True Good Fabric
Exhibition at Museum der Völker, Schwaz, AT
07.09.2019 - 01.03.2020

"Collecting is an incurable but thankfully not a deadly disease." Carpet and textile collectors are affected by this passion with different approaches: The aesthetic claim is probably always in the foreground. Many outstanding pieces from the regions represented here are examples of the fulfillment of corresponding claims! And yet, this exhibition is deliberately not exclusively about objects of the highest quality - the focus is also on the diversity of textile production in various regions, predominantly Islamic cultures. In addition to aesthetics, many collectors also focus on the question of textile techniques of individual pieces. For example, some collectors are now regarded as internationally sought-after specialists when it comes to the technical analysis of complicated tissues. The original function of the collected textiles is also an important question. It is the hardest to answer because many textiles were designed to be multifunctional.

Collectors are often hunters and browse flea markets, antique shops, junk shops - and the Internet. Often, objects also enter into a collection through exchange or private sale. In any case, collectors are happy people!

The exhibition shows only privately collected objects, most of which have never been exhibited before, by members of the SOCIAL COMMITTEE ON PROMOTING TEXTILE ART RESEARCH (Gesellschaft zur Förderung der Textil-Kunst-Forschung -TKF).

It is not about knotted carpets, but rather about embroidery and fabrics from different regions from Morocco to India and the long period between the 4th century and the early 20th century. Behind some of the pieces there is also a story that is told here and brought to life: insights into social relationships between people, identity through clothing, hierarchies and gender roles, body image and spiritual ideas. Above all, economic relations become visible - fashion as a form of consumption, different kinds of patterns distributed through trade or colonial dependency, and the desire for them in Europe. Finally, the focus is on the cultural forms of production, and the unique techniques of producing these textiles.

As a curator of this exhibition, I am fortunate that a total of 10 lenders have opened their treasure chests and make their pieces available for this exhibition.

more information: https://www.museumdervoelker.com/post/gewebte-und-gestickte-geschichten