Threaded Visions: Contemporary Weavings from the Collection
Weaving—it’s a familiar term, a millennia-old art form, and a technique used across the world. But what exactly is weaving? What does the process entail?
Weaving is the act of making fabric by interlacing threads using a loom. It may sound simple, but because a whole cloth or segment comes off the loom fully realised, all the various artistic decisions—colours, textures, design, materials, techniques—must be decided before any weaving begins. A woven work is a concept made manifest.
Image: White Dwarf, 2016. María Dávila and Eduardo Portillo. Nicole Williams Contemporary Latin American Textile Fund. © 2016 María Dávila and Eduardo Portillo. Photo by Tom Grotta, courtesy of browngrotta arts. Image above: A Weaving, 2012, James Bassler, Christa C. Mayer Thurman Textile Endowment. © James Bassler.
This exhibition, drawn entirely from the Art Institute’s permanent collection, explores the beautiful diversity of this ancient and global practice through the works of 13 contemporary artists from five countries. Some of these artists—like Olga de Amaral of Columbia—are internationally admired and have decades-long careers; others—like Qualeasha Wood from the United States—have come to prominence quite recently.
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