Minnesota Press, 2014.
The Book launch is a joint event by:
www.pro-qm.de
www.textilesopenletter.info
www.museum-abteiberg.de
www.foundation.generali.at
www.akbild.ac.at
www.b-books.de
www.sternberg-press.com
www.kulturstiftung.allianz.de
Hosted by
Miss Read: The Berlin Art Book Fair 2015
www.missread.com
MISS READ 2015
June 26th to 28th 2015
at Akademie der Künste
Hanseatenweg 10, Halle 1 & 2
10557 Berlin
Opening hours
Friday, June 26th, 5 to 9 pm
Saturday, June 27th, noon to 9 pm
Sunday, June 28th, noon to 7 pm
Reception
Friday, June 26th, 5 to 9 pm till late
FREE ENTRY